Kenneth L. Woodward

This examination of American religious culture, from, as the title says, “the age of Eisenhower to the era of Obama” is much more personal than the title suggests, and very engaging. Kenneth L. Woodward was, as the cover also notes, Religion Editor of Newsweek magazine from 1964 to 2002, and his telling of the trends, events, and personalities in American religion during those years is based in large part on the stories he wrote for that magazine. In researching his stories he traveled the country, interviewing people like the Dalai Lama, Billy Graham, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, etc. – the major figures. He does a very thorough job covering the changes in the Roman Catholic church during those years (he is Catholic himself, and he makes clear that his own faith is important to him), and also the changes within mainline Protestant denominations, the growth of Evangelicalism, and various movements such as Liberation Theology, feminist theology, etc. Judaism gets a friendly but more cursory treatment, and Islam isn't covered. Still, what he covers he presents in a lively, anecdotal way that suggests that he and the reader are sitting comfortably together while he relates some of the best stories gathered over a long and interesting career.

Two minor complaints. One is limited to the format of my copy – an audiobook read by Peter Altschuler. Altschuler reads well, and he has a very pleasant voice, but his persona – the “folksy, slightly curmudgeonly grandpa” – is overkill here. Woodward opens his book with a paean to the 50s of his youth, an idyllic world in which Father knew best, the nuns were wise and kind, and kids were polite and hardworking, and that era remains his touchstone, a golden age of faith and family. Altschuler's manner, coupled with Woodward's nostalgic tone, can get to be a bit much. The second complaint is related to the first, but concerns the Epilogue. While I felt like Woodward could be excused for his lengthy reminiscence of his Catholic youth in Ohio, the Epilogue is an irritable tirade on the many failings of “kids today” which fails to offer any insights into either religion or culture, and which ends the book on an unfortunately sour note. If I had quit listening/reading when I got to the Epilogue I'd have ended up liking the book better. Still, for the most part this is enjoyable, and the sections on Movement Religion and Liberation Theology, topics about which I knew little, were particularly interesting.… (lisätietoja)

Subtitled “Faith, Culture, and Politics from the Age of Eisenhower to the Era of Obama,” Kenneth Woodward’s Getting Religion is a large book, but a surprisingly absorbing and informative read. The text is split into overlapping sections, examining the author’s experience as he grew up Catholic, the country’s governance in war and in peace, the rise of drug use and magical thinking, racial discrimination, feminism and more. Reading it is like watching a well-wrought documentary of recent American history, and I was totally hooked.

The author’s parents, like mine, married across religious boundaries--a minor detail I suppose, but one that drew me in. The undisciplined student came of age in the 50s and describes an America that’s far from my (English) experience. His life and his world must have seen many changes since then, but the author makes all these changes seem logically rooted in the past as he chronicles the fusion and later divisions of faith, culture and politics. From his prominent place in journalism, the author meets the famous people of his age, asks questions, analyzes trends with well-wrought words, and offers his observations with honest humanity and intelligent thought.

Days of racial segregation, legal or otherwise, times of separation and unification, abortion laws and the rise of feminism, a people seeking change and a secular world embracing the power of the sacred… the author follows evolution in Catholic thinking, the marches of Martin Luther King, the rise of “self-started” religions, Billy Graham's ministry, the politics of JFK, Israel’s 6-day war, and much much more, each section in the book reading like a collection of fascinating essays, each revealing its different part of the past, and each depicting honestly both the author’s impressions and the characters of the people and world around him.

As an English reader I loved the insight into American life and politics. As a Christian reader, I found the author’s depiction of religion’s rise and fall both fascinating and disturbing. And as an American, I truly value learning the history of this country I now call home. Getting Religion is a wonderful work by a fascinating author—highly recommended.

Disclosure: Blogging for Books provided this book to me and I offer an honest review.… (lisätietoja)