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Abraham Lincoln: Lessons in Spiritual Leadership
Many writers have explored Lincoln's leadership; others have debated Lincoln's ambiguous religious identity. But in this classic work, Christian philosopher and statesman Elton Trueblood reveals how Lincoln's leadership skills flowed directly from his religious convictions—which explains how the president was able to combine what few leaders can hold moral resoluteness with a shrewd ability to compromise; confidence in his cause while refusing to succumb to the traps of self-righteousness or triumphalism; and a commitment to victory while never losing sight of his responsibility for—or the humanity of—his enemy. These rich meditations offer deep wisdom and insight on one of the most effective leaders of all time.
192 pages, ebook
First published November 13, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
February 1, 2014
I am faced with the task of saying enough about a book I can't say enough about. I also need to do this briefly so people don't start scanning this review and miss out on a real treasure. Let's try this: if Team of Rivals was mated with Surprised by Joy, this is what would come out.
I don't know many books that really lay out the details of someone's spiritual journey. Our tendency is to say that this person was a Christian or was not, as though that designation is true at birth once and for all time. Those who enjoy exposing the borderline idolatry that conservative Christians have for America's historical icons enjoy pointing out Lincoln's skepticism of Christianity. They neglect to follow the strands of his continuing spiritual journey from young manhood, through the early trials of the presidency, to the sense of peace and confidence he seems to have gotten from Christ. The skeptic remains, but is a spiritually rooted skeptic who questions man's interpretations and actions, our ability to understand the Divine plan in every detail, rather than revelation itself. What is fleshed out to an extraordinary degree in such a brief and focused book is of Abraham Lincoln of living and vibrant faith, a man of regular and constant prayer, and a man who drew great strength from the Church even if he was only loosely affiliated with any one church.
Elton Trueblood's story arc is rooted in well-cited research, and he never veers very far from it. He knows the books Abraham Lincoln was reading, and he knows the people he looked to for spiritual guidance. When he moves from documentary evidence by summarizing or by helping the reader draw conclusions, he does even this with a gift for deft and memorable phrasing. This is a must read.
I don't know many books that really lay out the details of someone's spiritual journey. Our tendency is to say that this person was a Christian or was not, as though that designation is true at birth once and for all time. Those who enjoy exposing the borderline idolatry that conservative Christians have for America's historical icons enjoy pointing out Lincoln's skepticism of Christianity. They neglect to follow the strands of his continuing spiritual journey from young manhood, through the early trials of the presidency, to the sense of peace and confidence he seems to have gotten from Christ. The skeptic remains, but is a spiritually rooted skeptic who questions man's interpretations and actions, our ability to understand the Divine plan in every detail, rather than revelation itself. What is fleshed out to an extraordinary degree in such a brief and focused book is of Abraham Lincoln of living and vibrant faith, a man of regular and constant prayer, and a man who drew great strength from the Church even if he was only loosely affiliated with any one church.
Elton Trueblood's story arc is rooted in well-cited research, and he never veers very far from it. He knows the books Abraham Lincoln was reading, and he knows the people he looked to for spiritual guidance. When he moves from documentary evidence by summarizing or by helping the reader draw conclusions, he does even this with a gift for deft and memorable phrasing. This is a must read.
December 13, 2021
At the risk of overstatement, I found this book truly inspirational. Lincoln’s spiritual life has long been debated due to how extensively his spiritual views changed throughout his life. That’s why I so appreciated how thoroughly Elton Trueblood researched the subject, and then sought to express Lincoln’s heart rather than just explain his religious opinions. Trueblood made it clear how the most profound changes in Lincoln’s spiritual journey happened in his final years while being the president during a civil war. And if any reader chooses to consider how great trials can positively shape our own perception of God’s involvement in our lives, we would do well to consider this quote from June 1862: “I have felt His hand upon me in great trials and submitted to His guidance, and I trust that as He shall further open the way, I will be ready to walk therein, relying on His help and trusting in His goodness and wisdom.”
March 6, 2017
Elton Trueblood has always been one of my heroes. This book elevated Lincoln in my view. Trueblood divides his book into 6 chapters; the spiritual pilgrimage of Lincoln (which any student of Am. history would be familiar), the agonizing interlude, Lincoln and the Bible, Lincoln at prayer, Lincoln and the church and the final paradox. Lincoln and others of his time saw the unseen guiding hand of God acting to preserved this country. He refused to align with the Abolitionists because that was not who he was. Lincoln and Trueblood both recognized that Jefferson Davis was a devout believer in God and Lincoln pointed out that they both prayed to the same God. " Lincoln believed " America was important ....because God ... had a magnificent work for America to perform, a work significant for the whole world" This is another book for a thinking believer.
