American Protestantism and world politics, 1898-1960: a typological approach to the functions of religion in the decision-making processes of foreign policy

Abstract

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Boston UniversityProblem. It is the primary problem of the dissertation to develop a schematic and comprehensive approach to the empirical study of the relationships between Protestantism and American foreign policy in the modern period, 1898-1960. There is a secondary and normative concern: to define these relationships in such a way as to guide the most fruitful further research and the most responsible reliiious action. After 1898, American foreign policy increasingly came to require a "total diplomacy." At the same time, Protestantism was developing a "total religion." This parallel expansion of national interests and religious interests to ultimate boundaries made the relationships between them complex beyond the ready apprehension of leaders and scholars in both politics and reli gion. Neither the ethicists nor the empirical students of religion have developed a theoretical structure adequate for the understanding of religious behavior in world politics. [TRUNCATED