3 Books, 3 Views on the Social and Political Influence of Evangelical Christians

By RICHARD BYRNE

OUT OF THIS WORLD: Evangelical Christians have played a key role in American culture and politics throughout the nation's history. But since the 1976 election of the "born again" president Jimmy Carter and the rise of the "religious right" in the 1980s, evangelicals' burgeoning political strength has stolen attention from their broader influence.

Reducing evangelical Christians to a voting bloc not only elides significant questions about their continuing cultural influence on American