Abraham Lincoln’s Religion

“Steve Vicchio has given us a new and unique analysis of Abraham Lincoln’s religious beliefs and practices, how they affected his life and presidency, and through him the entire nation.  Especially in our contemporary world, these are important and too-often neglected questions that Steve brings forcefully to life.”  


—John Bolton, Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations (2005–2006)





“One of the paradoxes of Lincoln’s career is that while his rhetoric is widely acknowledged as saturated in the Bible, he rejected all specific denominations and had strong skeptical tendencies. Stephen Vicchio takes a fresh approach to this paradox by undertaking a painstaking analysis of Lincoln's speeches, reading them with the eyes of a trained theologian. As a result he provides us with a fine account of Lincoln's religion.”


—Christopher Kelly, Department of Political Science, Boston College