Sacred Scripture, Sacred War: The Bible and the American Revolution James P.Byrd. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013.

Abstract

Sacred Scripture, Sacred War: The Bible and the American Revolution James P. Byrd. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013.In Sacred Scripture, Sacred War, James P. Byrd of Vanderbilt University describes how the Bible was used to make the patriotic case for war (3). Although historians like Harry S. Stout and Gordon S. Wood have noted the connection between religion and the Revolution, Byrd's workmeticulously researched from primary sourcesis one of the first to explain which sections of Scripture were used, how often, why, and to what effect.Byrd also explores other themes that enhanced and framed the ways in which the Bible was used by patriotic preachers. The first theme, republicanism or firm belief in virtue, liberty, and a fear that liberty was always threatened by vice and tyranny, (9) informed the hermeneutics of the patriots time and time again. The second theme, martyrdom, under-girded republican virtue: Liberty came only when people of integrity sacrificed themselves for their nation. This was the essence of (11). The final frame for Byrd is the relationship between martial and spiritual warfare. He writes, Understandably, therefore, the ideas of sacrificial martyrdom and Christian republicanism gained coherence alongside a third conviction, the belief that biblical warfare integrated spirituality and violence, the spiritual struggles of the soul with military struggles on the battlefield (12). Through the interplay of these themes with the textual evidence, Byrd provides a new way of understanding the impact scripture had on the course of the Revolution.After addressing the emergent and framing themes, Byrd underscores how powerful sermons were in colonial and Revolutionary America. He notes, Sermons were published at four times the rate of political pamphlets and were more influential as well (16). Access, geography, and patriotism were also linked: It is no accident that New England was both the most sermonsaturated and the most militant region in colonial North America (20). Throughout this first chapter, Byrd connects martial sermons to specific historical events like the Stamp Act, the Boston Massacre, and the Boston Tea Party. Convincingly, Byrd shows that the mediators between events and their popular, patriotic meaning can be found in the scripturally-soaked rhetoric and minds of America's preachers.Having established the centrality of the sermon, Byrd connects the aforementioned themes and historic events with their oft-utilized, biblical counterparts. …