Aimee Semple McPherson and the Resurrection of Christian America. By Matthew Avery Sutton. (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2007. 351 pp. $26.95, ISBN 978-0-674-02531-8)

Abstract

Aimee Semple McPherson was, in the words of Matthew Avery Sutton, “one of the most famous American personalities of the interwar years,” due to her “dazzling religious theatrics and a penchant for publicity” (p. 3). She is an obvious candidate for historical exploration, and Sutton, an assistant professor of history at Oakland University, sets out to prove that McPherson “brought conservative Protestantism back from the margins to the mainstream of American culture” (p. 4). That McPherson achieved her notoriety and reinvigorated American Protestantism from her headquarters in Hollywood only added to her mystique. She came to epitomize the dichotomy of traditional notions of femininity and the so-called new woman. Her fascinating story has implications for gender studies, religious studies, and social history. Although she came to represent mainstream American Protestantism, she did not adhere to “traditional gender norms” (p. 13). McPherson not only pursued a nontraditional career as a minister, she established a new denomination—the Foursquare Gospel. She pioneered the use of radio as a tool to further her ministry. She played a major role in southern California boosterism, and her Angelus Temple was a must-see tourist attraction in the 1920s. The combination of spectacle and traditional religious messages (her outspoken opposition to evolution is one example) endeared her to Protestants throughout the country. At the same time, McPherson's career epitomized the tensions that “have come to define faith and politics in the twenty-first century” (p. 6). Her record regarding the Ku Klux Klan and immigrants was at best mixed. Her personal life (she was twice divorced) and her appearance (including bobbed hair) received constant scrutiny from the press and the public. At the same time, her support of prohibition, alliance with William Jennings Bryan, and strident opposition to Upton Sinclair's gubernatorial campaign underscored her traditional values.