Protestantism and Protestant Churches Books

Book SynopsisThe black church has always played a vital role in urban US settings. This study examines the impact of the church on blacks and the church's efforts to meet the arduous demands and sacrifices of urban life. It explores the ministers' role of leadership in African-American communities.Trade ReviewThis detailed history surveys a vital force within the Bedford-Stuyvesant community, showing how 19th-century black churches emulated the white mainstream. Pentecostalism became a major force in the early 20th century, and civil rights issues came to the fore. Library Journal

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Book SynopsisExperts in American religious history and the sociology of religion examine the decline of mainline Protestantism over the past half century and assess its future. The book argues that the mainline Protestant movement will continue to be a vital remnant in a culture torn between the contending forces of secularism and evangelicalism.Trade ReviewMainline Protestantism never outgrew its ethnic families of origin and it suffered a breathtaking fall from fifty percent to ten percent of the population. Yet it remains a constructive and influential force in American life. This splendid book lucidly, cogently, and judiciously captures both sides of this story and picture, making a valuable contribution. -- Gary Dorrien, Columbia UniversityFor at least two decades, scholars have been addressing the presumed decline of mainline Protestantism in the United States. But mainline Protestantism refuses to disappear. Thus, what The Future of Mainline Protestantism in America proffers, namely a look at the future of mainline Protestantism, is timely indeed. -- Charles Lippy, University of Tennessee at ChattanoogaA timely collection, The Future of Mainline Protestantism in America synthesizes a great deal of recent scholarship in a way that will speak to a wide audience of students and scholars alike. It will make a positive contribution to the wider field of American religion, in particular, to the fields of sociology of religion, history of American Christianity, and religion in American culture. -- Christopher Evans, Boston UniversityWith precision, clarity, and balance, these authors explore many facets of the well-known but less well understood mainline tradition. The Future of Mainline Protestantism in America offers facts, a guide to pertinent literature, a survey of history, and predictions about coming challenges and opportunities—all highly relevant to conversations about religion in American culture. -- Elesha J. Coffman, author of The Christian Century and the Rise of the Protestant MainlineA welcome contribution to American religious scholarship. * Reading Religion *Table of ContentsSeries Editors’ Introduction: The Future of Religion in America, by Mark Silk and Andrew H. WalshIntroduction, by James Hudnut-Beumler1. The State of Contemporary Mainline Protestantism, by Graham Reside2. The Beliefs and Practices of Mainline Protestants, by David Bains3. Futures for Mainline Protestant Institutions, by Maria Erling4. A Divided House, by Daniel Sack5. The Mainline and the Soul of International Relations, by Andrew H. WalshConclusion: The Quakerization of Mainline Protestantism, by James Hudnut-BeumlerAppendix A: American Religious Identification Survey: Research DesignAppendix B: American Religious Identification Survey: Future of Religion in America SurveyAppendix C: American Religious Identification Survey: Typology of Religious GroupsList of ContributorsIndex

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Book SynopsisExperts in American religious history and the sociology of religion examine the decline of mainline Protestantism over the past half century and assess its future. The book argues that the mainline Protestant movement will continue to be a vital remnant in a culture torn between the contending forces of secularism and evangelicalism.Trade ReviewMainline Protestantism never outgrew its ethnic families of origin and it suffered a breathtaking fall from fifty percent to ten percent of the population. Yet it remains a constructive and influential force in American life. This splendid book lucidly, cogently, and judiciously captures both sides of this story and picture, making a valuable contribution. -- Gary Dorrien, Columbia UniversityFor at least two decades, scholars have been addressing the presumed decline of mainline Protestantism in the United States. But mainline Protestantism refuses to disappear. Thus, what The Future of Mainline Protestantism in America proffers, namely a look at the future of mainline Protestantism, is timely indeed. -- Charles Lippy, University of Tennessee at ChattanoogaA timely collection, The Future of Mainline Protestantism in America synthesizes a great deal of recent scholarship in a way that will speak to a wide audience of students and scholars alike. It will make a positive contribution to the wider field of American religion, in particular, to the fields of sociology of religion, history of American Christianity, and religion in American culture. -- Christopher Evans, Boston UniversityWith precision, clarity, and balance, these authors explore many facets of the well-known but less well understood mainline tradition. The Future of Mainline Protestantism in America offers facts, a guide to pertinent literature, a survey of history, and predictions about coming challenges and opportunities—all highly relevant to conversations about religion in American culture. -- Elesha J. Coffman, author of The Christian Century and the Rise of the Protestant MainlineA welcome contribution to American religious scholarship. * Reading Religion *Table of ContentsSeries Editors’ Introduction: The Future of Religion in America, by Mark Silk and Andrew H. WalshIntroduction, by James Hudnut-Beumler1. The State of Contemporary Mainline Protestantism, by Graham Reside2. The Beliefs and Practices of Mainline Protestants, by David Bains3. Futures for Mainline Protestant Institutions, by Maria Erling4. A Divided House, by Daniel Sack5. The Mainline and the Soul of International Relations, by Andrew H. WalshConclusion: The Quakerization of Mainline Protestantism, by James Hudnut-BeumlerAppendix A: American Religious Identification Survey: Research DesignAppendix B: American Religious Identification Survey: Future of Religion in America SurveyAppendix C: American Religious Identification Survey: Typology of Religious GroupsList of ContributorsIndex

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Book SynopsisFaith in Markets offers a new account of the interplay between religion and capitalism in nineteenth-century American history by telling the stories of the Protestant entrepreneurs who established businesses to serve as agents of cultural and economic reform.Trade ReviewThis book is an extraordinarily well-researched examination of the origins of what we now call ‘Christian business enterprise’ and an impeccably detailed and rich account of three different forms of Christian business enterprises. Throughout, Slaughter provides a beautifully wrought narrative of these enterprises, their founders, and how Christianity and capitalism interacted. -- Paul Harvey, author of Christianity and Race in the American South: A HistoryThe long history of free enterprise in the United States cannot be understood without reckoning with the history of religion. Wherever a marketplace emerged it did so in loud engagement with Protestants who sought its use for varied theological and social ends. A critical intervention in the history of capitalism. -- Kathryn Lofton, author of Consuming ReligionIn Faith in Markets, Slaughter expertly explores how early American Protestants grappled with the moral implications of capitalism. Neither fully embracing nor rejecting a laissez-faire market model, his protagonists sought to transform capitalism into a tool of moral uplift. This is a must-read book for anyone seeking to understand the roots of American Christianity’s relationship with capitalism. -- Sharon Murphy, author of Banking on Slavery: Financing Southern Expansion in the Antebellum United StatesSlaughter’s study of ‘Christian business enterprises’ is a timely, readable, and searching account of the long-standing entanglement of religion and business in early national America. Few recent works have done as much to demonstrate the connections between specific forms of Christian theology and market capitalism. -- Seth Perry, author of Bible Culture and Authority in the Early United StatesFaith in Markets is a masterfully researched, lucidly written, and analytically keen study of the relationship between Protestantism and business in nineteenth-century America. Through compelling accounts that demonstrate a new approach to religion and capitalism, Slaughter shows the reader the wonders and diversity of what he aptly labels as early forms of Christian business enterprises. -- Mark Valeri, author of Heavenly Merchandize: How Religion Shaped Commerce in Puritan AmericaTable of ContentsIntroduction: Early Nineteenth-Century Capitalism and ReligionPart I: Christian Communal Capitalism1. Communal Industry: Harmonie, Pennsylvania2. Industry on the Frontier: Harmonie, Indiana3. Republican Industry: Economie, PennsylvaniaPart II: Christian Reform Capitalism4. The Sabbatarians5. The Pioneers6. Conflict, Defeat, and VictoryPart III: Christian Virtue Capitalism7. Methodist Printer-Publishers8. Creating a Moral Republic9. Fostering an American Protestant IdentityConclusion: Morality and Markets, Then and NowAcknowledgmentsNotesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisFaith in Markets offers a new account of the interplay between religion and capitalism in nineteenth-century American history by telling the stories of the Protestant entrepreneurs who established businesses to serve as agents of cultural and economic reform.Trade ReviewThis book is an extraordinarily well-researched examination of the origins of what we now call ‘Christian business enterprise’ and an impeccably detailed and rich account of three different forms of Christian business enterprises. Throughout, Slaughter provides a beautifully wrought narrative of these enterprises, their founders, and how Christianity and capitalism interacted. -- Paul Harvey, author of Christianity and Race in the American South: A HistoryThe long history of free enterprise in the United States cannot be understood without reckoning with the history of religion. Wherever a marketplace emerged it did so in loud engagement with Protestants who sought its use for varied theological and social ends. A critical intervention in the history of capitalism. -- Kathryn Lofton, author of Consuming ReligionIn Faith in Markets, Slaughter expertly explores how early American Protestants grappled with the moral implications of capitalism. Neither fully embracing nor rejecting a laissez-faire market model, his protagonists sought to transform capitalism into a tool of moral uplift. This is a must-read book for anyone seeking to understand the roots of American Christianity’s relationship with capitalism. -- Sharon Murphy, author of Banking on Slavery: Financing Southern Expansion in the Antebellum United StatesSlaughter’s study of ‘Christian business enterprises’ is a timely, readable, and searching account of the long-standing entanglement of religion and business in early national America. Few recent works have done as much to demonstrate the connections between specific forms of Christian theology and market capitalism. -- Seth Perry, author of Bible Culture and Authority in the Early United StatesFaith in Markets is a masterfully researched, lucidly written, and analytically keen study of the relationship between Protestantism and business in nineteenth-century America. Through compelling accounts that demonstrate a new approach to religion and capitalism, Slaughter shows the reader the wonders and diversity of what he aptly labels as early forms of Christian business enterprises. -- Mark Valeri, author of Heavenly Merchandize: How Religion Shaped Commerce in Puritan AmericaTable of ContentsIntroduction: Early Nineteenth-Century Capitalism and ReligionPart I: Christian Communal Capitalism1. Communal Industry: Harmonie, Pennsylvania2. Industry on the Frontier: Harmonie, Indiana3. Republican Industry: Economie, PennsylvaniaPart II: Christian Reform Capitalism4. The Sabbatarians5. The Pioneers6. Conflict, Defeat, and VictoryPart III: Christian Virtue Capitalism7. Methodist Printer-Publishers8. Creating a Moral Republic9. Fostering an American Protestant IdentityConclusion: Morality and Markets, Then and NowAcknowledgmentsNotesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisThe story of America's first black bishop and his struggle, against white apathy, lack of funds, and jurisdictional ambiguity, to rebuild the African-American component of the Episcopal Church in the context of a segregated church.Trade Review"A minutely and scrupulously detailed biography and analysis of the first Black man appointed to be a bishop in the Episcopal Church."--Paul Harvery, Religious Studies Review"Beary's conclusions to this deeply researched and well-written study are important and solid. His work will be useful to many, particularly students of southern religious history and race relations."--Terry D. Goddard, Arkansas Historical Quarterly"This meticulously researched, sensitively written, and readable book is a church history with a difference. It is a biography of Edward T. Demby, the first Black bishop in the Episcopal Church, and a history of race relations within that church."--William Norton, Journal of the West"A riveting and valuable analysis of the long and often dehumanizing struggles of the Reverend Edward T. Demby as he fought on two equally difficult fronts: to become the first duly elected Black bishop in the Episcopal Church and to expose and overcome the racism that marked both Episcopalianism and the secular society of his age. . . . Beary's historical analysis of racism in the Episcopal Church shines such a powerful floodlight on this truth that racist confessors should no longer be able to hide behind ecclesia's walls."--Paul R. Griffin, Anglican and Episcopal History"This relentlessly honest, scrupulously researched and well-written biography rises above praise and blame and allows the life of a remarkable Christian to speak for itself. In the process, he also illuminates the moral geography of an era." -- Robert Neralich, The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette"Beary skillfully narrates the shifting alliances within the Episcopal Church and shows how race was but one aspect of a more elemental struggle for power. He demonstrates how Demby's steadiness of purpose and nonconfrontational manner gathered allies on both sides of the color line and how, ultimately, his judgment and the weight of his experience carried the church past its segregationist experiment." -- African Sun Times"A fine study, not just of the life of an individual, but of an era in the life of the Church. Bishop Demby reminds us that even in the midst of the painful and the unjust, the work of the Spirit cannot be entirely extinguished." -- Caroline T. Marshall, The Historiographer

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewDavid Montgomery Award, Organization of American Historians (OAH), 2016. "Elizabeth and Ken Fones-Wolf have produced the best book yet written on southern religious culture and its fateful intersection with the American labor movement during the crucial years when the twentieth-century fate of organized labor hung in the balance. This book is a treasure." --Joseph A. McCartin, author of Collision Course: Ronald Reagan, the Air Traffic Controllers, and the Strike that Changed America"A stunning social history of working-class southerners in the postwar South. . . . Highly recommended."--Choice"Struggle for the Soul of the Postwar South, is a brilliant addition to this increasingly robust body of scholarship...The Fones-Wolfs' book will be of obvious interest to labor and religious historians, but it also deserves al a wide audience among the "new" historians of capitalism."--The Journal of Southern Religion"Elizabeth and Ken Fones-Wolf provide an outstanding account of the role of religion in the Congress of Industrial Organization's (CIO) campaign to organize industrial workers in the South after World War II… By weaving together the strands of American labor and religious history, the Fones-Wolfs have done the signal service of requiring students of both to take them up."--American Historical Review"Elizabeth and Ken Fones-Wolf have written an engaging book that explores the post-World War II labour movement in the US south through the lens of religious culture… A major intervention in southern and labour history, this book promises to influence how historians understand and analyze the intersections of religion and class in social justice movements and in the lives of working people."--Labour/Le Travail"Elizabeth Fones-Wolf and Ken Fones-Wolf have written a nuanced, well-argued monograph on the role of religion in Operation Dixie, the attempt by the Congress of Industrial Organization (CIO) to organize southern workers after World War II… An illuminating study for a variety of historians."--Journal of American History"Grounded in a wealth of archival sources, ranging from oral and local histories to the records of churches and unions, the Fones-Wolfs' multifaceted text is a brilliant and timely intervention in the scholarship, and a pleasure to read."-- Register of the Kentucky Historical Society"The Fones-Wolfs' masterful analysis is essential reading for understanding the dynamics of these conflicts."--North Carolina Historical Review "Struggle for the Soul of the Postwar South is a unique take on an all-too-familiar story."--Journal of Religion "A landmark study. The authors use this insightful and often surprising history to shed new light on the failure of Operation Dixie between 1946 and 1953. In doing so, they deepen our understanding of the relationship between evangelical Christianity and southern labor history, as well as between religion and working-class conservatism, race relations, and anti-unionism."--Jarod Roll, author of Spirit of Rebellion: Labor and Religion in the New Cotton South "The authors have accomplished the rare feat of gracefully combining labor, social, and religious history into a seamless whole, and in the process explaining a story and a tragedy has cried out for such an explanation. This will be essential reading for those interested in southern, labor, and American religious history, and for those who want to think hard about how religious traditions interact with movements for social justice."--Paul Harvey, co-author of The Color of Christ: The Son of God and the Saga of Race in America

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Based on a broad array of sources, the author illuminates vital aspects of sensory culture—norms, ritual practices, beliefs, intellectual assumptions, and lived experiences. His conclusions offer a probing critique and correction of traditional theories about the nature and impact of the German Reformation."--Wietse de Boer, coeditor of Religion and the Senses in Early Modern Europe"This is a pioneering history of the senses in the age of Reformations. Focusing on German Protestantism, Baum shows that changes in sensuous regimes were shaped by political and economic frameworks as well as modes of communication. Change was incomplete but pronounced, yet the myth of Protestantism as anti-sensual faith is comprehensively debunked. Based on a wide range of manuscripts and printed works from different localities, this is a significant contribution to our understanding of Reformation history which is at the cutting edge of the field."--Ulinka Rublack, author of The Astronomer and the Witch: Johannes Kepler's Fight for his Mother

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Based on a broad array of sources, the author illuminates vital aspects of sensory culture—norms, ritual practices, beliefs, intellectual assumptions, and lived experiences. His conclusions offer a probing critique and correction of traditional theories about the nature and impact of the German Reformation."--Wietse de Boer, coeditor of Religion and the Senses in Early Modern Europe"This is a pioneering history of the senses in the age of Reformations. Focusing on German Protestantism, Baum shows that changes in sensuous regimes were shaped by political and economic frameworks as well as modes of communication. Change was incomplete but pronounced, yet the myth of Protestantism as anti-sensual faith is comprehensively debunked. Based on a wide range of manuscripts and printed works from different localities, this is a significant contribution to our understanding of Reformation history which is at the cutting edge of the field."--Ulinka Rublack, author of The Astronomer and the Witch: Johannes Kepler's Fight for his Mother

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Book SynopsisDiscusses the use of Luther's writings to reinforce anti-semitism and anti -JudaismTrade ReviewThorough and wide-ranging, [Demonizing the Jews] is a valuable addition to the historiography of Adolf Hitler's Germany. * The Times of Israel *Christopher Probst has written an insightful analysis of the ways in which Protestant reformer Martin Luther's anti-Jewish writings were used by German Protestants during the Third Reich. * Contemporary Church History Quarterly *Probst provides us with a detailed exegesis of each of his sources, which taken together thoughtfully challenge the supposed discontinuity between premodern anti-Judaism and modern antisemitism. * H-Judaic *[B]y introducing us to new figures and showing us how three different church groups in Germany responded to 'The Jewish Question,' this book makes a valuable contribution to our understanding of the churches under Nazism. * Lutheran Quarterly *This book is clearly a worthwhile read for a Jewish audience unaware of the basis of Protestant anti-Semitism as a component of the overall phenomenon. * AJL Reviews *Probst illuminates the grim reality of Germany from 1933 to 1939, an era in which the Nazis disavowed Enlightenment humanitarianism and internationalism in its various forms and turned the secular state against the most prominent beneficiaries of the Enlightenment, assimilated German Jews. * American Historical Review *Probst is to be lauded for presenting an insightful account of the convoluted echoes and reverberations of this deeply problematic aspect of Luther's legacy within German Protestantism over the longue durée. * German Studies Review *This is a useful, clearly written, conscientious supplement. . . . * German History *Christopher J. Probst has written a helpful book on an important topic. * HOLOCAUST AND GENOCIDE STUDIES *[R]epresents a valuable addition . . . . * H-Soz-U-Kult *[Probst] . . . challenges the dichotomy between theological anti-Judaism and racial antisemitism, since he sees a great deal of overlap both in the sixteenth as well as the twentieth century. Anti-Judaism and antisemitism existed side-by-side in both Luther's writings and in those of many German Protestants in the Nazi era. * Journal of Ecclesiastical History *Table of ContentsList of AbbreviationsIntroduction1. Protestantism in Nazi Germany2. "Luther and the Jews"3. Confessing Church and German Christian Academic Theologians4. Confessing Church Pastors5. German Christian Pastors and Bishops6. Pastors and Theologians from the Unaffiliated Protestant "Middle"ConclusionBibliography

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Book SynopsisOn December 25, 2005, Pope Benedict XVI published Deus caritas est (God Is Love), the first encyclical of his papacy. In Part I, Benedict XVI analyzes human and divine love in terms of eros and agape; presenting love as a fundamental force, Benedict argues that in the Christian, biblical understanding, love is a single reality with many dimensions. He declares to the world that the love which God lavishes upon us and which we in turn must share with others also carries cultural, political, and legal implications, arising from the fact that love of God and love of neighbor are inseparable and form a single commandment. Caritas, the practice of love of neighbor, is the theme of the second part of the encyclical. As Cardinal Cordes explains, the encyclical represents the Magna carta of our work: to orient and to inspire the charitable work of the Catholic Church. In this volume, Cardinal Cordes offers his own studies and other reflections that investigate th

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Book SynopsisOriginally published in 1988, Jon Roberts's book provided the first comprehensive analytical overview of public dialogue among nineteenth-century American Protestant intellectuals who struggled with the theory of organic evolution. Before the publication of Darwin's Origin of Species in 1859, most American Protestant intellectuals valued science, especially natural history, for supplying data that appeared to be invaluable for defending many major tenets of the Christian worldview. Arguments over the scientific merits of Darwin's theory gave way to discussions of its theological implications. Roberts's book reconstructs the course of that conversation from 1875 to 1900.Trade Review"Jon H. Roberts has scrutinized the response of Protestant apologists to this major challenge to their faith in such painstaking and exhaustive detail that his effort will surely stand as the book of record." —The Journal of American History"While many contemporary historians have become captivated with sociocultural interpretations of the past, Roberts demonstrates the continuing viability of intellectual history. . . . this book offers one of the fairest historical expositions of the anti-Darwinists to be found in scholarly literature." —The Christian Century"Awarded the Brewer prize of the American Society of Church History, this book provides the most detailed account to date of the reaction of American theologians to Darwinism. . . . this study is richly suggestive and a gold mine of information. Roberts deserves praise for a first book of such depth and complexity." —The American Historical Review"Professor Roberts’ thesis is neat, closely argued and convincing, and his scholarship is prodigious." —Journal of American Studies"Essential reading for an understanding of the battle lines drawn between Protestant evolutionists and their opponents in the late twentieth as well as the late nineteenth century." —Journal of the American Academy of Religion". . . . a rich resource for students of American history and culture. . . . an impressive scholarly accomplishment upon which much subsequent research shall be built." —The Journal of Religion"For those with an interest in the creation-evolution controversies, Darwin and the Divine in America is an important and helpful book." —Theology Today"This thoroughly researched book establishes a new standard for discussing connections between evolutionary theory and Protestant thought in nineteenth-century America." —Isis“...Roberts’ award-winning Darwinism and the Divine in America remains a well documented and valuable source for understanding the intellectual and religious concerns raised by Darwin’s transmutation theory in the late nineteenth-century US.” —Religious Studies Review

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Book SynopsisIn The Making and Unmaking of the English Catholic Intellectual Community, 19101950, James R. Lothian examines the engagement of interwar Catholic writers and artists both with modernity in general and with the political and economic upheavals of the times in England and continental Europe. The book describes a close-knit community of Catholic intellectuals that coalesced in the aftermath of the Great War and was inspired by Hilaire Belloc''s ideology. Among the more than two dozen figures considered in this volume are G. K. Chesterton, novelist Evelyn Waugh, poet and painter David Jones, sculptor Eric Gill, historian Christopher Dawson, and publishers Frank Sheed and Maisie Ward. For Catholic intellectuals who embraced Bellocianism, the response to contemporary politics was a potent combination of hostility toward parliamentary democracy, capitalism, and so-called Protestant Whig history. Belloc and his friends asserted a set of political, economic, and historiographical altTrade ReviewJames Lothian's important new book considers the English Catholic world of the first half of the twentieth century as many English Catholics might have wished it to be considered—small but culturally significant, confident but inveterately quarrelsome, patriotic but with a strangely ambiguous loyalty both to Rome and to home. . . . Lothian's examination of this rich and complex community is impressively researched, solidly written, engagingly argued, and in sum, full of fascination. He is to be commended on his achievement." —The Journal of Modern History"This book sheds much new light on English Catholic intellectuals in the four decades that encompassed the two world wars. The book builds on but goes well beyond existing scholarship . . . this is a rich and pioneering study that sheds much light on a neglected area of English cultural and intellectual history. The wealth of primary sources on which Lothian has drawn, together with his compelling narrative, critical analysis, and attention to nuance, will ensure that this is a landmark book." —The Journal of British Studies“Lothian, a history professor at the University of Binghamton in New York, presents a comprehensive history of English Catholic thinkers such as Hilaire Belloc, GK Chesterton, Eric Gill and Evelyn Waugh. These intellectuals and others formed a Catholic counterculture of sorts that produced what is now known as ‘political Catholicism.’ Lothian examines this counterculture, its members’ struggle with Catholicism’s negative attitude towards modernity, and their desire to engage with contemporary society.” —Conscience“. . . there are many fine biographies of Belloc, Chesterton, Eric Gill, David Jones and Evelyn Waugh . . . James Lothian admirably provides a collective biography of three generations of these leaders, showing how they learned from and influenced each other and, finally, how their collective identity shattered. Lothian charts the rise of new Catholic leaders, including Maisie Ward and Frank Sheed, showing the maturing of Catholic political thought.” —Catholic Library World“There is much to admire here, with extensive research on unpublished correspondence complementing Lothian’s wide-ranging familiarity with the published writings of his subjects. The book provides valuable accounts of hitherto neglected individuals and enhances understanding of more familiar figures such as Chesterton, Gill, and Belloc himself.” —American Historical Review“The Making and Unmaking of the English Catholic Intellectual Community deserves respectful consideration. . . . Lothian makes it harder to ignore Catholicism’s resurgence in the British public mind, a salutary reminder that a sacramental faith encompasses both eschatology and sociology.” —The Catholic Historical Review“The author offers a series of analytical biographies of the key figures, chief among whom were Belloc and Chesterton. Lothian ably charts the rise of the English Catholic Intellectual community from the political Catholicism of Belloc and its demise after the Second World War when the political and economic themes of Belloc and Chesterton were displaced by the theological and philosophical interests of figures such as the publishers F. Sheed and his wife M. Ward, under the moderating influence of the historian C. Dawson.” —Religious Studies Review“James Lothian sees the impact of Hilaire Belloc on the intellectual formation of English Catholicism in the twentieth century as more than the effect of personal influence upon fellow writers and thinkers, rather as a major catalytic force in the construction of a corporate voice for Catholicism in the face of contemporary secular energizing challenges. . . an excellent study on a difficult theme and one that will rapidly become a seminal work.” —Recusant History“James Lothian has written an important book on the cultural and political history of the English Catholic community. . . . Lothian’s work is very impressive.” —Political Studies Review“Lothian’s study fills a much needed gap in English Catholic history and also serves as an excellent example of historical scholarship. Thoroughly documented and very well written—Lothian’s combination of personal annotates and ideological information is a genuine tour de force—this study should stimulate a wide range of dissertation topics which hopefully will continue to shed new light on English Catholicism during the inter-war period.” —Anglican and Episcopal History

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Book SynopsisSchism is the first ethnographic and historical study of Seventh-day Adventism in China.Scholars have been slow to consider Chinese Protestantism from a denominational standpoint. In Schism, the first monograph that documents the life of the Chinese Adventist denomination from the mid-1970s to the 2010s, Christie Chui-Shan Chow explores how Chinese Seventh-day Adventists have used schism as a tool to retain, revive, and recast their unique ecclesial identity in a religious habitat that resists diversity.Based on unpublished archival materials, fieldwork, oral history, and social media research, Chow demonstrates how Chinese Adventists adhere to their denominational character both by recasting the theologies and faith practices that they inherited from American missionaries in the early twentieth century and by engaging with local politics and culture. This book locates the Adventist movement in broader Chinese sociopolitical and religious contexts Trade Review“Christie Chui-Shan Chow’s research unlocks evidence of identity patterns that I have not encountered in any other author writing on comparable topics in contemporary China. Her book thus opens up new academic terrain, both within the study of Chinese Christianity and of contemporary China in general.” —Lars Laamann, author of Christian Heretics in Late Imperial China"Christie Chui-Shan Chow’s superb study of the Seventh-day Adventist church in China recasts our understanding of the post-denominational context of Chinese Christianity. Fine-grained case studies detail four major factions, two local church splits, and one example of collaboration beyond schism, as Chow explores how churches of this Protestant minority have negotiated state control and enforced unity through retrenchment and adaptation of their rites, organization, and theology." —Chloë Starr, author of Chinese Theology"This book has obvious appeal to anyone interested in global Adventism, but its real gift is the way it makes Christianity in China come alive. . . . For Adventists, like for so many other Christians, the pathway forward was never clear, and thus produced both intense conflict and enormous creativity. Chow suggests this may be one reason for Chinese Christianity’s vitality today." —Mission Studies"As the first monograph-length study of Seventh-day Adventism in China covering the (roughly) forty-year period from the mid-1970s to the 2010s, this book is a significant contribution to the field of Chinese Christianities." —International Bulletin of Mission Research"Schism: Seventh-day Adventism in Post-Denominational China is a riveting work on Chinese Protestantism that intentionally focuses on the Seventh-day Adventist denomination.... Schism is not only the first volume in the Liu Institute Series in Chinese Christianities by the University of Notre Dame Press, but it is also the first work that details the history of the Chinese Adventist denomination from the mid-1970s to the 2010s." —Social Sciences and MissionsTable of ContentsIntroduction 1. China’s Adventist Century and Wenzhou 2. To Pray or Not to Pray? The First Schism 3. Come Out of “Babylon”: The Wilderness Schism 4. Hybrid Identity: The Wheatfield Schism 5. “Sisters, You Should Also Help!” The Case of Horizontal Dyke Village 6. Divide and Divide: The Case of Stone Ground Village 7. A Brief Coalition: The Case of South Pond Conclusion

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Book SynopsisPerry explores the relationship of the traditional devotional paradigm of imitatio Christi to the theory and practice of literary imitation in early modern England.Trade Review"This is a most welcome and lucid account of the imitatio Christi tradition in early modern English writing. Perry elegantly examines models of imitation in humanism and in post-Reformation incarnations. In the process, she explores with originality and verve the tensions between creativity and authority, between model and exemplar, and between literary theory and theology, especially in the Sidney circle of influence." —Sarah Beckwith, Katherine Everitt Gilbert Professor of English, Theater Studies and Religion, Duke University"Imitatio Christi: The Poetics of Piety in Early Modern England is a superb book, which should be read by those interested in devotion, gender, literature, and theology during the early modern period. In this highly original piece of scholarship and insight, ranging from Sidney to Milton, Perry makes a complex, fascinating argument about the ways the humanist idea of imitation intersected with theological questions about the role of human signs. This genuinely cross-disciplinary book should have a major impact on early modern studies, not the least because it speaks to multiple audiences and subdisciplines." —Achsah Guibbory, Ann Whitney Olin Professor of English, Barnard College"In Imitatio Christi: The Politics of Piety in Early Modern England, Nandra Perry explores the significance of imitatio Christi in the early modern English humanist tradition. In so doing, she reveals the tradition to be nothing less than a way to think, an organization for one's way in the world. She exposes the seriousness of religious thought in this period and the ways in which previous scholarship has limited our understanding by trying to graft authentic religious gestures onto anachronistic, secular divides." —Ken Jackson, Wayne State University“In Imitatio Christi, Nandra Perry explores what it means to imitate the Word made flesh—or rather, what it meant for post-Reformation English authors to do so.” —Religion and Literature“Renaissance poetics, for Nandra Perry, is essentially an art of imitation first put forth in Sir Philip Sidney’s Defense of Poesy, but for him an act that combines his Calvinist view of man with his understanding that the poet creates a second world of many exemplary Cyruses enabling the poet to realize acts of transcendence and transformation. Read this way, the Defense responds to the concerns of religion and of politics by renewing a fusion of both in ways that inform, elevate, and ultimately inspire.” —Renaissance Quarterly“Nandra Perry’s holistic approach to literary and religious imitation from Sidney to Milton persuasively explores questions and categories of embodiment, kingship, private/public spheres, and the instability of language while also, in a most worthwhile step, seeking ‘to move more freely across the period, gender, generic, and confessional boundaries that often delimit treatments of early modern English piety. . . . Perry’s study of imitation across conventional boundaries is strengthened by its multivalence and is a welcome addition to scholarship that works through and beyond categories of sacred/secular and literary/religious.” —Comitatus“. . . an elegantly structured and sensitively researched examination of imitation as a site of cultural conflict in post-Reformation literature. . . . One of the strengths of Perry’s research is the attention she devotes to her contextual sources. Placing equal interpretive weight on martyrologies, polemical treatises, and devotional handbooks, her study offers fascinating revelations about the interplay between public and private, elite and popular, Catholic, Anglican, and Puritan—eliding traditional critical binaries.” —Renaissance and Reformation“Imitatio or imitation was, as Nandra Perry shows in this ambitious and provocative book, a persistent theme in Renaissance humanism as well as in Catholic and Protestant religious thought . . . . Perry’s Corpus Christi is likely to stimulate in its readers a deep appreciation of the importance as well as the complexity of a concept that shaped much of early modern English life and culture.” —Anglican and Episcopal History“Nandra Perry does a great deal in this study of what she terms Protestant imitation. Hers is a complex and intriguing exploration that hopes to draw renewed attention ‘to the imitation of Christ as a productive category of literary analysis’ from writers such as Philip Sidney and John Milton.” —Sixteenth Century Journal

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Book SynopsisExplores how conversion and religious experiences developed within German Pietism, arguing that the Pietist relationship with conversion was much more complex and problematic than it is often presented to be.Trade Review“Church historians and historians of theology will appreciate Strom’s careful discussion of Bußkampf and the stages of conversion; historians of religion will revel in the complexities of Pietist belonging. . . . This brief review cannot do justice to this thought-provoking book.”—Benjamin Marschke German Studies Review“Jonathan Strom’s argument provides a level of nuance in understanding the nature of Pietist conversion and conversion narratives that has not previously been achieved. This book offers a sophisticated contribution to the field of Pietism studies, and it will appeal to scholars in the field, graduate students, and upper-level undergraduates.”—Douglas Shantz,author of An Introduction to German Pietism: Protestant Renewal at the Dawn of Modern Europe“Jonathan Strom’s manuscript is a landmark study that redirects our understanding of one of the key concepts of Pietist religion in a fundamental way.”—Hartmut Lehmann,coeditor of In Search of Peace and Prosperity: New German Settlements in Eighteenth-Century Europe and AmericaTable of ContentsContentsList of IllustrationsPrefaceAbbreviationsIntroduction I August Hermann Francke's ConversionII Early Pietism and the Diverse Cultures of ConversionIII Conversion in Light of Death: von Schönberg and Henckel's Last Hours IV The Busskampf and Conflicting Views of Conversion after Francke V Pietist Periodicals and the Conversion NarrativeVI Conversion at Dargun VII Execution Narratives and the Collapse of the Conversion Narrative VIII Conclusion NotesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisIn this pioneering study, Elizabeth Brusco explores the intra-household motivations for evangelical conversion in Colombia.Trade Review"This book is nuanced in many ways. For example, all Latin American countries share a history of Roman Catholic domination and ties between the Church and government; many have experienced civil war or other forms of violence, and most have also undergone a significant rural-urban shift. Brusco describes in detail how these historic commonalities play out uniquely in Colombia. The section on persecution of Protestants during La violencia is particularly poignant. " - PneumaTable of Contents Acknowledgments 1. Introduction Contradictions in a Feminist View of Evangelical Women More Contradictions: Colombian Evangelicalism and the Anthropology of Religion Research Questions: The Domestication of Men? Data Collection The Different Levels of Meaning in the Conversion Experience Gender Analysis in Conversion Studies Plan of the Study 2. The Evangelical Movement in Colombia Early Missions The Contemporary Picture: The Size of the Movement The Meaning of “Evangelical” in Colombia Conclusion 3. Religion and Politics Introduction The Power of the Roman Catholic Church in Colombia: The Concordat Constitutional Reform and the Concordat Liberals and Conservatives and the Separation of Church and State La Violencia The Effect of La Violencia on Evangelicals in El Cocuy Conclusion 4. El Cocuy: Colombian Evangelicalism on the Community Level Rural Life in Urban Colombia Choice of El Cocuy as the Rural Field Site Description of the Town Early History of El Cocuy Religion in El Cocuy The Impact of Foreign Missionaries in El Cocuy: The Lutheran Church of Our Savior 5. Domestic Abdication, Individualism, and Machismo Introduction Defining Machismo: Contradictions and Consistencies Domestic Abdication Psychological Approaches: Machismo and Male Dominance Change over Time Machismo, Proletarianization, and Individualism 6. Colombian Sex and Gender Roles and the Family Introduction Sex Roles and Familial Roles The Consequences of Machismo for Women’s Household Roles Conjugal Roles and Status Consciousness Case History: Rosalinda 7. Colombian Evangelicalism from the Household Out Gender Roles and Marital Roles in the Conversion Process The Economic Effects of Gender Role Transformation The Feminine Ethos of Evangelical Religion 8. Conclusion Colombian Evangelicalism as a “Strategic” Form of Female Collective Action Progress, Modernization, and Culture Change Women, the Prosperity Ethic, and the Household Writ Large Appendix: Fieldwork with Colombian Evangelicals Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisFollowing its introduction to Korea in the late nineteenth century, Protestantism grew rapidly both in numbers of followers and in influence, and remained a dominating social and political force throughout the twentieth century. This book charts this stunning growth and examines the shifting political associations of Korean Protestantism.Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction Part 1. Protestantism in Korea: A Social History 1. The Growth of Protestantism: History and Meaning 2. The Theological Orientation of the Protestant Church: Its Formation and Transformation 3. The Korean Protestant Church as a Social Institution Part 2. Protestant Christians and Politics 4. The Protestant Church and Early Nationalist Politics, 1880-1919 5. Protestant Christians and the Late Nationalist Movement, 1919-1945 6. The Protestant Church under Foreign Occupation, 1945-1948 7. Protestant Christians and South Korean Politics, 1948-1980s Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"[A] very informative, exciting, and stimulating book about the resistance of the Church of Norway to Nazism during the German occupation 1940-1945….It is an important contribution." -- Torleiv Austad * Lutheran Quarterly *"Hassing’s book is a valuable contribution to our understanding of the Norwegian Church during the Nazi occupation. One of the few books on this topic available in English, this book speaks to larger issues concerning the relationship between church and state, religious ethics, and resistance and should be of interest to a wide range of scholars of religious history, political history, the history of World War II and Norwegian history." -- Anna M. Peterson * Journal of Church and State *"Hassing’s volume is an important contribution to the literature. . . . This book is a “must” for the library of anyone interested in the Lutheran Church, national politics during the Nazi era, twentieth-century Norwegian history, and church resistance in the face of adversity." -- Brenda L. Gaydosh * Historian, The *"Hassing weaves a compelling story. His account of the struggle that was waged to prevent the establishment of a youth organization modeled after the Hitler Youth is particularly striking." -- Patrick Bernhard * American Historical Review *Table of ContentsPreface Acknowledgments Map of the Church of Norway’s dioceses in 1940 Part One | Preludes 1. German Prelude 5 2. Norwegian Preludes Part Two | Invasion, Accommodation, Collaboration 3. Weserubung 4. Forging a Front Part Three | Resistance 5. In Defense of a Just State 6. The NS Church System 7. Against Nazification 8. In Defense of the Church 9. The Resignation of the Bishops 10. In Defense of the Young 11. Easter 1942 Part Four | Contesting NS Legitimacy 12. Negotiations? 13. The Autonomous Church 14. The NS Church Part Five | Final Protests 15. In Defense of Jews 16. Against Compulsory Labor Service Part Six | Holding Out 17. Between the Times Part Seven | Liberation 18. The Reckoning Epilogue: Legacies Abbreviations Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"In her fine-grained analysis of local realities and the globalization of religion, Tâm Ngô has delivered an important contribution to Hmong and Vietnamese studies, the study of religion, Southeast Asian ethnography, and globalized evangelical Protestantism." -- Pascal Bourdeaux * Cross-Currents: East Asian History and Culture Review *"Not only is the book remarkable for its collection and use of hard-to-get data from a wide array of sources in Vietnam and abroad, including extended periods of fieldwork in a Hmong village, but also for the story it recounts of conversion not by mission on the ground but via broadcast from the air." -- Nick Cheesman * New Books in Southeast Asian Studies (NBN) *"This book on the conversion of the Vietnamese Hmong is important because, to an extent, the history of modern Vietnam is a history of contending with Christianity. . . . Ngô argues that beginning in the 1980s the Vietnamese Hmong, disillusioned by broken promises and oppressive developmental policies, have seized Protestantism as a route to empowerment and modernity." -- Mai Na M. Lee * Pacific Affairs *"Represents a great achievement as the summation of extensive independent fieldwork on a topic that is essentially the convergence of three 'politically sensitive' topics in Vietnam: religious change, ethnic politics, and transnational groups. Ngô has become the first academic to publish English-language research about this topic based on ethnographic methods, which is no mean feat given the government restrictions placed on academic research in upland Vietnam." -- Seb Rumsby * Southeast Asian Studies *

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Book SynopsisTells the story of Mary Alice Hostetter’s journey to define an authentic self amid a rigid religious upbringing in a Mennonite farm family. This quietly powerful memoir of longing and acceptance casts a humanizing eye on a little-understood American religious tradition and a woman’s striving to grow within and beyond it.Table of Contents Prologue The Girl at the Market Part One Hot Lard Class Pictures Once Upon a Time Making Soup Yearnings Wrestling with Peace Part Two Simple Pleasure Billy Graham’s Necktie Cleansed at Crystal Flow On Foot-Washing Sunday One of the Plain Girls Considering Lilies of the Field It’s Only Fair Leaving Home Part Three Making It to the Main Line Among the Right People Where Do I Fit?Zeit und Raum The Coming-Out Letters Epilogue Elegy to the Farm Where I Grew Up Acknowledgments

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Book SynopsisFrom a rare insider’s point of view, Unveiling Grace is the gripping story of how former Brigham Young University professor Lynn Wilder’s entire family, deeply enmeshed in the Mormon Church for thirty years, found their way out into the loving arms of Jesus' grace.

