Jesus Made in America - by Stephen J Nichols (Paperback)

About the Book

Nichols traces the changing face of Jesus throughout the successive cultural eras in American history. Beginning with the Puritans and ending with the Religious Right, he demonstrates the influence of popular culture upon American Christian views of Jesus at every stage along the way.

Book Synopsis

Jesus is as American as baseball and apple pie. But how this came to be is a complex story--one that Stephen Nichols tells with care and ease. Beginning with the Puritans, he leads readers through the various cultural epochs of American history, showing at each stage how American notions of Jesus were shaped by the cultural sensibilities of the times, often with unfortunate results.Always fascinating and often humorous, Jesus Made in America offers a frank assessment of the story of Christianity in America, including the present. For those interested in the cultural implications of that story, this book is a must-read.

Review Quotes

. . .one of the most engaging, informative books I've read in a long time. Nichols helps us learn from the mistakes of those in the past, while offering words of wisdom for those of us seeking to be faithful to Jesus in the present.

--Rev. John Chadick, Book Bargains and Previews, July 2008

"Jesus Made in America is written in a lively style, one from which the author's voice clearly and uniquely rings. His case is compelling and his argument is one that needs to receive a wide reading in evangelical churches. May Nichols' work cause evangelicals to rediscover the robust Jesus of the Holy Scripture."

--Jeff Robinson, Towers, August 16, 2010

"Nichols's critique will provoke thought and lively discussion on issues that today's Christians need to consider."

--James Gorman, Restoration Quarterly, 53:2, 2011

I certainly recommend Nichol's book to those evangelicals who wish to be capable of critically evaluating their culture, who are open to the painful experience of realizing that not everything you have assumed even as part of your Christian worldview deserves the label "Christian." For all those interested in American Christian culture, but in particular for those who participate in it, Nichol's book provides a helpful perspective and much valuable insight.

--James F. McGrath, Exploring our Matrix (exploringourmatrix.blogspot.com), August 14, 2008

I found Nichols' book stimulating, challenging and troubling. The stimulation comes from the writing of a competent scholar who examines the current literature and cultural commentaries. I found it challenging because I too am a part of the consumerismn that grips our culture and our churches. The troublesome part of Nichols' book is that it is much too close to home. Nichols' book may make us examine our cultural and spiritual experiences and relate them to our motives and contributions to linguistics and Bible translation.

--Karl J. Franklin, Christian Scholar's Review, Winter 2009

In Matthew 16:13-20, Jesus asked his disciples, "Who do you say I am?" Historian Stephen J. Nichols surveys the answers of American evangelicals particularly. What he finds makes for disturbing reading.

--George Wood, AG ThinkTank, June 2008

Nichols has useful things to say about the evangelical use of media, especially music and film, and about the commercialization and politicization of Jesus in our own time by evangelical Christians.

--Howard Miller, The Journal of American History, June 2009

Nichols takes the reader on a history of America through the person of Jesus. How have we formulated Him to fit our collective conscience? Nichols advises: listen to scripture first, listen to tradition, and listen to experience.

--JD, Libraries Alive, Winter 2009

One of the most engaging, informative books I've read this year. In fact, I'll be surpised if this book doesn't make my annual Top Ten list of "favorite reads."

--Trevin Wax, Kingdom People, June 18, 2008

About the Author

Stephen J. Nichols (Ph.D., Westminster Theological Seminary) is Research Professor of Christianity and Culture at Lancaster Bible College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He is the coeditor of The Legacy of Jonathan Edwards: American Religion and the Evangelical Tradition and the author of many books, including The Reformation: How a Monk and a Mallet Changed the World and For Us and for Our Salvation: The Doctrine of Christ in the Early Church. He chairs the American Christianity section of the Evangelical Theological Society.