August 22, 2021
C-SPAN’s Presidential Historians Survey 2021 ranked Abraham Lincoln first among the 44 men who have served as America’s chief executive. The survey ranks presidential effectiveness across 10 metrics, including public persuasion, crisis leadership, moral authority, and pursuit of equal justice. This is the fourth time in the survey’s history that Lincoln topped the list.
Lincoln’s outstanding reputation among historians reflects popular opinion, too. According to a YouGov survey, 80% of Americans “have a favorable view of the president who freed the slaves and won the Civil War, including 56% who have a ‘very favorable’ view of him.” There’s a reason his face is carved on Mount Rushmore.
A steady stream of new books keeps our 16th president in readers’ minds. In just the past year, David R. Reynolds published a major new biography, Michael Burlingame profiled Lincoln’s marriage, and Ronald C. White probed the president’s private memoranda for insight (which I reviewed here). In spite of the never-ending stream of new books rolling off the presses, it’s also helpful to return to older works.
One of those is Elton Trueblood’s 1973 study on Lincoln’s religion, titled, Abraham Lincoln: Lessons in Spiritual Leadership. As a minister, I’m fascinated by the topic of Lincoln’s spirituality and have read a handful of books on the topic. (See my review of Stephen Mansfield’s Lincoln’s Battle with God or my annual blog post, “The Creed of Abraham Lincoln in His Own Words,” taken from William E. Barton’s The Soul of Abraham Lincoln).
The outlines of Lincoln’s religious beliefs and practices are well known: Raised in a hard-shell Baptist church on the frontier, a freethinking skeptic in his young adulthood, a move toward a profound, if heterodox Christian faith in his mature years. That maturity is reflected in the theological interpretation of the Civil War present in his Second Inaugural Address.
"The Almighty has His own purposes. 'Woe unto the world because of offenses; for it must needs be that offenses come, but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh.' If we shall suppose that American slavery is one of those offenses which, in the providence of God, must needs come, but which, having continued through His appointed time, He now wills to remove, and that He gives to both North and South this terrible war as the woe due to those by whom the offense came, shall we discern therein any departure from those divine attributes which thle believers in a living God always ascribe to Him?"
That paragraph reflects Lincoln’s understanding of the sovereignty of God’s will, which he epitomized in a note to himself that has been titled, “Meditation on the Divine Will”:
"The will of God prevails. In great contests each party claims to act in accordance with the will of God. Both may be, and one must be, wrong. God cannot be for and against the same thing at the same time. In the present civil war it is quite possible that God's purpose is something different from the purpose of either party — and yet the human instrumentalities, working just as they do, are of the best adaptation to effect His purpose. I am almost ready to say that this is probably true — that God wills this contest, and wills that it shall not end yet. By his mere great power, on the minds of the now contestants, He could have either saved or destroyed the Union without a human contest. Yet the contest began. And, having begun He could give the final victory to either side any day. Yet the contest proceeds."
According to Trueblood, this note, written in the aftermath of the Union Army’s agonizing defeat at the Second Battle of Bull Run, marked the final turning point in Lincoln’s religious evolution. On the one hand, Lincoln solidified his belief that God sovereignly controlled the events of history. “The will of God prevails,” he wrote. (“The Almighty has His own purposes.”) On the other hand, farm from resulting in fatalism or inactivity, for Lincoln, the prevailing of God’s will resulted in a strong commitment to vocation, which he referred to as “human instrumentalities.”
Mere weeks after the August defeat at Bull Run, the Union Army prevailed at Antietam. This victory prompted Lincoln to tell his cabinet on September 22 that he was ready to publicly announce the Emancipation Proclamation. Until that time, Lincoln’s primary war aim was to preserve the Union, even if it meant the continuance of slavery. After that date, he aimed to preserve the Union by beginning the process of abolishing slavery. Lincoln discerned his vocation — the emancipation of slaves — in the midst of the divinely willed Civil War.
The language Lincoln used with his cabinet to describe hie newfound resolution was inherently religious. In words recorded by Francis B. Carpenter, quoted by Trueblood, Lincoln said: “I made a solemn vow before God, that if General Lee was driven back from Pennsylvania, I would crown the result by the declaration of freedom to the slaves.”
