FDR, the Vatican, and the Roman Catholic Church in America, 1933-1945

In this collection of essays, scholars analyse the relationship between Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Vatican, and the Roman Catholic Church in America. American Catholics had long been a crucial voting bloc in the United States, particularly in the Democratic Party. With the nation mired in economic depression and the threat of war looming across the Atlantic, in 1932 Catholics had to weigh, perhaps more seriously than ever before, political allegiance versus religious affiliation. Many chose party over religion, electing Frankiln D. Roosevelt, a Protestant.