Sacred Capital: Methodism and Settler Colonialism in the Empire of Liberty. By Hunter Price.

The article discusses the book "Sacred Capital," which examines how the early national Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) fostered social connections among middling White settlers in the trans-Appalachian West through itinerant ministers. These ministers created "social capital" by facilitating communication, business partnerships, and community ties, although the benefits of this sociality were largely limited to White men, often excluding women and non-White individuals. The study also critiques the role of White Methodists in settler colonialism, highlighting their presence in the West as a form of dispossession of Indigenous peoples. The author suggests that while the book effectively addresses the passive aspects of settler colonialism, it may also imply that Methodists played more active roles in land speculation and colonization than fully explored. [Extracted from the article]