cover image One Nation without God?: The Battle for Christianity in an Age of Unbelief

One Nation without God?: The Battle for Christianity in an Age of Unbelief

David Aikman. Baker Books, $17.99 (208p) ISBN 978-0-8010-1409-3

In his latest book, journalist and author Aikman (The Mirage of Peace) digs deep into the history of American Christianity, offering his own analysis of whether the United States was ever a Christian nation and how American religiosity has changed over time. He speaks in strong terms, calling America's mockery of Christianity a damaging, hostile "assault." The author spends two of the five total chapters on history, from the faith of the founders (a la Jon Meacham's The American Gospel) to the attitudes of the millennial generation. Though the timeline suggests that American Christianity has waxed and waned over the years, Aikman concludes that views of religion have ultimately worsened as a result of skepticism taught in universities and aggressive atheism promoted by the media. Despite a lack of tangible solutions and generalizations about Christians' political leanings, the book's broad and deep sourcing and Aikman's ability to include academic assessments without getting bogged down in academic jargon make this an ideal response to such other books as Letters to a Christian Nation and Myth of a Christian Nation. (Sept.)