Luther & Lager

The Civil War as a Theological Crisis

We’re going to read and discuss a short book by Mark Noll about how the churches in the North and the South interpreted and used the Bible to justify their respective positions on slavery, race, and the war itself. Noll is the leading historian of Christianity in North America; for years he was also a history professor at my alma mater Wheaton College.

You can find the book here.

Should be a good and possibly lively discussion, touching on some touchy historical matters and also raising important questions about how to interpret the Bible and put its teaching into practice. Not without relevance for our own political moment, whatever your politics.

Meet us in the back room where we have tables reserved.