{"product_id":"9781101554265","title":"Roger Williams and the Creation of the American Soul: Church, State, and the Birth of Liberty","description":"\u003cb\u003e A revelatory look at how Roger Williams shaped the nature of  religion, political power, and individual rights in America. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003eFor four hundred years, Americans have wrestled with and fought over  two concepts that define the nature of the nation: the proper relation  between church and state and between a free individual and the state.  These debates began with the extraordinary thought and struggles of  Roger Williams, who had an unparalleled understanding of the conflict  between a government that justified itself by \"reason of state\"-i.e.  national security-and its perceived \"will of God\" and the \"ancient  rights and liberties\" of individuals.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis 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.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAcclaimed historian John M. Barry explores the development of these  fundamental ideas through the story of the man who was the first to  link religious freedom to individual liberty, and who created in  America the first government and society on earth informed by those  beliefs. The story is essential to the continuing debate over how we  define the role of religion and political power in modern American  life.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Penguin Publishing Group","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47119132950768,"sku":"9781101554265","price":10.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781101554265_p0.jpg?v=1763687994","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781101554265","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}