Trueblood says much more about Lincoln’s religion than just the interplay of God’s will and human vocation, but that interplay seems to be Trueblood’s central insight into the development of Lincoln’s mature religious thought. After detailing the development of that thought, Trueblood devotes a chapter each to Lincoln’s views on the Bible, prayer, and the Church, ending with a consideration of Lincoln’s understanding of patriotism. I thought I was well informed about Lincoln’s religious views prior to reading this book, but Trueblood managed to reveal new information and nuanced interpretations that I found very helpful.
As our nation engages in extended culture wars in which secularism and religion are increasingly pitted against one another, studying the mature religious views of America’s best president may provide a way forward … for both sides. I heartily recommend this book, both for its historical interpretation of Lincoln and its vision for spiritual leadership in times of conflict.
Book Reviewed
Elton Trueblood, Abraham Lincoln: Lessons in Spiritual Leadership (San Francisco: HarperOne, 2012 [orig. 1973]).
P.S. If you like my recommendation, please click “Helpful” on my Amazon review page.
Lincoln’s outstanding reputation among historians reflects popular opinion, too. According to a YouGov survey, 80% of Americans “have a favorable view of the president who freed the slaves and won the Civil War, including 56% who have a ‘very favorable’ view of him.” There’s a reason his face is carved on Mount Rushmore.
A steady stream of new books keeps our 16th president in readers’ minds. In just the past year, David R. Reynolds published a major new biography, Michael Burlingame profiled Lincoln’s marriage, and Ronald C. White probed the president’s private memoranda for insight (which I reviewed here). In spite of the never-ending stream of new books rolling off the presses, it’s also helpful to return to older works.
One of those is Elton Trueblood’s 1973 study on Lincoln’s religion, titled, Abraham Lincoln: Lessons in Spiritual Leadership. As a minister, I’m fascinated by the topic of Lincoln’s spirituality and have read a handful of books on the topic. (See my review of Stephen Mansfield’s Lincoln’s Battle with God or my annual blog post, “The Creed of Abraham Lincoln in His Own Words,” taken from William E. Barton’s The Soul of Abraham Lincoln).
The outlines of Lincoln’s religious beliefs and practices are well known: Raised in a hard-shell Baptist church on the frontier, a freethinking skeptic in his young adulthood, a move toward a profound, if heterodox Christian faith in his mature years. That maturity is reflected in the theological interpretation of the Civil War present in his Second Inaugural Address.
"The Almighty has His own purposes. 'Woe unto the world because of offenses; for it must needs be that offenses come, but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh.' If we shall suppose that American slavery is one of those offenses which, in the providence of God, must needs come, but which, having continued through His appointed time, He now wills to remove, and that He gives to both North and South this terrible war as the woe due to those by whom the offense came, shall we discern therein any departure from those divine attributes which thle believers in a living God always ascribe to Him?"
That paragraph reflects Lincoln’s understanding of the sovereignty of God’s will, which he epitomized in a note to himself that has been titled, “Meditation on the Divine Will”:
"The will of God prevails. In great contests each party claims to act in accordance with the will of God. Both may be, and one must be, wrong. God cannot be for and against the same thing at the same time. In the present civil war it is quite possible that God's purpose is something different from the purpose of either party — and yet the human instrumentalities, working just as they do, are of the best adaptation to effect His purpose. I am almost ready to say that this is probably true — that God wills this contest, and wills that it shall not end yet. By his mere great power, on the minds of the now contestants, He could have either saved or destroyed the Union without a human contest. Yet the contest began. And, having begun He could give the final victory to either side any day. Yet the contest proceeds."
According to Trueblood, this note, written in the aftermath of the Union Army’s agonizing defeat at the Second Battle of Bull Run, marked the final turning point in Lincoln’s religious evolution. On the one hand, Lincoln solidified his belief that God sovereignly controlled the events of history. “The will of God prevails,” he wrote. (“The Almighty has His own purposes.”) On the other hand, farm from resulting in fatalism or inactivity, for Lincoln, the prevailing of God’s will resulted in a strong commitment to vocation, which he referred to as “human instrumentalities.”
Mere weeks after the August defeat at Bull Run, the Union Army prevailed at Antietam. This victory prompted Lincoln to tell his cabinet on September 22 that he was ready to publicly announce the Emancipation Proclamation. Until that time, Lincoln’s primary war aim was to preserve the Union, even if it meant the continuance of slavery. After that date, he aimed to preserve the Union by beginning the process of abolishing slavery. Lincoln discerned his vocation — the emancipation of slaves — in the midst of the divinely willed Civil War.
