Constitutional Faith / / Sanford Levinson.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter Princeton University Press eBook-Package Backlist 2000-2013
• VerfasserIn: Levinson, Sanford,
• Place / Publishing House: Princeton, NJ : : Princeton University Press, , [2011]; ©2012
• Year of Publication: 2011
• Edition: With a New afterword by the author
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (280 p.) :; 1 line illus.
• Other title: Frontmatter --; CONTENTS --; ACKNOWLEDGMENTS --; INTRODUCTION --; CHAPTER ONE. The "Constitution" in American Civil Religion --; CHAPTER TWO. The Moral Dimension of Constitutional Faith --; CHAPTER THREE. Loyalty Oaths: The Creedal Affirmations of Constitutional Faith --; CHAPTER FOUR. Constitutional "Attachment": Identifying the Content of One's Commitment --; CHAPTER FIVE. The Law School, The Faith Community, And the Professing of Law --; CHAPTER SIX. Conclusion: Adding One's Signature to the Constitution --; NOTES --; AFTERWORD TO THE 2011 EDITION --; INDEX
• Format: Mode of access: Internet via World Wide Web.
• ISBN: 9781400839872; 9783110442502
• DOI: 10.1515/9781400839872?locatt=mode:legacy
• Access: restricted access
• Hierarchical level: Monograph
• Statement of Responsibility: Sanford Levinson.

This book examines the "constitutional faith" that has, since 1788, been a central component of American "civil religion." By taking seriously the parallel between wholehearted acceptance of the Constitution and religious faith, Sanford Levinson opens up a host of intriguing questions about what it means to be American. While some view the Constitution as the central component of an American religion that serves to unite the social order, Levinson maintains that its sacred role can result in conflict, fragmentation, and even war. To Levinson, the Constitution's value lies in the realm of the discourse it sustains: a uniquely American form of political rhetoric that allows citizens to grapple with every important public issue imaginable. In a new afterword, Levinson looks at the deepening of constitutional worship and attributes the current widespread frustrations with the government to the static nature of the Constitution.