Unpopular Views of Peace: The Great War and the Transformation of Southern Religion by John Henry Laaman A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Auburn University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Auburn, Alabama May 7, 2016 Keywords: antiwar, Great War, pacifism, peace, religion, South Copyright 2016 by John Henry Laaman Approved by Charles Israel, Chair, Associate Professor of History Jennifer Brooks, Associate Professor of History Ruth Crocker, Professor Emerita of History Mark Sheftall, Associate Professor of History Abstract The Great War erupted in Europe in 1914. Initially, most Americans viewed the war with horror, and many actively advocated the United States stay out of the conflict. Southern churches were part of this wave of opposition to the European war, speaking out against the savagery of war and the unnecessary nature of the present conflict. However, three years later, the United States declared war on Germany and entered the Great War. Americans generally viewed this decision positively and supported the war effort. Southern denominations were again consistent with the general population, largely abandoning their earlier rhetoric of opposition to the war overseas. Nevertheless, there were elements within many churches in the South that were reluctant to support the war or vigorously opposed the decision to declare war. The general abandonment of earlier views about the war was part of southern churches’ larger transition away from pacifism and antiwar sentiments, which originated for many in the nineteenth century. The Religious Society of Friends (North Carolina Yearly Meeting); the Churches of Christ; the Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee); the Methodist Episcopal Church, South; and the National Baptist Convention were representative southern churches that, to varying degrees, experienced this transformation in their religious views. Since these denominations had already begun the shift away from antiwar sentiments in the nineteenth century, the Great War was more of an accelerant than a catalyst. As a result of the wartime pressures from the government and civilians, these southern churches attempted to complete the process of leaving behind their traditional antiwar views and embracing mainstream society. ii Acknowledgements I have relied on the aid and support of numerous individuals throughout the research and writing of this project. I want to thank Dr. Charles Israel, my advisor and committee chair, who always made time to read chapter drafts, give pertinent suggestions, and talk through any research difficulties I faced. Many thanks are also due to Dr. Ruth Crocker, Dr. Jennifer Brooks, and Dr. Mark Sheftall, the rest of my committee, as well as Dr. James Ryan, my outside reader, who all provided intelligent and pointed comments on the dissertation. In addition, many family and friends encouraged me during my years in graduate school. Special thanks go to my good friends Jimmy Rich and Curtis Dopson, who took up the important task of helping me recharge whenever I was feeling burned out from too much work. I was blessed to also have a supportive family. I want to thank my dad, a PhD scientist and my hero, who inspired me to pursue my doctoral degree, and my mom, who always showed her love even while I was hundreds of miles away. I am eternally thankful that my parents and my sisters, Reina and Kristen, believed in me and prayed for me the whole time. Lastly and most importantly, I want to thank my lovely and supportive wife, Heather. We were friends when I left for graduate school, we started dating as I began studying for my preliminary exams, and we were married shortly after my last research trip. If for some reason academics could be considered adventurous, then I would say we have been through quite an adventure so far. I am glad to have you with me for all the adventures we have in our future. iii Table of Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................................... iii List of Abbreviations .................................................................................................................... v Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1: The Religious Society of Friends .............................................................................. 14 Chapter 2: The Churches of Christ ............................................................................................. 51 Chapter 3: The Church of God .................................................................................................... 88 Chapter 4: The Methodist Episcopal Church, South ................................................................ 124 Chapter 5: The National Baptist Convention ............................................................................ 160 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 196 Bibliography ............................................................................................................................. 205 iv List of Abbreviations AFSC American Friends Service Committee COC Churches of Christ COG Church of God MECS Methodist Episcopal Church, South NBC National Baptist Convention NBCI National Baptist Convention, Incorporated NBCU National Baptist Convention of America, Unincorporated NBPB National Baptist Publishing Board NAACP National Association for the Advancement of Colored People NCYM North Carolina Yearly Meeting PAFA Peace Association of Friends in America SBC Southern Baptist Convention WMC Woman’s Missionary Council YMCA Young Men’s Christian Association v Introduction Weeks before the United States entered the Great War, former president William Howard Taft conducted a lecture tour throughout the South on behalf of the League to Enforce Peace, a progressive peace organization advocating increased international cooperation after the war. Days before the declaration of war, Taft exclaimed to reporters, “This great section of the country…has not one ounce of anti-war spirit…. The people of the south…feel that war is inevitable, and they are willing to go into it to defend our rights. In fact they do not want to stay out any longer, and they feel that their battles are being fought by somebody else. They are willing to pay in men, in money and in munitions.”1 Early historical studies of the wartime South did not challenge this portrayal. Ray Abrams’ Preachers Present Arms, first published in 1933, described how southern churches eagerly consumed government propaganda, and castigated the clergy for perpetuating the hysteria from their pulpits. He noted, “The members of the cloth and their followers were susceptible to war psychology and crowd-thinking in the same manner as were the other citizens.”2 Although many in the South were ready for and excited about war, and zealous in their support of the government, the climate was not exactly as uniform as Taft and Abrams described. A number of American denominations had traditions of pacifism or antiwar views, and many 1 “Must Not Play War Game Like Bowling Contest, Taft Says,” Montreal Gazette, April 2, 1917, 9. 2 Ray H. Abrams, Preachers Present Arms: A Study of the War-Time Attitudes and Activities of Churches and the Clergy in the United States, 1914-1918 (New York: Round Table, 1933), 246. 1 southern churches, or at least factions within them, still upheld these doctrines during the early twentieth century.3 Due to the centuries of Christian pacifist thought and action that had come before, southern churches in the early twentieth century had rich pacifist traditions available to them, and many drew upon these historic roots. The earliest European settlers in the Thirteen Colonies brought with them religious traditions that spoke to the relation between church and war. Religious scholar James Turner Johnson argues there were two ethical attitudes about war held by Christians during the colonial era: just war and pacifism. Advocates of the just war doctrine ranged from those who viewed wars for religion as the only just form of war, to those who saw religious causes as exactly what made a war unjust. Pacifism was a similarly diverse doctrine, though with fewer adherents. Some Christian pacifists forsook all ties with war, and others saw nonviolent actions to support a warring government as acceptable. While followers of the just war doctrine were found throughout American churches, Christian pacifists were most commonly from the historic peace churches, including the Quakers, Mennonites, and Church of the Brethren.4 For many American Christians, these doctrines and theories about war were put to their first major test with the Revolutionary War. Many who favored the just war doctrine saw the conflict as just, viewing United States as God’s chosen nation trying to gain freedom from oppressive Britain. Many in the peace churches felt their pacifism did not allow participation in 3 For the purpose of this study, “pacifism” is defined as the renunciation of war. Using this term is complicated because not all members of churches with pacifist traditions were pacifists themselves. Many sought to