Race and the Power of Sermons on American Politics. By R. Khari Brown, Ronald E. Brown, and James S. Jackson. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. 2021. xii+167 pp. $70.00 cloth.; Decoding the Digital Church: Evangelical Storytelling and the Election of Donald J. Trump. By Stephanie A. Martin. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press. 2021. xi.+266 pp. $49.95 cloth.

Abstract

Despite the growing flight of Americans from religious institutions, these are still the largest voluntary organizations in the United States and they remain significant forces in American politics. As leaders of these organizations, clergy are often visible and influential political figures. In just the past few years, conservative Protestant pastors were frequent visitors to the Trump White House and played a crucial role in mobilizing a large Republican religious constituency. Black Protestant ministers have long been a vital force in Democratic circles and are joined at times by white liberal colleagues, as evidenced by the recent mobilization to preserve abortion rights in the wake of the Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization.