"In this book William Dean describes the spiritual culture that is grounded in the emerging American story. He also explores the concept of God (or the "Ultimate") that is central to that story - a concept that is reflected in American culture, including popular culture.

The first part of the book argues that Americans are a pragmatic, culturally displaced, immigrant people and teases out the meaning of this description for a concept of God that is theologically and religiously adequate - pragmatic yet attentive to both tradition and mystery.".

"In the second half, the author verifies his analysis by examining three quintessential American popular cultural forms, which, he would argue, are forms of religious expression. They are jazz (improvisation), football (violence), and the movies (fantasy). The American Spiritual Culture is a work of constructive theology that is wide-ranging in scope, combining cultural commentary, rich historical illustrations, and theo-philosophical insights."--BOOK JACKET.