Millennial Dreams and Apocalyptic Nightmares: The Cold War Origins of Political Evangelicalism

294 Pages·2007·1.89 MB·English

by  Angela M. Lahr

Millennial Dreams
and Apocalyptic Nightmares
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Millennial Dreams
and Apocalyptic
Nightmares
The Cold War Origins
of Political Evangelicalism
angela m. lahr
1
2007
1
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withoutthepriorpermissionofOxfordUniversityPress.
ExcerptsfromBillyGrahamEvangelisticAssociationarchivalmaterials,
locatedintheBillyGrahamCenterArchives,arereprintedwithpermission.
‘‘AftertheBomb’’byCharlesAngoffand‘‘Fallout’’byWilliamI.Elliott.
Copyright(cid:1)1962ChristianCentury.ReprintedbypermissionfromtheOct.24,1962,
issueoftheChristianCentury.
‘‘HaltingRedAggressioninVietnam,’’April23,1965;‘‘IstheUnitedStatesRight
inBombingNorthVietnam,’’January7,1966;‘‘Vietnam:WhereDoWeGofromHere?’’
January7,1966.Usedbypermission,ChristianityToday,1965and1966.
‘‘AtomicCocktail.’’WordsandMusicbyBulee‘‘Slim’’Gaillard.(cid:1)1945EMIMillsMusic,Inc.
AllRightsReserved.UsedbyPermissionofAlfredPublishingCo.,Inc.
ExcerptsfromHisLand.(cid:1)1983WorldWidePictures.
ExcerptsfromtheMarcH.TanenbaumPapersarefromtheJacobRaderMarcusCenter
oftheAmericanJewishArchives,Cincinnati,Ohio.
‘‘TavisSmiley:Falwellinterviewonpresidentialelection.’’(cid:1)2005NationalPublicRadio,Inc.
‘‘TheCensureofaBishop:ChurchandStateintheMcCarthyEra,’’MethodistHistory.
UsedwithpermissionoftheGeneralCommissiononArchivesandHistory.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Lahr,AngelaM.
Millennialdreamsandapocalypticnightmares:theColdWarorigins
ofpoliticalevangelicalism/AngelaM.Lahr.
p. cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN978-0-19-531448-9
1. Evangelicalism—UnitedStates—History—20thcentury. 2. Millennialism—Political
aspects—UnitedStates—History—20thcentury. 3. ColdWar—Religiousaspects—
Christianity—Historyofdoctrines—20thcentury. 4. UnitedStates—Churchhistory—
20thcentury. I. Title.
BR1642.U5L342007
277.3'0825—dc22 2006102283
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
onacid-freepaper
For Sheila and Gale Lahr
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Acknowledgments
Numerous individuals aided my efforts towardthis project in in-
valuableways.IwouldliketothanktheInterlibraryLoanDepartment
and staff members at Northern Illinois University. The archivistsat
theBillyGrahamCenterArchiveswereespeciallypatientandhelpful
on myfrequentFriday visits. Those who workedwithme atthe
Presbyterian Church in America Archives (St. Louis,Missouri), the
American Jewish Archives(Cincinnati,Ohio), theRegional History
Center(DeKalb,Illinois), andtheManuscriptDivisionoftheLibrary
ofCongressallhelpedtomakemyresearchapleasantexperience.In
its dissertationstage, this work was supported by aDissertation
Completion Fellowship from the GraduateSchool, NorthernIllinois
University.
I am particularly indebted to David Kyvig, Jim Schmidt, Aaron
Fogleman, J. D. Bowers, and Kate Wiegele for their advice, sugges-
tions, criticism, and encouragement. Other faculty members at
Northern Illinois University also aided me in this long, sometimes
painful,butrewardingjourney.Iamthankfultoallofmycolleagues
who patiently answered my sometimes tedious questions and pro-
vided me with invaluable guidance. I would also like to thank all of
those who worked with me at Oxford University Press. To those
individuals, organizations, and publishers who granted permission
fortheuseoftheirmaterial,Iexpressmygratitude.Severalstudents
also became sources of inspiration and I would be remiss not to
recognize them.
Finally, I would like to acknowledge the love and prayers of
my family and friends. For providing encouragement, support,
viii acknowledgments
and diversion, I am grateful to Erin Lahr, Cierra Evans, Nicole and Tony
Lahr, Rion and Andy Lahr, Katelyn and Ella Lahr, Mary and Wendall
Lahr,EthelMarieandDorlanWagner,RuthOldfatherWagner,He´manth
Samuel, and especially my parents, Sheila and Gale Lahr. I thank you. I
love you.
Contents
Abbreviations, xi
Introduction, 3
1. ‘‘Bomb’’arding Evangelicals, 25
2. Praying in the End, 49
3. Putting the Trumpet to Their Lips, 75
4. The Cuban Climax, 101
5. Next Year in Jerusalem? 133
6. A Different Kind of Prophet, 169
Conclusion, 199
Notes, 205
Select Bibliography, 241
Index, 267