Federalist Politics and Religious Struggle in the New Nation

FAIN: FT-57277-09

Jonathan Den Hartog
University of Northwestern - St. Paul (St. Paul, MN 55113-1501)

With contemporary debates over religion's place in public life, scholars have grown sensitized to how religion has functioned in the political realm in earlier periods in American history. My project, "Federalist Politics and Religious Struggle in the New Nation," will contribute to this need by addressing the question from a new perspective, focusing on the Federalists, one of the new nation's first two political parties. I describe a situation where religion's place in the early American republic was a matter of much contention. In that setting, Federalists wrestled with what place religion would have in the new nation, and their efforts in both the political and cultural realms shaped American culture and its conflicted attitudes to public religiosity. A Summer Stipend will aid me as I draft the final two chapters of my book manuscript. With this support, I will be able to send the manuscript to an academic publisher shortly after the conclusion of the grant.

Associated Products

Patriotism and Piety: Federalist Politics and Religious Struggle in the New American Nation (Book)
Title: Patriotism and Piety: Federalist Politics and Religious Struggle in the New American Nation
Author: Jonathan J. Den Hartog
Abstract: Jonathan argues that the question of how religion would function in American society was decided in the decades after the Constitution and First Amendment established a legal framework. He shows that among the wide array of politicians and public figures struggling to define religion’s place in the new nation, Federalists stood out—evolving religious attitudes were central to Federalism, and the encounter with Federalism strongly shaped American Christianity. Also he describes the Federalist appropriations of religion as passing through three stages: a "republican" phase of easy cooperation inherited from the experience of the American Revolution; a "combative" phase, forged during the political battles of the 1790s–1800s, when the destiny of the republic was hotly contested; and a "voluntarist" phase that grew in importance after 1800. Faith became more individualistic and issue-oriented as a result of the actions of religious Federalists. Religious impulses fueled party activism and informed governance, but the redirection of religious energies into voluntary societies sapped party momentum, and religious differences led to intraparty splits. These developments altered not only the Federalist Party but also the practice and perception of religion in America, as Federalist insights helped to create voluntary, national organizations in which Americans could practice their faith in interdenominational settings. Patriotism and Piety focuses on the experiences and challenges confronted by a number of Federalists, from well-known leaders such as John Adams, John Jay, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, and Timothy Dwight to lesser-known but still important figures such as Caleb Strong, Elias Boudinot, and William Jay.
Year: 2015
Publisher: University of Virginia Press
Type: Single author monograph
ISBN: 9780813936413
Copy sent to NEH?: Yes

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