
One State Under God
A History of Religion in Texas
Joseph L. Locke(Author)
University of Texas Press
Will be published approx. on 26. May 2026
Book
Hardback
344 pages
978-1-4773-3420-1 (ISBN)
Description
A broad and accessible history of religion in Texas, from prehistory to the present.
From sprawling megachurches to religious billboards and towering steel crosses, religion quite literally looms over Texas. Christian nationalism determines the state's politics and, every school day, more than five million Texas children pledge allegiance to "one state under God." But it wasn't always this way.
In this wide-ranging chronicle, Joseph Locke uncovers the breadth of Texas's religious history, from Indigenous painters of cosmological cave art and Spanish invaders who constructed missions, to irreligious Anglo colonists, freethinking frontiersmen, Tejano folk saints, evangelical culture warriors, and Muslim immigrants. Locke traces the state's religious transformations across the centuries, bringing them to life through his depiction of compelling figures, like enslaved preacher Anderson Edwards, fighting fundamentalist J. Frank Norris, and celebrated humanitarian Sister Norma Pimentel, and gripping moments, such as the murder of atheist newspaperman William Cowper Brann and the siege of the Branch Davidian compound in Waco. Comprehensive, fast-paced, and highly readable, One State Under God reveals how the Lone Star State's spiritual path was blazed.
From sprawling megachurches to religious billboards and towering steel crosses, religion quite literally looms over Texas. Christian nationalism determines the state's politics and, every school day, more than five million Texas children pledge allegiance to "one state under God." But it wasn't always this way.
In this wide-ranging chronicle, Joseph Locke uncovers the breadth of Texas's religious history, from Indigenous painters of cosmological cave art and Spanish invaders who constructed missions, to irreligious Anglo colonists, freethinking frontiersmen, Tejano folk saints, evangelical culture warriors, and Muslim immigrants. Locke traces the state's religious transformations across the centuries, bringing them to life through his depiction of compelling figures, like enslaved preacher Anderson Edwards, fighting fundamentalist J. Frank Norris, and celebrated humanitarian Sister Norma Pimentel, and gripping moments, such as the murder of atheist newspaperman William Cowper Brann and the siege of the Branch Davidian compound in Waco. Comprehensive, fast-paced, and highly readable, One State Under God reveals how the Lone Star State's spiritual path was blazed.
Reviews / Votes
"In this much-needed book-which zooms along from prehistoric rock art to contemporary megachurches-Joseph L. Locke makes it clear that the history of Texas is inextricable from the history of the religions that have arisen from it or been imposed upon it. It's a wild tale soberly told-and proof that when it comes to God, the people of Texas have always moved in mysterious ways." - Stephen Harrigan, author of Big Wonderful Thing: A History of Texas"Texas religion, like Texas itself, is too big - too expansive, too complicated, too diverse - to make sense of without making judicious choices. One State Under God succinctly and compellingly organizes the state's religious history under a sequence of prevailing approaches to the worship of God. Not to be missed are the continuities that have both embraced and resisted the exercise of power. This is an impressive work that deserves the careful attention of anyone interested in the history of Texas." - Robert Wuthnow, Princeton University, author of Rough Country: How Texas Became America's Most Powerful Bible-Belt State
"Barnstorming preachers and Bible-thumping culture warriors, Protestant cathedrals and populist politicians who claim God for their cause-Texas religion has earned its reputation as the nation's vanguard for the Christian Right, and Joseph Locke deftly explains how and why. With a remarkably generous range, light touch, and unmatched command of the state's ever-changing religious landscape, he paints Texas as a place where the sacred has always operated across the full spectrum of belonging and belief. A masterful survey of Texas-styled faith, this is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the Texas-sized role that religion has played in the development of modern American politics and culture." - Darren Dochuk, University of Notre Dame, author of Anointed With Oil: How Christianity and Crude Made Modern America
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Austin, TX
United States
Illustrations
15 b&w illus., 1 map
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Weight
454 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-4773-3420-1 (9781477334201)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Joseph L. Locke is an associate professor of history at the University of North Texas. He is the author of Making the Bible Belt: Texas Prohibitionists and the Politicization of Southern Religion and the coeditor of The American Yawp.
Content
Introduction
Chapter One. Indigenous Faiths and Catholic Frustrations
Chapter Two. A Religious Vacuum
Chapter Three. Secular Revolution, Spiritual Conquest
Chapter Four. The God of the Enslaved and the God of the Enslavers
Chapter Five. The Gods of War
Chapter Six. Morality and Modernity
Chapter Seven. The Fundamentalist Insurgency
Chapter Eight. "The Most Segregated Hour"
Chapter Nine. The Partisan God
Chapter Ten. Mosques and Megachurches
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Notes
Bibliography
Photo Credits
Index
Chapter One. Indigenous Faiths and Catholic Frustrations
Chapter Two. A Religious Vacuum
Chapter Three. Secular Revolution, Spiritual Conquest
Chapter Four. The God of the Enslaved and the God of the Enslavers
Chapter Five. The Gods of War
Chapter Six. Morality and Modernity
Chapter Seven. The Fundamentalist Insurgency
Chapter Eight. "The Most Segregated Hour"
Chapter Nine. The Partisan God
Chapter Ten. Mosques and Megachurches
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Notes
Bibliography
Photo Credits
Index