Revive Us Again: The Reawakening of American Fundamentalism

by Joel A. Carpenter

By the end of the 1920s, fundamentalism in America was intellectually bankrupt and publicly disgraced. Bitterly humiliated by the famous Scopes "monkey trial," this once respected movement retreated from the public forum and seemed doomed to extinction. Yet fundamentalism not only survived, but in the 1940s it reemerged as a thriving and influential public movement. And today it is impossible to read a newspaper or watch cable TV without seeing the presence of fundamentalism in American society. In Revive Us Again , Joel A. Carpenter illuminates this remarkable transformation, exploring the history of American fundamentalism from 1925 to 1950, the years when, to non-fundamentalists, the movement seemed invisible.
Skillfully blending painstaking research, telling anecdotes, and astute analysis, Carpenter--a scholar who has spent twenty years studying American evangelicalism--brings this era into focus for the first time. He reveals that, contrary to the popular opinion of the day, fundamentalism was alive and well in America in the late 1920s, and used its isolation over the next two decades to build new strength from within. The book describes how fundamentalists developed a pervasive network of organizations outside of the church setting and quietly strengthened the movement by creating their own schools and organizations, many of which are prominent today, including Fuller Theological Seminary and the publishing and radio enterprises of the Moody Bible Institute. Fundamentalists also used youth movements and missionary work and, perhaps most significantly, exploited the burgeoning mass media industry to spread their message, especially through the powerful new medium of radio. Indeed,
starting locally and growing to national broadcasts, evangelical preachers reached millions of listeners over the airwaves, in much the same way evangelists preach through television today. All this activity received no publicity outside of fundamentalist channels until Billy Graham burst on the scene in 1949. Carpenter vividly recounts how the charismatic preacher began packing stadiums with tens of thousands of listeners daily, drawing fundamentalism firmly back into the American consciousness after twenty years of public indifference.
Alongside this vibrant history, Carpenter also offers many insights into fundamentalism during this period, and he describes many of the heated internal debates over issues of scholarship, separatism, and the role of women in leadership. Perhaps most important, he shows that the movement has never been stagnant or purely reactionary. It is based on an evolving ideology subject to debate, and a theology that adapts to changing times.
Revive Us Again is more than an enlightening history of fundamentalism. Through his reasoned, objective approach to a topic that is all too often reduced to caricature, Carpenter brings fresh insight into the continuing influence of the fundamentalist movement in modern America,and its role in shaping the popular evangelical movements of today.

Genres: History, Church History, Religion, Fundamentalism, Cultural, American History, Politics

368 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Susie Meister · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book deals with fundamentalism between the 1930s and 1940s when they were able to establish their identity, consolidate an institutional network, and rethink their mission to America and their belief in their own "trusteeship of American culture." Carpenter aims to show the continuing interplay between fundamentalism and American culture. The foundation for this book is George Marsden's work, Fundamentalism and American Culture, and his definition of "militantly, anti-modernist Protestant evangelicalism." Fundamentalism was driven by increasing liberal theology and a perceived erosion of evangelistic commitment in their home denominations. They tended to attractive working class. Despite being ignored by historians after 1920, fundamentalism continued to thrive. It was a readers' movement and publishing was an important way they reached their audience. Radio also proved quite effective, and the discrimination they faced forced them to create an entertaining product. During these decades, fundamentalists were emerging as "peculiar" due to their lifestyle choices, which they saw as a true mark of Christianity. Education, militancy, and machismo were important parts of the movement. An odd paradox developed where they simultaneously believed the end times were near, yet they prayed for a revival. Fundamentalists felt alienated within American culture and impotent to change it. Carpenter points out that fundamentalists catered to the tastes of their audience and they had a desire for mass approval. He also argues that Billy Graham and the "revival of revivals" he represented was born out of fundamentalism. Carpenter agrees with Marty that evangelicals have adapted well to the modern world. He agrees with Marsden that fundamentalism was the most important category of evangelicals during this time period and they influenced a variety of other groups. He concludes by highlighting the dance between embracing and condemning the world that has made the movement so successful.

[Charlie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Only the best historians combine intimate knowledge of their subjects with precisely the right balance of sympathy and suspicion. Carpenter is one of the best.

[Tom Brennan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Carpenter's work demands respect. It also elicits if not demands aggravation.

There is much to appreciate here. He's done his homework, historically and doctrinally. He understands the finer points of both in relation to fundamentalism, even if he doesn't hold them and/or belittles them. And it is just here that the aggravation enters in. This is not just a history book. It is an analysis of how a weakening fundamentalism turned into the rise of Billy Graham and the religious right. As an historically based analysis, some opinion is fair game. I accept that. But Carpenter goes beyond that to routinely state his opinion about positions/doctrines that have no place in such a book. In so doing, he makes sweeping statements of the negative kind about our (fundamentalist's) doctrine and practice that are unkind, unfair, and unscriptural. Additionally, he hints/states that the transition of fundamentalism into evangelicalism was/is a good thing. I strenuously reject such. So there's that.

Having said that, the book is still eminently worth reading for its historical content alone. I'm a decently educated student of the fundamentalist movement, and repeatedly I ran across historical context of which I was unaware. I really, really appreciate any book that brings facts to the table, facts that inform our understanding of the past, our approach to the present, and our plans for the future. And Carpenter's book does that. It brings historical fact/context, boatloads of it.

So read it, but prepare to be aggravated while you do.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

really great intervention to the tired narrative that fundamentalism ceased to exist in the 30s and 40s. but while carpenter does a good job of pointing to these periods as a time of planting seeds for the upcoming revival of the 50s, i found there to be a significant lack of analysis of cultural forces that shaped these early institutions which ultimately determined the fundamentalist-evangelical movements of the rest of the century. these decades were crucial to reifying the kinds of racial, ethnic, and gendered prejudices within the movement, but the book addresses none of those.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Carpenter recounts the history of Fundamentalism, covering mostly the 1930s and 40s, dispelling some of the stereotypes about the movement. During this point of history, often ignored by historians, Fundamentalism made a "comeback" from its Scopes trial debacle in 1925, gaining influence and respectability during the World War II and early post-war years.

Well-documented and indexed, Revive Us Again is an invaluable volume for understanding Fundamentalism and its resurgence during these years.

[Chuck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good historical and cultural discussion of the re-emergence of fundamentalism/evangelicalism when it fell from grace after the Scopes Trial.