ABSTRACT
Most evangelical Christians in the North had become Republicans by the beginning of the Civil War. Derided as "Copperhead Christians," the Democratic evangelical minority was hard pressed to articulate an alternative interpretation. At stake was the religious meaning of the war. Many articles and letters in wartime Democratic newspapers attest to how the religious minority groped toward a defense of their Christian character. Many dissident Democrats began withdrawing from activity or switching congregations or denominations. Some even formed alternative new churches. Many Democrats who until recently had filled church pews now found themselves "unable to worship in a proper form of mind" in churches "where their political opinions are condemned as sins against God." Yet as the Reverend Norris and other religious Democratic editors bemoaned the religious persecution they received for their political beliefs, they in turn incorporated Democratic politics into their attacks against the Northern Christian majority.
