Includes bibliographical references (p. [257]-262) and index.

Introduction : religious pluralism as a work in progress -- Here are no disputes : reputation and realities in the new republic -- Just behave yourself : pluralism as selective tolerance -- Marching to Zion : the Protestant establishment as a unifying force -- Repentance for our social sins : adjustments within the establishment -- In (partway) from the margins : pluralism as inclusion -- Surviving a while longer : the establishment under stress in the early twentieth century -- Don't change your name : early assaults on the melting pot ideal -- Protestant-Catholic-Jew : new mainstream, gropings toward a new pluralism -- Whose America is it anyway? : the sixties and after.

Religious toleration is enshrined as an ideal in the Constitution, but religious diversity has had a complicated history in the United States. Although Americans have taken pride in the rich array of religious faiths that help define their nation, for two centuries they have been grappling with the question of how they can coexist. In this ambitious reappraisal of American religious history, William Hutchison chronicles the country's struggle to fulfill the promise of its founding ideals. In 1800 the United States was an overwhelmingly Protestant nation. Over the next two centuries, Catholics, Mormons, Jews, Muslims, Hindus and others would emerge to challenge the Protestant mainstream. Although their demands were often met with resistance, Hutchison demonstrates that as a result of these conflicts the USA expanded its understanding of what it means to be a religiously diverse country. No longer satisfied with mere legal toleration, the USA now expects that all religious groups will share in creating its national agenda.