Civil War Dbq Essay

“The Civil War as a Theological Crisis” written by Mark A. Noll, presents an in-depth view on the conflicts surrounding the interpretation of the Bible, slavery and the Civil War. In addition, he explains how the opposing interpretations of the Bible, slavery and the Civil War remain connected throughout. Moreover, his work depicts the complexities regarding Bible analysis and how these accounts were formed and debated. Mark Noll, is a Historian of Christianity in America and a Professor at Notre Dame is considered an expert in the field. The major argument of this work suggests “The United States in 1860 was not uniquely religious, but was nonetheless, and by almost any standard of comparison, a remarkably religious society”.

An abundant amount of predominant individuals, from both the Union and the Confederacy, contributed to the outcome of the Civil War from 1861 to 1865. Presidents, military leaders, soldiers, and civilians all played a vital role in this perilous war. For instance, page 500 of our American Nation textbook states, “For both the North and South, the war affected every area of life.” The Union was victorious on April 9, 1865 when Confederate General, Robert E. Lee and his army surrendered at Appomattox Court House in Virginia. Although this is true, the result of the Civil War could have been entirely altered with different leaders.

The Civil War had the most dead men ever in US history. No ordinary person would want to be a part of that gruesome war. Why would Texans volunteer to fight in it then? This all started when “the glue that held America together began to unstick in 1820 (Background Essay)”. The main cause of the Civil War was slavery, which was a huge controversy between the North and South.

Slavery had a key role in the cultures of Muslim and European people. The documents provided, after being analyzed, tell that the thoughts about slavery from each culture were different. The documents also state that the reasons for the differences in the opinions about slavery were because of religions and basic cultural ideals. Nevertheless, there were some similarities between their slavery. One of the most important is the social status of the slaves.

Grimké’s Appeal to the Christian Women of the South is very effective in discrediting the notion that the Bible supports slavery. She highlights seven points that she feels are used to justify slavery and makes a case against each of them. In addition to refuting the Biblical reasoning for slavery, Grimké outlines her own personal four-step program. She challenges the reader to “Read then on the subject of slavery,” “Pray over this subject,” “Speak on this subject,” and “Act on this subject” (Grimké 772-774). Grimké explains each of the steps in detail and encourages research outside of the Bible, while mixing in verses from it to support her

David Walker says, “whites have always been an unjust...set of  beings, always seeking power and authority,” to call for slaves to revolt against their masters. Angelina Grimke builds upon Walker’s position, saying “the opposition of slavery has done its deadliest work in the hearts of our citizens,” to illustrate how slavery has caused nothing positive to the nation and is only diverting the country apart. The Northerners also had the interpretation of “holding slaves is morally wrong...upon precepts taught in the bible, and takes (the bible) as the standard of morality and religion” (Slavery and the Bible,1850) to further question the justification of holding slaves and how the morals of Christians in the North aided by the rise of the abolition movement during the Second Great Awakening. The morality of slavery was being questioned in the United States during the nineteenth century because of the denial of happiness and human rights among those under the rule of southern plantation owners. Reformers expressed their point of views, and many northerners began to join the abolition movement, however their attempts couldn’t influence the southerners and slavery continued on plantations in the southern

In document two, the maps show that there are more slaves in the slaves and cotton in the South, but more manufacturing money in the North. This separation of production and profit was detrimental to the southern economy, as they had to

Many Americans believe the divine wisdom and devoted to Gods holy word; as it provides purpose and give stability to their lives. In Mark Noll’s book entitled The Civil War as a Theological Crisis, the religious leaders of that time leading up to the Civil War were unable to provide answers to some of the most difficult question of that era; does the Bible condone or does the Bible condemn slavery? Americans were at odds over the understanding of God’s divine word as both Northern and Southerners tried to find meaning on this war and what Gods role was in it. How could either side claim to have the support of God through his word for their position? Clashes over the interpretation of the Bible on slavery were matched during the era of the Civil

The United States Constitution was established to provide basic rights and a government for the people. Much blood was shed, along with many casualties in the American Revolution to insure Americans could implement the policies and powers of the Constitution. In the election of 1860, Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States; however, his political views on slavery were not welcomed in the South. Consequently, Lincoln’s election sparked panic for the South knowing that he would undermine slavery. In order to insure that slavery continued, Southern states attempted to make two Constitutional provisions; consequently, they were denied.

During this time many people wanted to continue with slavery and treat others inferior. However, in the sermons given out about Chirstianity people spread the message that everyone is equal to God which is why slavery should be abolished. In document 3, Walker talks about the importance of being free and reaches out to people to become abolitionists and to slaves to fight for their freedom. This is significant because the author wants to help abolish slavery due to all of the suffering slaves have gone through and he does this to support the idea that everyone is the same and that they should show God that they can fight for their freedom. This shows that the religious ideas of the Second Great Awakening did have a great impact in the slavery abolition movements because due to the sermons and the idea that everyone is equal in God’s perspective many people were influenced to become abolitionists and help end slavery.

How would you feel if you were let out of a cage just to be locked in another room? This feeling was felt by many of the blacks after they were freed in the 1850's. These blacks were mostly ex-slaves or their children. There were about 476,000 free African Americans at the time. A little less than half of these lived in the Northern part of America.

Since the creation of the cotton gin, cotton was the most important plantation crop. With the possibility for mass production of cotton products, the need for labor increased as well, making slavery the most viable option. The cotton produced by plantations fueled northern manufacturing, forcing the north to rely on the south for economic growth. With the cotton economy depending on slavery, cotton became a “great staple crop” that is crucial in the south since it “cannot be carried on in any portion of our country where there are not slaves” (Doc B).

Nonetheless, the story exhibits the function of Christianity in maintaining the stability of slavery, by means of conversion to a religion supporting their

It is a common argument for Christian slaveholders to make “…that God cursed Ham, and therefore American slavery is right…” (5). this argument exposes their hypocrisy as it conveys how they attempt to stretch small pieces of scripture to justify the violence of the American slavery. Douglass thus asks if it is humane to use a small piece of writing to damn an entire race to hardship and subhuman treatment. This case of blasphemy is amplified by the observation that Douglass makes of one of his slave masters, Mr. Covey, in that “he seemed to think himself equal to deceiving the almighty” (61).

African Americans for years fought their rights as citizens in the United States. Many others fought for their own rights as well including women and other minority races. While a historian believes that African Americans did nothing to fight for their freedom, I believe with full confidence that the African Americans were the most instrumental part in doing so, but I also believe that they received some help from Whites. To begin, the map in Document A shows where slavery was outlawed and how.