Prayer in America

September 12, 2005
The simple contention of this fascinating study is that prayer has always been intertwined with America's cultural life. Moore, who teaches at McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University, casts a broad net, beginning with Native American prayers before European colonization and culminating with the prayers of Americans after 9/11. He attends not only to prayers said around tables and in houses of worship but also to the way that the arts contribute to prayer: in the 19th century, artists like Thomas Cole penned prayers in art journals, and 20th-century Jewish composer Leonard Bernstein wrote a symphony that meditated on the Jewish kaddish. Indeed, Moore has really written a history of religion in America told through the lens of prayer; for example, his discussion of Shaker prayer is embedded in a discussion of Shakers' place in America's 19th-century religious landscape. Moore also addresses American policy about prayer, charting Supreme Court decisions about prayer in school. There are moments when the author, who has also written a biography of President Ford, allows his own political and cultural predilections to show through; his enthusiasm for President Bush can be distracting. However, this is a minor flaw in an otherwise terrifically engaging book.