Religion and the Republic

Abstract

This chapter attempts to enter into the ongoing debate over Calvinism’s place in the politics of the American Revolution by considering, in the persons of Phillis Wheatley and Lemuel Haynes, the black Calvinist tradition as generative of a distinctive theo-political imagination. Taking as its focus the thematics of providence and liberty, this chapter argues that black Calvinists in the Revolutionary period possessed a more sober, self-critical outlook on divine providence and a more comprehensive, consistent spirit of liberty than many of their Anglo counterparts. Wheatley and Haynes evidenced a critical patriotism and commended an aspirational vision of nation building that had as its hope the full humanity and equality of all people. Their cautionary theo-politics anticipated future national tensions, the implications of which continue to be felt today.