In this evenhanded, reflective series of New Yorker-style profiles, Randall Balmer takes the reader on a cross-country exploration of the evangelical subculture in America. Throughout, Balmer fills in the theological and historical background, creating in effect a capsule history of evangelicalism. Through the eyes of the people Balmer meets, we are able to see into the heart of American evangelicalism and arrive at a more accurate, balanced portrait of this tradition. For this edition, Balmer has added two new chapters--one offering a fascinating profile of disgraced TV evangelist Jimmy Swaggart, and the other a behind-the-scenes portrait of a Christian rock band on tour.

Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory: A Journey into the Evangelical Subculture in America

Literature & Fiction

Randall Balmer

United States

Oxford University Press

In 1950, Christian Century ran a series of articles on twelve churches, some large, some small, each representing a strand of American mainline Protestantism. Now, nearly fifty years later, Randall Balmer--author and host of Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory, the acclaimed book and PBS series on American evangelicism--has revisited each of these twelve churches to take the pulse of Protestantism today. The result is a remarkable narrative, graced with touches of local color and memorable portraits of the people involved, and filled with deft observations and carefully nuanced insights about Protestantism at century's end. Much as he did in Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory, Balmer crisscrosses America to give us a first-hand look at how Christianity has fared in the last half-century. What emerges is a church challenged by diminished influence, but with signs of hope for the future. For instance, he takes us to West Hartford, Connecticut, where we learn how a gregarious pastor, Bob Heppenstall, rekindled the spirit of the First Church of Christ Congregational--still housed in its stately, classic New England meetinghouse--that had suffered from inept management until recent years. And in Ames, Iowa, at the Collegiate United Methodist Church, we watch George White struggle to regain his church's once dominant voice in the religious life of the town, a voice now dimmed by the growth of fundamentalism. Some churches have held steadfastly to long-established roles, such as the Washington Prairie Lutheran Church, in Decorah, Iowa, which has been a model of continuity, serving its Norwegian-American community in much the same way since it was founded in 1851. And Balmer also visits some thriving churches, such as Hollywood's First Presbyterian Church, led by the great preacher John Lloyd Ogilvie, who was recently appointed chaplain of the U.S. Senate. In Minneapolis, Balmer encounters Mount Olivet Lutheran Church, a congregation that has not only increased its membership, but can now call itself the biggest Lutheran church in the world. In Grant Us Courage, one of our most thoughtful chroniclers of the American scene offers an intimate look at mainline Protestantism at the close of the century. We come away with the feeling of having been there, of having listened to the voices of an important segment of Christian life, and of having found a deeper understanding of religious life in America today.

Grant Us Courage: Travels Along the Mainline of American Protestantism

History

World

This addition to the Denominations in America series surveys the history of the Presbyterian Church in the United States and includes a biographical dictionary of its principal figures. The work begins with a narrative survey of the history of the Presbyterian tradition from its roots in Europe to its manifestations in contemporary America. The biographical dictionary that follows contains alphabetically arranged profiles of traditional clergymen, along with sketches of leaders who were instrumental in shaping the American Presbyterian tradition. The reference concludes with a chronology and an insightful bibliographic essay.

The Presbyterians (Denominations in America)

Religion & Spirituality

John R. Fitzmier

Christian Books & Bibles

Greenwood

Written with insight and erudition, this is the first complete story of how so many religious movements arose in America and how they affect our politics and culture. Randall Balmer looks at the rise of evangelical groups from Methodists to the Disciples of Christ, charismatic leaders from Mary Baker Eddy to Jimmy Swaggart, and the meanings of beliefs from the "ideal of femininity" to the Apocalypse. He shows us the many forms"some surprising, all illuminating" American evangelical religion has taken since the very beginning of our nation: nineteenth-century spiritualists repeating the Lord's Prayer, Christian Scientists blending Hinduism with positive thinking, and Catholics adopting New Age rituals. Here, too, is revelatory insight into how evangelical movements are always in tune with their times, taking advantage of mass communication and the charisma of their leaders. 
In a nation where ninety-four percent of the people believe in God and ninety percent say they pray once a week, Balmer's fascinating book centers on the basic character of our nation - a nation with its roots in Puritan religious dissent, First Amendment protections, and a culture of creative individualism.

Blessed Assurance: A History of Evangelicalism in America

Beacon Pr

Evangelical Christianity and conservative politics are today seen as inseparable. But when Jimmy Carter, a Democrat and a born-again Christian, won the presidency in 1976, he owed his victory in part to American evangelicals, who responded to his open religiosity and his rejection of the moral bankruptcy of the Nixon Administration. Carter, running as a representative of the New South, articulated a progressive strand of American Christianity that championed liberal ideals, racial equality, and social justice―one that has almost been forgotten since. In Redeemer, acclaimed religious historian Randall Balmer reveals how the rise and fall of Jimmy Carter's political fortunes mirrored the transformation of American religious politics. From his beginnings as a humble peanut farmer to the galvanizing politician who rode a reenergized religious movement into the White House, Carter's life and career mark him as the last great figure in America's long and venerable history of progressive evangelicalism. Although he stumbled early in his career―courting segregationists during his second campaign for Georgia governor―Carter's run for president marked a return to the progressive principles of his faith and helped reenergize the evangelical movement. Responding to his message of racial justice, women's rights, and concern for the plight of the poor, evangelicals across the country helped propel Carter to office. Yet four years later, those very same voters abandoned him for Ronald Reagan and the Republican Party. Carter's defeat signaled the eclipse of progressive evangelicalism and the rise of the Religious Right, which popularized a dramatically different understanding of the faith, one rooted in nationalism, individualism, and free-market capitalism. An illuminating biography of our 39th president, Redeemer presents Jimmy Carter as the last great standard-bearer of an important strand of American Christianity, and provides an original and riveting account of the moments that transformed our political landscape in the 1970s and 1980s.

Redeemer

Biographies & Memoirs

Leaders & Notable People

Audible Studios on Brilliance Audio

Randall Balmer's Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory is an insightful and engaging journey into the world of conservative Christians in America. Originally published 25 years ago and the basis for an award-winning PBS documentary, this timely new edition arrives just as recent elections have left an ever-growing number of secular Americans wondering exactly how the other half thinks. From Oregon to Florida, and from Texas to North Dakota, Balmer offers an immensely readable tour of the highways and byways of American evangelicalism. We visit a revival meeting in Florida, an Indian reservation in the Dakotas, a trade show for Christian booksellers, and a fundamentalist Bible camp in the Adirondacks. For this fourth edition, Balmer adds two chapters, one on the phenomenally popular "Painter of Light," Thomas Kinkade, and one on Rick Warren, author of The Purpose-Driven Life. Through the eyes of these and other people Balmer meets on his journeys, we arrive at a more accurate and balanced understanding of an abiding tradition that, as the author argues, is both rich in theological insights and mired in contradictions. Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory offers listeners a genuine insight into the appeal that the evangelicals movement holds for thousands of Americans.

Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory

In this completely revised and expanded edition of the Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism, Randall Balmer gives readers the most comprehensive resource about evangelicalism available anywhere. With over 3,000 separate entries, the Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism covers historical and contemporary theologians, preachers, laity, cultural figures, musicians, televangelists, movements, organizations, denominations, folkways, theological terms, events, and much more--all penned in Balmer's engaging style. Students, scholars, journalists, and laypersons will all benefit from Balmer's insights.

Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism: Revised and Expanded Edition

Reference

Encyclopedias & Subject Guides

Baylor University Press

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Randall Balmer. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Randall Balmer