Presidential faith and foreign policy : Jimmy Carter the disciple and Ronald Reagan the alchemist

Throughout the Cold War the religious beliefs of presidents and the connection of those beliefs to foreign policy produced curiosities but little scholarship. The subject was most often sequestered behind the presumptive veil of the separation of church and state, or otherwise set aside due to methodological concerns. Since 9/11, religion has become a subject that cannot be ignored. Western inquiries of Islam and the religious rhetoric of George W. Bush made religion central to foreign affairs. However, as Presidential Faith and Foreign Policy shows, religion has been fully ensconced in the political sphere since the presidency of Jimmy Carter, and he and his successor Ronald Reagan - both self-professed born-again Christians - applied their particular religious interpretations to their leadership of the United States and its international affairs.--Provided by publisher.
Abstract: This book explores the relationship between the religious beliefs of presidents and their foreign policymaking. Through the application of a new methodological approach that provides a cognetic narrative of each president, this study reveals the significance of religion's impact on U.S. foreign policy.