Abstract
Abstract Five days separated General Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox and Lincoln’s assassination at Ford’s Theatre. For Christians, it was Holy Week: Lee surrendered on Palm Sunday; Booth shot Lincoln on Good Friday. Did God send—or at least allow—this hated bullet to kill Lincoln? Was it providential? For most Americans, the best guide to providence was the Bible. Although many agreed that God was mysterious, they also agreed that scripture was the best guide to God’s will. The circumstances of the assassination made the Bible especially visible for Christians. Again, it was Holy Week: Booth shot Lincoln on Good Friday; he died on Saturday, so many preachers addressed the assassination on Easter Sunday. As news of Lincoln’s death shook the nation, preachers scrapped their Easter sermons and took on the task of addressing the crisis. This chapter examines how Americans cited scripture in response to Lincoln’s assassination.
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