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Book SynopsisOne of the very few books to present a strong proposal on the issue of religious pluralism while maintaining a rock-solid evangelical stance, Wideness in God's Mercy will no doubt launch a decade of discussion on a higher level among many Christians.

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Book SynopsisApophatic theology, or negative theology, attempts to describe God, the Divine Good, by negation, to speak only in terms of what may not be said about the perfect goodness that is God. It is a way of coming to an understanding of who God is which has played a significant role across centuries of Christian tradition but is very often treated with suspicion by those engaging in theological study today. Seeking the God Beyond explores the difference a negative theological approach might make to our faith and practice and offers an introduction to this oft-misunderstood form of spirituality. Beginning by placing apophatic spirituality within its biblical roots, the book later considers the key pioneers of apophatic faith and a diverse range of thinkers including CS Lewis and Keats - to inform us in our negative theological journey.Trade ReviewThis is a timely and very accessible book for an age desperately needing depth as well as direction. The Apophatic way of faith is simply life changing. At the place where words and imagination must rightly fail, the Apophatic way guides us into the inexpressible mystery and presence of the living God. -- David Runcorn'This is an important, timely and delightful book. Janet Williams carries deep learning with grace and style. Her book is packed with a deeply human wisdom and yet points to something far greater and much more glorious. Here is the God who can truly save us from ourselves.' -- David Hoyle, Dean of BristolThe sub-title is ‘A Beginner’s Guide to Christian Apophatic Spirituality,’ and it is exactly that, an overview of the via negativa, a way to reach God by discovering what he is not rather than what he is. I found it a theological page-turner, leading on from the biblical roots starting with Moses, the Song of Songs and John the Baptist to Jesus; these texts are revisited in succeeding chapters: an explanation of the ‘negative way’; exponents such as St John of the Cross and Meister Eckhart; a fascinating description of related topics, Paul in Athens, Keats’ Negative Capability, the books of Narnia and Zen Buddhism; finally apophatic content in practices such as pilgrimage, liturgy and prayer. There are useful addenda such as the need for spiritual emptying and humility in the Afterword, and also further reading. You will gather that it is very wide-ranging, indeed breath-taking in its compass, but it is in direct language and easy to read. I would say it is essential for those engaged in spiritual direction and otherwise highly recommended for all. -- JOHN FOXLEE * The Reader, Winter edition *'...the thrust and tenor will be seen as a welcome ally to those of us who despair at the way in which churches so often seem to want to deliver a God packaged in doctrinal terms where explanation has superseded the experience of the divine. Echoes persist throughout the book of Tillich’s ‘Ground of all being’ and Julian of Norwich’s emphasis on love capturing the meaning of God. Those readers less convinced of the existential reality of God might nevertheless warm to this approach of inward contemplation and a hatching of the heart.' -- Adrian Alker, Progressive Voices, Dec 2019, PC31Table of ContentsContents: Preface Introduction: Speak of Me as I Am Part 1 Biblical Roots - Moses: The Fire and the Cloud - The Song of Songs - John the Baptist, Apophatic Prophet - Jesus: Word and Silence Part 2 The ‘Negative Way’ - Stripping - Ascent - Unsaying - Union Part 3 Pioneers of Apophatic Faith - Gregory of Nyssa - The Dionysian Corpus - Meister Eckhart - Nicholas of Cusa Part 4 Allies on the Journey - Athens - Keats’ Negative Capability - Narnia - Zen’s ‘Don’t-Know Mind’ Part 5 Apophatic Practices - Exuberance: Saying and Unsaying in Parable and Poetry - Pilgrimage - Liturgy - Prayer ‘in the Cave of the Heart’ Afterword: Running Towards a Stone Tomb

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Book SynopsisThe study is an intellectual and comparative history of French, Spanish, and English missions to the native peoples of America in the seventeenth century, c. 1610â1690. It shows that missions are ideal case studies to properly understand the relationship between religion and politics in early modern Catholic and Calvinist thought. The book aims to analyse the intellectual roots of fundamental ideas in Catholic and Calvinist missionary writingsâamong others idolatry, conversion, civility, and policeâby examining the classical, Augustinian, neo-thomist, reformed Protestant, and contemporary European influences on their writings. Missionariesâ insistence on the necessity of reform, emphasising an experiential, practical vision of Christianity, led them to elaborate conversion strategies that encompassed not only religious, but also political and social changes. It was at the margins of empire that the essentials of Calvinist and Catholic soteriologies and political thought could be enacted and crystallised. By a careful analysis of these missiologies, the study thus argues that missionariesâ common strategiesâhabituation, segregation, social and political regulationsâstem from a shared intellectual heritage, classical, humanist, and above all concerned with the Erasmian ideal of a reformation of manners. Table of ContentsIntroduction: 1. Custom as Ethos and Habituation: Native Paganism and Idolatry 2. Conversion: Will, Grace and Good Works 3. Nomadic Lifestyles: Civility, Law, and Godly Government 4. Assimilation versus Segregation: Two Competing Missiologies 5. Community Building: Commonwealth and Christian Missions 6. Conflict: Rejection of European Political and Religious Authority. Conclusion. Index.

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Book SynopsisThe development of Martin Luther's thought was both a symptom and moving force in the transformation of the Middle Ages into the modern world. Geographical discovery, an emerging scientific tradition, and a climate of social change had splintered the unity of medieval Christian culture, and these changes provided the background for Luther's theological challenge. His new apprehension of Scripture and fresh understanding of man's relation to God demanded a break with the Church as then constituted and released the powerful impulses that carried the Reformation. Luther's vigorous, colorful language still retains the excitement it had for thousands of his contemporaries. In this volume, Dr. Dillenberger has made a representative selection from Luther's extensive writings, and has also provided the reader with a lucid introduction to his thought.

