History Is Lunch Presenter: Post-Civil War Religious Rifts Factored into Reconstruction Divisions

During a recent History Is Lunch presentation, author April Holm put forth that the Civil War created religious divisions between the North and the South that existed for decades, shaping major evangelical denominations and influencing the relationship between the federal government and churches.

Holm, author of In Kingdom Divided: Evangelicals, Loyalty, and Sectionalism in the Civil War Era, is an assistant professor of history and associate director of the Center for Civil War Research at the University of Mississippi. Her book explores religion, morality, and politics during Reconstruction. Her recent presentation at the Two Mississippi Museums was part of the MDAH Religion Initiative, made possible through a grant by Lilly Endowment Inc.’s Religion and Cultural Institutions Initiative. 

Holm said the religious rifts were a major contributing factor to the division between the North and South during Reconstruction. The divisions also led to Black churches forming across the nation.

Watch the presentation on the MDAH YouTube Channel.

Learn more about the MDAH Religion Initiative.