The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God and World Affairs.

AuthorVasudevan, Veena
PositionBook review

THE MIGHTY AND THE ALMIGHTY: REFLECTIONS ON AMERICA, GOD AND WORLD AFFAIRS Madeline Albright (New York: HarperCollins, 2006), 352 pages.

In her book, The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God, and World Affairs, former Secretary of State Madeline Albright explores religion's effect on American public policy. She argues that while America cannot divorce religion from public policy, leaders should be cautious of letting religious considerations dictate or justify their actions. This is especially true in the post-September 11 world, where governments and terrorist groups alike defend their actions on religion grounds, frequently with violent and destructive consequences.

Albright opens her book by recounting America's founding. She bemoans the fact that a nation based upon principles of religious freedom is now embroiled in a war drawn along religious lines. She denounces the Bush administration's mismanagement of the war, as well as the fact that such ineptitude has alienated much of the Islamic world. With the aim of counteracting this estrangement, Albright expertly demystifies Islam, jihad and the origins of the religious conflicts in the Middle East.

The third section of the book...

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