Unnecessary and Artificial Divisions
Franklin Roosevelt's Quest for Religious and National Unity Leading Up to the Second World War
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3604243 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Andrew Polk, Andrew R Polk (corresponding author) |
| Year | 2013 |
| Volume | 82 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 667-677 |
| Publication date | 2013-09-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Church History (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0009-6407 • E-ISSN: 1755-2613 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s0009640713000693 |
| OpenAlex | W2122649464 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 4 |
The letters were portrayed as a goodwill gesture toward the three more dominant religious traditions in America and, as far as President Franklin Roosevelt was concerned, the world. After being carefully constructed over the preceding weeks, they were held in strict secrecy until they were released to the media on December 24, 1939. Each was written to the leader of his respective religion: as president of Jewish Theological Seminary, Rabbi Cyrus Adler represented American Jews and George A. Buttrick, president of the Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America (FCC), received a letter on behalf of American Protestants, with the last letter going to Pope Pius XII, head of the Roman Catholic Church. Each letter was, at least ostensibly, a Christmas greeting. Roosevelt offered each man warm wishes and his hearty thanks for all that he had done for his people and the world. Yet Roosevelt also noted the fear and uncertainty of the time. War had again come to Europe and threatened to envelop the globe. It was the responsibility of all people of goodwill, Roosevelt argued, to come together in any way they could for the cause of peace. He hoped the three men, and those they represented, would put aside religious differences and join together for the common good
Art · Aside · Globe · Goodwill · Literature · Political science · World War II · American Constitutional Law and Politics · Classics · History · Law · Philosophy · Psychology · Religious studies
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |