Roger Williams and the Creation of the American Soul

Church, State, and the Birth of Liberty

By: John M. Barry

Narrated by: Richard Poe

This is a story of power, set against Puritan America and the English Civil War. Williams's interactions with King James, Francis Bacon, Oliver Cromwell, and his mentor Edward Coke set his course, but his fundamental ideas came to fruition in America, as Williams, though a Puritan, collided with John Winthrop's vision of his "City upon a Hill.

©2012 John M. Barry (P)2012 Recorded Books, LLC

An important book

If you are interested in American history or are a serious scholar, this book should be read (or listened to). The discussion of church and state is still relevant, inspiring and thought provoking. Roger Williams was truly a “founding father” of our country. I’m surprised how Puritanical American thought is, at it’s core.

Wonderful! But still boring.

This is a fascinating book full of a lot history that you probably (assuming you took US history in high school) have a vague sense of but don't know much about, like the relationships between Massachusetts and Plymouth in the early colonial period and how the power balance between Indians and Englishmen (and Dutchmen) evolved over this period. In addition, there's a lot about 17th century English history here, including notably about Edward Coke, Williams' mentor, and originator of the phrase "an Englishman's home is his castle."

I'm giving the book 5 stars because I enjoyed it so much, but it needs to be said: it is definitely boring at times. Partly that's because the book takes so much on, including being a definitive biography, which means a lot of detail of Williams's comings and goings, and detailing the various written sources about him especially surviving letters. The book would be deficient if it didn't have all this, but I don't really care to listen to much of it. I think an abridged version would be just fine.

Williams' unique significance of course is that, unlike the New England Puritans who traveled thousands of miles for religious freedom for themselves in order to impose their views on others, Williams genuinely believed that everyone, even non-Christians theists and atheists, should enjoy "liberty of conscience." There may have been others who held this view before him, but Williams was the first to put it into actual practice in real governance in Rhode Island, and somewhat amazingly was able to secure a charter from England that codified this principle. Williams was also a fairly prominent figure willing to express this fairly radical view openly and strongly in books and pamphlets.

The deeper question, which Barry addresses in the afterward, though I wish he'd said more on this point, is just how much effect Williams actually had on modern notions of freedom of religion. Was it Williams who indirectly gave us the first amendment (he was the originator of the phrase "wall of separation between church of state," which Jefferson quoted) by showing the value of this principle, or was he something of a dead end, an expression of an idea that was already in the aether and that was really developed later by Enlightenment thinkers based on secular foundations, while Williams used somewhat pained and tendentious arguments based on scripture, the only tool available in his era? It's difficult to say, though Barry obviously tends to the side of Williams being a genuinely significant figure, having written a biography of the man.

The significance of this question to modern times is obvious. In the debates between Roger Williams and John Winthrop, many have seen the whole story of (religious) freedom in America. For a more fun read in this vein, check out Sarah Vowell's "The Wordy Shipmates," which is what led me to this Williams book. Of course this is a pretty yankee-centric view. But New England is, was, and always will be the real America. The South just messes stuff up every few decades.

An absolute must read

I've always been fascinated by Roger Williams but have found that there is little to read about him. Most history teachers cover him in a single paragraph. After listening to this book I now understand why. The author does and excellent job presenting the brilliance and humility of this man who formed the basis for true freedom of religion and helped lay the foundation of this country's beginning. I recently listened to another lecture on the religious history of the US and that person as well pointed to Roger Williams as the basis for this nation's unique religious liberty laws. Mr Williams knew that it was not the job of civil government to define what the true religion was to be, he knew that is WAS the job of civil government to create the climate where various religions could thrive. The Puritan were all for religious freedom for themselves but if you came afoul of their particular beliefs then the penalty could, and usually was, severe.
Roger Williams was unique in that he recognized that there were obvious errors in the teachings of the various religious groups he saw around him but he also knew that he wasn't called by God to form a new religion. His latter life he was content to withdraw from mainstream religion and instead studied peacefully at his home. He treated the Indians fairly and the way he would like to be treated.
This is well worth the time to listen to.

Excellent!

A seemly exhaustive effort poured into every detail. It stands to reason why the book is 36 chapters. I learned a great deal of what of not only the early struggles of Puritan's but of American history that should be taught in American school's.

Outside my comfort zone but highly recommended

This was a book club choice that I would not have chosen on my own without prompting but John Barry delivered a thought provoking portrait of a man and his times that kept me engaged from the start. Barry reveals Williams as a complex, courageous and principled man and original thinker whose ideas of religious freedom were far ahead of his time. I would definitely listen to John Barry's works again. He has a gift for making somewhat arcane topics highly readable and enlightening. One of my all time favorite non-fiction works is his Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi River Flood of 1927 and How it Changed America. That book marries the hydrology of the Mississippi River with a social history of a region in the grip of one of the most massive natural disasters ever to befall this country before a functional social safety net was in place.

Deep dive into early US religion

This is a well researched work on a period of US history that often gets passed over. Excellent narration.

Wonderful story with lots of context

I originally downloaded this book for some history on Rhode Island (where I live), and was surprised by the amount of political and cultural context it provides, on both sides of the atlantic.

A good deal of the first half is a sweeping tour of the culture and politics in england that pushed people to look to america to escape an increasingly volatile domestic front. It then details the events in the Massachusetts bay colony leading up to williams' exile and the formation of Rhode Island. In turn, it builds him up as the embodiment of the emigration movement, and ultimately of the independent and free spirit that sparked a revolution and led to the foundation of a new nation.

It does a fantastic job of both painting a cultural picture of that time, as well as transposing its visible impact on the classic american frame of mind throughout the years. For a relatively concise book, it really covers a lot of ground in a very entertaining fashion.

The end kind of trailed off unceremoniously, but it wasn't anything that would diminish my strong recommendation to check this one out.

Also -- the narrator is quite good! He's definitely taken an acting class or two -- very dramatic and lively at times.

Incredible

An extraordinary view into the history of America. Its subjects of freedom from religious persecution and the inclusion of all people are particularly prudent today. This is a book about my 13th-great Uncle and I am incredibly proud of the foundation he set for America.

Historical examination

The book lives up to its title, describing in detail the influences of both Roger Williams and the other influential men and women of his era, all in the larger context of the era of New England colonial settlement. I enjoyed the book overall. Narrator was professional yet a bit on the bombastic side for me, but I survived.

Surprising and Engaging

What did you love best about Roger Williams and the Creation of the American Soul?

This book was more than a biography of a compelling historic figure. It provided a lively and comprehensive overview of the English religious wars of the early 17th Century and the religious conflicts of early Colonial times in New England, with occasional comparisons to today's similar conflicts.

But the best part was the characterizations. We learned so much about figures like King James and King Charles, Sir Edward Coke and the Archbishop of Canterbury, John Cotton and even leading Narragansett and Mohegan sachems. The book provides a real sense of the day-to-day conflicts that were faced by residents of New England.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Roger Williams was a far more remarkable figure than I had realized. I had always thought of him as a kind of cardboard figure who founded Rhode Island for religious dissidents. But this book brings to life his bravery and his humility, as well as his growing focus on liberty of conscience and toleration of other religions. You can follow the development of his philosophy as the book traces his...well, "adventures" is a good word.

Have you listened to any of Richard Poe’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Richard Poe is one of my favorite narrators. I have been listening to him on Recorded Books since something called "The Last Farmer," about an aging but independent midwestern farmer. He does a great job with nonfiction--clear, engaged and likeable.