The language Lincoln used with his cabinet to describe hie newfound resolution was inherently religious. In words recorded by Francis B. Carpenter, quoted by Trueblood, Lincoln said: “I made a solemn vow before God, that if General Lee was driven back from Pennsylvania, I would crown the result by the declaration of freedom to the slaves.”
Trueblood says much more about Lincoln’s religion than just the interplay of God’s will and human vocation, but that interplay seems to be Trueblood’s central insight into the development of Lincoln’s mature religious thought. After detailing the development of that thought, Trueblood devotes a chapter each to Lincoln’s views on the Bible, prayer, and the Church, ending with a consideration of Lincoln’s understanding of patriotism. I thought I was well informed about Lincoln’s religious views prior to reading this book, but Trueblood managed to reveal new information and nuanced interpretations that I found very helpful.
As our nation engages in extended culture wars in which secularism and religion are increasingly pitted against one another, studying the mature religious views of America’s best president may provide a way forward … for both sides. I heartily recommend this book, both for its historical interpretation of Lincoln and its vision for spiritual leadership in times of conflict.
Book Reviewed
Elton Trueblood, Abraham Lincoln: Lessons in Spiritual Leadership (San Francisco: HarperOne, 2012 [orig. 1973]).
P.S. If you like my recommendation, please click “Helpful” on my Amazon review page.
August 19, 2019
Didn't know much about Lincoln before reading this book. Now I understand his type of beliefs. He was a person whom an orthodox will think he is an atheist, and an atheist will think he is a ln orthodox. Above all, he was a president for the whole American Nation.
February 8, 2024
When one considers the life of Abraham Lincoln and those who knew him, one could come to the conclusion that he was not a Christian. But God's Holy Word tells us in First Corinthians 4:5 "Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God."
After reading Mr. Elton Trueblood's book "Abraham Lincoln: Lessons in Spiritual Leadership" I truly believe that Abraham Lincoln was definitely a Christian.
Read this book and see the evidence that he presents.
After reading Mr. Elton Trueblood's book "Abraham Lincoln: Lessons in Spiritual Leadership" I truly believe that Abraham Lincoln was definitely a Christian.
Read this book and see the evidence that he presents.
February 19, 2018
This is the best book on Lincoln's faith ever written bar none. This includes some heavy weight authors who claim they searched for Lincoln's faith and could not find any. Obviously they didn't look very hard. Trueblood's inclusion of the date of April 16, 1865 for Lincoln and his wife to join the New York Street Presyberian Church, confirms the fact his study was deep. No one else has confirmed this except the late Dr.D. James Kennedy. This book is a must read for all serious students of Lincoln.
August 20, 2020
Rated: C
Trueblood is known as a preeminent author of religious books. This one was a good one as a look into the spiritual life of Lincoln. Just a few enlightening items for me. Overall, good, but not great.
Trueblood is known as a preeminent author of religious books. This one was a good one as a look into the spiritual life of Lincoln. Just a few enlightening items for me. Overall, good, but not great.
March 1, 2024
Even though this is a short book, the author does a good job of revealing Lincoln's religious views and how he grew spiritually. I have read a lot of books about Abraham Lincoln, but Trueblood condenses, yet explains very well Lincoln's views. A good book.
November 16, 2020
Makes me respect Lincoln even more
What a great God we have and Lincoln recognized this in a way that many leaders don’t and can’t even fathom. My prayer is that I can.
What a great God we have and Lincoln recognized this in a way that many leaders don’t and can’t even fathom. My prayer is that I can.
March 31, 2021
Interesting thoughts but seems somewhat biased.
March 4, 2017
My thoughts.
Abraham Lincoln: Lessons in Spiritual Leadership is an inoffensive, focused treatise on Lincolns spiritual maturation gained primarily during the time he served as president. Well organized thought leads the reader along at Lincoln's side as he struggles to make sense of Gods role in His relationship with mankind, eventually coming to the understanding the enormity of his part in this tragic time for the nation and for "God's almost chosen people."
Abraham Lincoln: Lessons in Spiritual Leadership is an inoffensive, focused treatise on Lincolns spiritual maturation gained primarily during the time he served as president. Well organized thought leads the reader along at Lincoln's side as he struggles to make sense of Gods role in His relationship with mankind, eventually coming to the understanding the enormity of his part in this tragic time for the nation and for "God's almost chosen people."
December 8, 2014
This book, written by Elton Trueblood, is a penetrating, well-researched look at Abraham Lincoln's theological convictions. Instead of asking what Lincoln's religion was, Trueblood focused on Lincoln's thinking about religion - in his opinion, a far more interesting question. I agree with Trueblood's approach, and this eminent scholar does a fantastic job of exploring Lincoln's theology.
