Daughters of Divinity

“Daughters of Divinity is a sweeping and innovative study of southern Protestant women in domestic and foreign missions between 1830 and 1930. Using institutional and personal accounts, Katherine Rohrer insightfully captures their ambitious vision as well as the limits created by their racial, religious, and class biases.” ~Scott Stephan, author of Redeeming the Southern Family: Evangelical Women and Domestic Devotion in the Antebellum South

“Daughters of Divinity explores the transformative impact of evangelical Christianity on a subset of young, elite women between 1830 and 1930. Tracing a shift in their evangelism from the private sphere into the public domain, Rohrer reveals the tension between this shift and deeply held racial and gender ideals, reflecting the coexistence of New South progressivism with Old South retrenchment.” ~Jennifer Lynn Gross, author of Sisterhood of the Lost Cause: Confederate Widows in the New South

“In cogent and engaging prose, Katherine Rohrer’s Daughters of Divinity reframes our understanding of white southern women as they navigated the intersection of gender and racial identity and ideology, religious faith, and missionary activity, expanding educational opportunities and engagement in social reform movements. Rohrer convincingly shows how their private lives and public roles changed during this period even as patriarchal and white supremacist cultural values and social structures continued to predominate among them and within their native South generally.” ~James Hill Welborn III, author of Dueling Cultures, Damnable Legacies: Southern Violence and White Supremacy in the Civil War Era

“Through sweeping narratives and intimate portraits, Katherine Rohrer’s dynamic study provides new insights into women’s religious leadership in their own homes and communities, in their denominational institutions, and as foreign missionaries to Africa, Asia, and South America. Daughters of Divinity carves a unique path through a well-trod historical landscape and is a much-needed contribution to the field of southern history.” ~Charity Rakestraw, author of Ministers and Masters: Methodism, Manhood, and Honor in the Old South