Fighting Fundamentalist

"this is an important, well-constructed book. It adds a significant chapter to the rise of politicised Evangelicalism, and it establishes the importance of Carl McIntire." -- Joel A. Carpenter, Calvin College, Journal of Ecclesiastical History "We have long needed serious studies of both figures. In each case the authors serve us well." -- Justus D. Doenec, Anglican and Episcopal History "[A] very fine book that will be of great interest to historians of American religion and politics. Ruotsila has brought McIntire out of obscurity and persuasively positioned him as one of the founders of the Religious Right."--American Historical Review "Fighting Fundamentalist is an exceptionally well-researched biographical polemic designed to rehabilitate the rancorous Carl McIntire from his reputation as a bigoted, extremist crank."--Journal of Church and State "Markku Ruotsila's well-researched biography of Carl McIntire rescues this 'fighting fundamentalist' from the neglect (or caricature) that has marked his place in twentieth-century American history. Based in a wide array of archival sources, the book shows that McIntire contributed to a much earlier politicization of American evangelical Protestants than others have described; it also offers by far the fullest portrait of this militant autocrat who contributed substantially to what eventually became 'the new Christian Right.'" --Mark Noll, author of In the Beginning Was the Word: The Bible in American Public Life, 1492-1783 "Markku Ruotsila's biography of Carl McIntire is a thoroughly researched and remarkably well balanced study of one of the most influential (but largely forgotten) American fundamentalists of the twentieth century. Ruotsila not only gives us unprecedented insight into the theological and personal motivations of McIntire and his associates, but also offers us a fresh perspective on the Christian Right. For anyone who wants to go beyond screeds and polemics to understand American fundamentalists on their own terms, this is a historical study that should not be missed." --Daniel K. Williams, author of God's Own Party: The Making of the Christian Right "Obstinate, opportunistic, and manic in his quest for attention and power, Carl McIntire was the ultimate warrior for Cold War Christianity. Exhibiting a very different temperament, Markku Ruotsila offers an impressively patient and subtle reading of this controversial cleric and his turbulent career. Ruotsila's deft handling of McIntire, and the tangled web of theologies, political interests, sincerities and inner demons that shaped his life, allows for a compelling and instructive re-visiting of Protestant fundamentalism as it transitioned out of the cultural margins of the Great Depression into the political limelight as the culture wars' indomitable Religious Right." --Darren Dochuk, University of Notre Dame