Since President George W. Bush's 2004 electoral victory, there has been a flood of books promoting apocalyptic visions of impending theocracy. Reading them, you might think the Moral Majority and Christian Coalition invented Christian political activism in the 1980s.

Christians have long applied the teachings of their faith to their politics. Yet today's activism is an anomaly. Traditionally, faith-based activism has not been so closely associated with one party. During the tumultuous years when America grew into a financial superpower, Christians spread across the political spectrum. They often rallied to their economic allies, such as populists, socialists, and conservatives.

William Jennings Bryan, Dorothy Day, and Abraham Kuyper would have disagreed about plenty. Yet all three brought their faith to bear on the great social challenges of their day and saw politics as an arena in which to serve their neighbors as agents of God's grace.

FREE E-Newsletter Sign up for the ChristianHistory.net e-mail newsletter. Discover more about your Christian heritage with this weekly e-newsletter that features key people, topics, and events from the history of Christianity.      RSS Feed   RSS Help