The Cross and the Trenches: Religious Faith and Doubt Among British and American Great War Soldiers

Portada
Bloomsbury Academic, 2003 M05 30 - 311 páginas

The modernist historiographical model of the Great War neglects such traditional modes of thought as religious response to battle. Drawing on the testimony of over 500 British and American soldiers, Schweitzer provides an in-depth account of topics such as soldiers' prayers and biblical readings, as well as religious doubts. As a detailed snapshot of religion during the war, this study provides a crucial preamble to studies of the legacy of the Great War.

The lack of a satisfactory scholarly study has left interpretation of the role that religion played in soldiers' lives to the pronouncements of their contemporaries who often either viewed World War I as an opportunity to spark a religious revival or as an event that crushed religious faith. Schweitzer argues that neither of these interpretations is accurate, and he hopes to replace them with a model that arranges responses on a spectrum ranging from absolute faith in God to atheism. Based on extensive archival research, this study establishes a detailed model of the spiritual lives of British and American soldiers during the war. After sketching this spiritual history, he concludes that both British and American soldiers were more religious than previous writings have indicated.

Dentro del libro

Contenido

The British and American Churches and the War 3
3
The Spectrum of Religious Faith
17
Chaplains
63
Derechos de autor

Otras 7 secciones no mostradas

Términos y frases comunes

Referencias a este libro

World War I
Jennifer D. Keene
Sin vista previa disponible - 2006
World War I
Jennifer D. Keene
Sin vista previa disponible - 2006

Acerca del autor (2003)

RICHARD SCHWEITZER is an independent scholar. His articles on war and culture have appeared in Weber Studies, Film and History, and War & Society.

Información bibliográfica