Mark Thomas Edwards, in his multifaceted book Faith and Foreign Affairs in the American Century, takes on the tough task of a mediator, arguing that a stark divide between the secular and religious may exist among scholars, but it has never existed so neatly in history. Overall, the versatility that Edwards displays throughout the book connects his form with his message: history is cluttered, multilayered, and mishandled when forced into narrow compartments. He does historians a service by beginning to unpack those boxes.
— Journal of American History
This book retells the history of twentieth-century diplomacy as a disappearing act. The American Century was born of a Protestant-secular partnership, but through Edwards' careful archival work, we watch the ecumenical Protestant departure from the international stage. This is an imperative work, showing, first, how essential Protestant secularism was in the effort to define the U.S. as a great global power, and, second, how intimate and familial this quest, and its slow fade from political relevance, was. Required reading for anyone interested in democracy, Christianity, and foreign affairs.— Andrew Preston, Cambridge University
What Mark Edwards offers in Faith and Foreign Affairs in the American Century is a distinct departure from much of the existing literature that considers "the American Century" as a concept or used it as a frame for thinking about modern US history and foreign relations. His approach is clever and layered. This is a lucidly-argued and compelling book. It is creative in its approach and capacious in vision. Scholars of modern US religion, politics, foreign relations, and intellectual history stand to benefit greatly from engaging with the core argument about Protestant secularism that Edwards advances.
— Church History: Studies in Christianity and Culture
Scholarly interest in the intersection between religion and foreign affairs has grown considerably in recent years, so that analysis of foreign policy decision-making can no longer ignore the influence of faith. Doing so runs the risk of reducing diplomacy to the narrow confines of political and economic filters, ignoring the cultural, social, and religious dimensions that shape worldviews. Edwards (Spring Arbor Univ.) here argues that American diplomacy has been equally secular and religious, a phenomenon he calls “Protestant secularism” (first coined by theologist Paul Tillich), through which religious initiatives are often secularized and secular initiatives are often Christianized. Interestingly, Edwards claims that democracy became less participatory after WW II, opening the door to elitist agendas to create a wider Judeo-Christian consensus, which was in reality a civil religion at best. He further contends that understanding this interrelationship is important, as it allows historians to better understand the complicated web of religion and secularism without seeing the two as polarizing opposites. In doing so, he helps to widen the discussion of American religion and foreign affairs, arguing that they often act as two sides of the same coin.
Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readership levels.
— CHOICE
This book retells the history of twentieth-century diplomacy as a disappearing act. The 'American Century' was born of a Protestant–secular partnership, but through Edwards' careful archival work, we watch the ecumenical Protestant departure from the international stage. This is an imperative work, showing, first, how essential Protestant secularism was in the effort to define the United States as a great global power and, second, how intimate and familial this quest—and its slow fade from political relevance—was. This is required reading for anyone interested in democracy, Christianity, and foreign affairs.
— Kathryn Lofton, Yale University
Scholars have spent a great deal of time and energy debating the extent to which US foreign policy has been religious or secular. But what if this is a false choice? In this intriguingly provocative, highly original, and deeply insightful book that takes readers beyond the religious turn, Mark Thomas Edwards shows how 'Protestant secularism' powered the emergence and spectacular growth of American internationalism.
— Andrew Preston, Cambridge University
This smart, creatively conceived, and rigorously researched book will be crucial for students and scholars alike. Focused on the Council of Foreign Relations and its founders, this is also a broader history of the United States in the world, American protestant cultural power, and the early Cold War, all told in a lively way that unpacks the dream of engaging the broader public in foreign policy. It is a rich book, and it should be broadly read and taught.
— Melani McAlister, George Washington University
The middle of the twentieth century was a time of change for the place of the United States in the world and the place of Protestantism in the United States. What Mark Edwards has done is carefully track the relation of these two fundamental transformations. He's done so with admirable nuance and appreciation for the subtleties of the topic. This important intellectual history brings to the fore figures and debates that have received too little attention.
— Daniel Immerwahr, Northwestern University
This timely and important book provides fresh insights into the rise and fall of Protestant secularism as a guiding force in US foreign policy. Faith and Foreign Affairs in the American Century is part of a flourishing new direction in the history of US foreign relations that emphasizes the nuanced ways in which religion and ideas have shaped American diplomacy. Edwards’s work situates Henry Luce’s famous 1941 ‘American Century’ in a new light by centering his analysis on the interrelationship between Protestant Christianity and secularism during a period of profound change in the US role in the world. Deeply researched, well-conceived, accessibly written, and compelling, this study will be of great interest to historians, students, and citizens eager to understand the underpinnings of US foreign policy.
— Christopher McKnight Nichols, Oregon State University