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Book SynopsisChristian Theology: The Basics is a concise introduction to the nature, tasks and central concerns of theology â the study of God within the Christian tradition. Providing a broad overview of the story that Christianity tells us about our human situation before God, this book will also seek to provide encouragement and a solid foundation for the readerâs further explorations within the subject. With debates surrounding the relation between faith and reason in theology, the book opens with a consideration of the basis of theology and goes on to explore key topics including: The identity of Jesus and debates in Christology The role of the Bible in shaping theological inquiry The centrality of the Trinity for all forms of Christian thinking The promise of salvation and how it is achieved. With suggestions for further reading at the end of each chapter along with a glossary Christian Theology: The Basics, is the ideal starting point for those new to study of theology.Trade Review"Rae (Univ. of Otago, New Zealand) provides a concise, fair, and accurate overview of the basics of Christian theology. (...) The glossary will be helpful for those looking at Christian theology for the first time and those who want succinct definitions of key terms. Readers looking for an interesting, accessible, and balanced introduction to main features of Christian theology will find this a most helpful guide. Summing Up: Recommended."- D. K. McKim, Memphis Theological Seminary in CHOICE"Murray Rae has offered teachers and interested readers a robust (occasionally even literary), yet concise, introduction to the most difficult and debated issues in Christian theology. His efforts will richly reward those who are willing to “pick up and read!” - Christopher McMahon, Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, PennsylvaniaTable of Contents1. Speaking of God 2. Creation and Covenant 3. Jesus and the Spirit 4. The Triune God 5. Salvation 6. A New Community 7. Christian Life 8. The Christian Hope

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Book SynopsisMatthew L. Becker is Associate Professor of Theology at Valparaiso University, USA. An ordained Lutheran minister, Dr. Becker has served congregations in Chicago and Oregon, USA. He is author of The Self-Giving God (T&T Clark, 2004).Trade ReviewThe book labours to be user-friendly, offering questions for review and discussion and further reading in each chapter, extensive glossaries of key terms and names, and good indexes ... There is much stimulating orientation here for beginners ... [and it] should find an appreciative student readership in the settings for which it is designed. -- Ivor J. Davidson, University of St. Andrews, UK * Theology *Dr Becker's book is destined to become a standard textbook both in college and seminary courses of theology. I know of no better compendium of Christian theology to introduce beginning students to the study of theology. This book is encyclopaedic in scope, offering wide-ranging and judicious coverage of the foundational teachings and practices within the mainstream of the classical Christian tradition, beginning with their roots in the Scriptures and branching out in many and various ways in Eastern and Western Christianity, ancient, medieval, and modern, to the present-day. Students and teachers of theology will very much appreciate that this book combines two qualities in a commendable way: fair-mindedness both in its presentation of whatever subject matter is being treated and in its critical assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the positions under review. * Carl E. Braaten, Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, USA *This is one of the highest praises I can bestow on a scholarly book that has been written for undergraduate students. Dr Becker has fulfilled a task that is not easy to do. As one of my teachers used to say to us, "It is easy to write complicated texts, but writing one that is comprehensible - that is tricky!" Dr Becker has written a thorough introduction to Christian theology which, nevertheless, is quite comprehensible. * Notger Slenczka, Humboldt University, Germany *In this text introducing students and general readers to the basis of Christian theology, Matthew Becker invites readers to wrestle with the most important questions facing Christians in our time. the best introductory textbooks respect students enough to ask them not only to know a subject's basic vocabulary and grammar but also to think through the material. Becker's is a student-friendly text not only because it provides learning helps, but most importantly because it hooks readers with the inner logic of faith's truth claims. * Mark C. Mattes, Grand View University, USA *This book's clarity and student-friendly approach is only possible because of the depth and range of Dr Becker's understanding of religion in the Western world. The wisdom of a careful mind and the passion for connecting theological themes with ordinary human experience come together in this outstanding demonstration of theological reflection. Highly recommended! * Terry D. Cooper, St. Louis Community College - Meramec and Webster University, USA *[Becker's] work develops as a useful narrative from which the distinctive voices of major theologians can emerge, as if within a dialogue across the centuries, and into which the students can interpolate their emerging theological intuitions. * New Blackfriars *Table of ContentsContents Preface Acknowledgments Abbreviations Part I: Theology Chapter One: Ways into Theology Chapter Two: Traditions of Christianity Chapter Three: Traditions of Christian Theology Chapter Four: What is Christian Theology? Part II: The Subject of Christian Theology Chapter Five: The Problem of God Chapter Six: The Natural Knowledge of God Chapter Seven: Natural and Philosophical Theology Chapter Eight: Special Revelation Chapter Nine: Themes in Special Revelation Chapter Ten: Sources and Norms of Christian Theology Chapter Eleven: Interpreting the Bible Part III: Christian Theology within the University Chapter Twelve: The Shape of Christian Theology as a University Discipline Chapter Thirteen: The Sub-disciplines of Christian Theology Chapter Fourteen: Christian Theology within the Humanities Chapter Fifteen: Christian Theology and the Sciences Afterword by Dr. Martin E. Marty Appendix: Martin Luther, "Concerning the Study of Theology" Glossary of Names Glossary of Terms Bibliography Biblical Index Index of Persons Index of Subjects

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Book SynopsisThe French Reformation seemed well-placed to succeed: there was a vigorous pre-reform movement, an apparent welcome for the work of French-speaking reformers in many quarters despite severe persecution, and the beginnings of a powerful and well-organized church structure. Yet, French protestantism remained the faith only of a minority. This book seeks to understand this apparent contradiction and to explain why protestantism failed to take hold in France.Table of ContentsHeterodoxy in the early-French Reformation; repression and the growth of a Protestant Church; the social geography of French Protestantism; the Huguenots and the Civil Wars. Appendix: the social geography of French Protestantism around 1560.

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Book SynopsisOffers an examination of the concept of 'Waldensianism' from the late 12th century to the Reformation. This book draws on primary sources to consider each of the manifestations of the movement in turn. It examines connections in space and time through correspondence and tradition between the different groups of Waldenses.Trade Review"... exemplary in its clarity and comprehensiveness and will easily count as the standard treatment in the subject for years to come." Times Literary Supplement "[Cameron's] command of the difficult and controversial evidence is masterly throughout this study, and his grasp of the ideas which formed the movement, and the different approaches of the new Protestantism, is outstanding. This book will provide a starting-point for future study of the Waldenses." Journal of Theological Studies "A scholarly account ranging from the late twelfth century to the Reformation..." Missiology: An International Review "Waldenses is a lucid, nuanced, and intelligent assesment of the history of this diverse group of medieval dissenters.... Cameron's assesments are penetraing and sound... [the book] should find its way onto the bookshelves of many scholars and students interested in medieval religious cultures." Shannon McSheffrey, Concordia UniversityTable of ContentsList of Plates viii List of Maps ix Preface x Introduction 1 Waldenses and the Catholic Church 2 The Changing Shape of the Sources 3 Some Questions Arising 5 Part I The First Phase 1 Before Heresy: Valdesius and the Poor Brethren at Lyon to 1184 11 2 Disobedient Preachers, 1184-c.1210 23 3 The Lombard ‘Poor in Spirit’, c.1205-1240 36 4 The Reconciliations with Rome, 1208-1212 49 Part II The Age of Inquisition, Thirteenth to fifteenth Centuries Introduction: The impact of Organized Inquisitorial Activity 63 5 Waldenses in Occitan France, c.1220-1320 70 6 Germany and Eastern Europe 96 7 The Southwestern Alps 151 Part III The Alpine Waldenses Confront the Reformation Introduction: The End of Heresy? 209 8 The Alpine Barbes and their Culture, c.1520-1530 211 9 The Encounters of 1530-1532 and their Outcomes 232 10 Calvin’s Geneva takes over in Piedmont, 1555-1565 264 Epilogue: The Waldenses as Persecuted Martyrs and the ‘True Church’ 285 Conclusions and Reflections 297 Bibliography 304 Index 319

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