Thomas K. Gugler

In five chapters Smith looks into the standard story of the development of religious freedom in America and proposes a revised version of it, which revolves around a “Kingdom of God in America.” (p. 12) Smith’s counter-narrative traces the intellectual roots of religious freedom farther back than the Enlightenment to predominantly Christian emphases on the freedom of the church and the liberty of conscience. With a re-interpretation of the First Amendment’s phrase “no establishment of religion” Smith heavily criticizes recent Supreme Court decisions and suggests that virtually all of America’s founders expected religion to play a major role in the nation’s governance.