Abstract

This chapter describes the impact of the Civil War and the Battle of Gettysburg on religion. Gettysburg, a typical wartime community, save for its battle experience, is a logical place to find evidence of a remade America, yet change in local religion was measured. During the war, the religious community settled into a pattern, much like before the war, in which matters of faith remained fixed on the mundane, especially refinement. Eventually the war came directly to Gettysburg and the famous battle briefly shredded order, but recognizable religion, not a new version, reconstructed stability. Aside from temporary chaos caused by the battle, the biggest change was civil religion, which became much stronger, a broad national trend. Religion, then, felt change, but modestly rather than fundamentally.

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