Trueblood argues that Lincoln experienced profound spiritual growth primarily through experiencing great suffering, especially with the intense personal, political, and national suffering he encountered as President of the United States. Trueblood also dismantles some of the common arguments that Lincoln was not a believer, noting for example the mountains of evidence - including Lincoln's own words - that Lincoln in fact had a profound belief in Christianity (even if there are some indications that he wasn't completely orthodox), in contrast to the lone claim of one-time colleague William H. Herndon that Lincoln was an unbeliever. He also takes careful note of other facts, such as the fact that in Lincoln's day, only 23% of Americans actually became church members, as opposed to 60% of Americans being church members in Trueblood's own time, a contrast that helps explain why Lincoln's lack of church membership should in no way be construed as evidence that Lincoln didn't believe in Christianity.
But beyond these interesting facts, Trueblood's chief accomplishment is to paint a vivid portrait of Lincoln's understanding of the theological importance of the American Civil War, highlighting Lincoln's paradoxical thinking that shaped his most famous speeches, including the Gettysburg Address and his Second Inaugural Speech. This book helped me to gain a deeper understanding not only of Lincoln's own personal theology, but also enabled me to deepen my own understanding of America's role in history, including America's role in our world today.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to have a deeper understanding of those influences that most profoundly shaped Lincoln's understanding of his times, and of his role in meeting the great crisis that took hold of his beloved nation while he was President.
Trueblood argues that Lincoln experienced profound spiritual growth primarily through experiencing great suffering, especially with the intense personal, political, and national suffering he encountered as President of the United States. Trueblood also dismantles some of the common arguments that Lincoln was not a believer, noting for example the mountains of evidence - including Lincoln's own words - that Lincoln in fact had a profound belief in Christianity (even if there are some indications that he wasn't completely orthodox), in contrast to the lone claim of one-time colleague William H. Herndon that Lincoln was an unbeliever. He also takes careful note of other facts, such as the fact that in Lincoln's day, only 23% of Americans actually became church members, as opposed to 60% of Americans being church members in Trueblood's own time, a contrast that helps explain why Lincoln's lack of church membership should in no way be construed as evidence that Lincoln didn't believe in Christianity.
But beyond these interesting facts, Trueblood's chief accomplishment is to paint a vivid portrait of Lincoln's understanding of the theological importance of the American Civil War, highlighting Lincoln's paradoxical thinking that shaped his most famous speeches, including the Gettysburg Address and his Second Inaugural Speech. This book helped me to gain a deeper understanding not only of Lincoln's own personal theology, but also enabled me to deepen my own understanding of America's role in history, including America's role in our world today.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to have a deeper understanding of those influences that most profoundly shaped Lincoln's understanding of his times, and of his role in meeting the great crisis that took hold of his beloved nation while he was President.
June 3, 2018
Good book
I enjoyed it although I wouldn't say it was great. It makes a compelling case for Lincoln's faith.
Although, it doesn't weaken my faith to believe that he had doubts and that he struggled with organized religion.
Trueblood does a good job highlighting how his faith evolved and impacted how he thought and spoke.
I enjoyed it although I wouldn't say it was great. It makes a compelling case for Lincoln's faith.
Although, it doesn't weaken my faith to believe that he had doubts and that he struggled with organized religion.
Trueblood does a good job highlighting how his faith evolved and impacted how he thought and spoke.
started-and-stalled
October 22, 2013A Kindle daily deal on a man I enjoy studying! Double bonus!
December 27, 2014
Very enjoyable and interesting to read. The only critique is that the author esteemed Lincoln so highly that one wonders if his views are critical enough.
March 20, 2017
it was a very spiritual book. it really goes deep in to lincoln
April 29, 2017
This book was originally published with the subtitle, "Theologian of American Anguish," a title I prefer over "Lessons in Spiritual Leadership." The anguish in Lincoln's America that needed a leader to save it as a union, remains relevant to our times and our need of substantive leadership, not only of competence and rare character, but of soul, the kind that is great due to deep humility. Lincoln's humility was shaped by a profound acknowledgement of God. It is for this reason that the original title employed the term "Theologian" and the new edition "updates" it to "Spiritual." I think any reader will learn from Lincoln, and Trueblood sticks close to the sources as well as to Lincoln in helping the reader to see the soul of one of our greatest, if not our greatest, presidents.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews