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Rhetorical Analysis of Civil Religion In America by Robert H. Bellah Robert N. Bellah "Civil Religion In America" was written in the winter of 1967 and is copyrighted by the Journal of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences from the issue entitled "religion in America". In his writings Bellah Explains the idea and workings of Civil Religion in the United States; this chapter was written for a Dædalus conference on American Religion in May 1966. It was reprinted with comments and a rejoined in The Religious Situation. Civil Religion is the idea that our own government has its own Devine right of worship and is parallel to the writings of the Bible. It's the concept that the United States is its own religion as a form of Christianity complete with its own form of life beyond, rewards of virtue, and the punishment of vice, and the exclusion of religious intolerance. But in order for a religion to be plausible and become a success it needs a number if pivotal points that juxtapose some form of existing religion. Abraham Lincoln was our Jesus messiah sacrificing himself for freedom and new beginnings wail Washington is the Moses leading the people out of captivity; our sacred documents like the old and new testaments are the constitution and bill of rights, The ritual dates are the fourth of July and labor day. Civil religion even has it's own monuments, Commandments, guideline and followers. Civil religion is a highly discussed topic in American history with many sides and many views. One of the most dominant for civil religion is Jean-Jacques Rousseau, arguably the most influential political philosopher of the last three centuries and whom Bellah bases much of... ... middle of paper ... ...the history of the US. Bellah's tone is not one of harsh overzealous words but a positive and punctual tone, it's a piece that's simple and informative and simply states the facts without to much bias. My Evaluation of Robert Bellah's "Civil Religion In America" is that is a well written piece that applies well to the audience that it is intended for threw it's historical and biblical references that will appeal to some of the more well read readers, but also in the validity of his presentation of the facts that he argues. The idea of Civil Religion is one that is not easily accepted and an ideal that people can not be forced or pushed into believing. Bellah does a good job of just presenting what he has discovered and why the idea of Civil Religion is valid threw the easily connect able dots that Bellah has laid out to his readers.
Eugene D. Genovese, “Religion in the Collapse of the American Union,” in Religion and the American Civil War, ed. Randall M. Miller (New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998), 43-73.
Gaustad, Edwin S. The Religious History of America: The Heart of the American Story from Colonial Times to Today. N.p.: HarperOne, 2004. Print.
Wood, James E, Jr. "Religious Human Rights and a Democratic State." Journal of Church and State 4(2004):739. eLibrary. Web. 31 Aug. 2011.
What appears to be wrong with the question that serves as the title of the book is that it instigates an answer, when in fact; there can be no concrete answer because there are only arguments on both sides. A dominant theme of this book will be the importance in the understanding of history, and that without it, there cannot be consensus on historical arguments; especially those regarding America’s foundation as either a Christian or non-religious nation.
Snay, Mitchell, Randall M. Miller, Harry S. Stout, and Charles Reagan Wilson. "Religion and the American Civil War." The American Historical Review 105.1 (2000): 217. Print.
C. Stephen Evans is stating there is a problem with the philosophy of religion having a neutral stance. Evans rejects both fideism as well as neutralism, and believes that by trying to have a, “neutral, disinterested posture,” a person could, “cut themselves off from the possibility of even understanding what religion is all about,” (Evans, 1985 p. 115). Evans notes that the view of faith and reason, by some religious believers think it is an impossibility to have “rational reflection” on religion. After his arguments that disprove many ideas in both fideism and neutralism, he proposes an alternative solution which he has named, “critical dialog”, that he hopes will, “preserve the strengths and eliminate the weaknesses of the initial theories,” (p. 115). “Correct thinking about religion is rather a genuine faith, a personal commitment,” (p. 116).
Religions play a crucial role in impacting how adherents live their lives and their understanding of humanities enduring questions of life. Religion is an active system of faith. Christianity is a religion centred on the teachings of Jesus Christ and the bible. A living tradition is one that is active amongst followers in present society. Whereas a dynamic tradition is capable of adapting and amending in order to meet the needs of society. Christianity is formed as a living and dynamic tradition, which is defined by its distinct characteristics. Characteristics include, sacred texts and writings, rituals and ceremonies, beliefs and believers and ethics. Ultimately, Christianity is shaped as a living and dynamic tradition through the characteristics of religion’s impacts on adherents.
Hood, R. W. Jr. (1999, November). American Psychology of Religion and the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion.
Bellah’s argument’s basis is in his definition of America’s civil religion. He makes sure to make to known that he is not accusing Americans of worshiping our country. Instead, he says most Americans believe in “a set of beliefs, symbols, and rituals that I am calling American civil religion.” He also makes the argument that the civil religion actually came from the ideas of the Founding Fathers. They did not usually say anything about Jesus Christ, nor Christianity. At this time pretty much every single American was Christian. They still talked about God though. They did not talk about a certain part of God, rather, just about the idea that there was a God and he controlled the universe and also that he has some sort of set of goals that
U-S-History. (n.d.). United States History. Retrieved February 16, 2012, from History of Religion in America: http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h3787.html
Lutz, Zak. "Limits of Religious Freedom." Harvard Political Review. 01 Jun. 2013: 10. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 28 Apr. 2014.
Evans, C. S., & Manis, R. Z. (2009). Philosophy of Religion (Kindle Edition ed.). Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press.
6. Bohdan R. Bociurkiw and John W. Strong, Religion and Atheism in the U.S.S.R. and
Schleiermacher, Friedrich. On Religion: Speeches to its Cultured Despisers. New York: Harper and Bros, Publ., 1958.