The Anglican answer to this question is clearly given in this unrivalled short guide to the origins, structure, ministry and values of the Churches of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Paul Avis explains and clarifies the history and theology involved. The reader is introduced to the concepts in a structured way, making the book clear to those who may be coming to these issues for the first time. It will also form an invaluable aide-memoire and reference tool for the specialist, presenting a clear outline of the structure, form, function, disposition and beliefs of the Church. Concise and informative, this is an ideal handbook and textbook.

This book represents a continuation of study, debate, and conversation, particularly within the Episcopal Church in the U.S., concerning the authority and function of the Bible in the church. The content of the debate and conversation, however, will be of interest and benefit also to members of other church bodies. A helpful study guide appears at the beginning of the book to assist individuals and group to work through the various contributions and to draw their own conclusions regarding the Bible's role in today's church. The literal and plain sense of the scriptures, the matter in which the Bible is to be regarded as incarnate in history and human limitations, and the degree to which it is subject to historical conditions-these and a host of other critical issues provide the focus of the book. Special attention is directed to the issue of the growing biblical illiteracy in society, leading one of the contributors to warn that "biblical illiteracy is the precursor to spiritual death and communal dissolution." The main chapters include" "The 'Official position' of the Episcopal Church on the Authority of Scripture: Historical Development and Ecumenical Comparison" (J. Robert Wright); "Holy Book, Holy People: A Study of the Authority and Use of the Bible" (Charles P. Price); "'For Freedom Christ Has Set You Free': The Interpretation and Authority of Scripture in Contemporary Theologies of Liberation" (Ellen K. Wondra); "Reading the Bible as the Word of God" (Stephen F. Noll); "The Scriptures in the Life of the Church" (Richard A. Norris, Jr.). The editor, Frederick Houk Borsch, is Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles.

An engaging portrait of one of the most influential and greatly-loved bishops of the Church of England in the twentieth century. He was a Franciscan scholar of world renown, a quintessential Anglican and untiring ecumenist.

For almost 200 years, the city of Birmingham has been a key location for the training of clergy. From 1828 Anglican clergy studied at the Queen's College and in 1881 the Methodist Church developed their own training facility at Handsworth College. In this book, Andrew Chandler tells the tale of these two colleges. This is a history not simply of the creation and evolution of these two religious institutions, but a study full of significance for the wider history of Christianity in British society across the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The foundation of both colleges occurred in a confident age of civic progress and reform and their subsequent histories reveal much that was at work in the experience of the British churches at large. They were at first expressions of denominational identity and a determination to educate a class of clergy. In time they found themselves negotiating new prospects within the ecumenical currents of a later age and the deepening realities of secularization. In 1970 they united. This is a book which blends local, national and international dimensions and also shows how the two theological colleges came to embrace all kinds of intellectual, cultural, social and political history in a period of restless change.

Mullings and Musings is a collection of essays, each originally written by Charlotte Marshall for the monthly church newsletter published by Trinity Episcopal Church of Clarksville, Tennessee. The essays, often humorous, collectively tell the story of growing up in rural Tennessee in the 1930s during the Great Depression, the trials and tribulations of marriage and raising children, and growing old with the inevitable loss of dear friends. Charlotte Marshall was born in 1923 at Kirkwood, a rural community in Montgomery County, Tennessee. She graduated from Austin Peay State University. She and her husband, Jack, currently reside outside Clarksville, Tennessee.

When change in the Anglican Church is controversial, such as the ordination of women, those on both sides of the debate appear to reason and tradition to strengthen their argument. This important study explores the limits of that tradition.

Wise and informed commentary on the lectionary readings for the principal service in Year C. The authors represent a wide spectrum of theology but their shared concern for excellence in preaching have combined to produce an inspirational volume.

In 1732, a blasphemous burlesque of the Christian Atonement was published in England without comment from the government or the Church of England. In "Hogarth's Harlot," Ronald Paulson explains this absence of official censure through a detailed examination of the parameters of blasphemy in eighteenth-century England and the changing attitudes toward the central tenets of the Christian Church among artists in this period. Discerning a profound spiritual and cultural shift from atonement and personal salvation to redemption, incarnation, and acts of charity and love, Paulson focuses on such influential factors as English antipopery and anti-Jacobitism, as well as the ideas of the English Enlightenment.

Offering imaginative and deeply informed readings of a wide range of artistic works--engravings by Hogarth; poems by Milton, Pope, Christopher Smart, and Blake; plays by Nicholas Rowe and George Lillo; paintings and sculptures by Benjamin West, John Zoffany, Joseph Wright of Derby, and Louis-Francois Roubiliac; and oratorios by George Frederic Handel--Paulson explores the significance of the medium in which artists produced "sacred parody" and how these works both reflected and influenced attitudes toward the nature of Christianity in England. As England's faithful began to worry less about everlasting felicity in heaven and more about life on earth, these diverse artists provided them with new ways of thinking about both their spiritual and their social existence.

Church dedications are as widely used as they are little studied, yet their histories are often obscure and complicated. Frequently forgotten after the Reformation, they were revived on the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries with many guesses and mistakes, resulting in numerous alterations. Church history cannot safely be based on the dedication in use today. Part One of the book surveys their history in England from roman ties to the present day. Part Two is detailed list of all 800 ancient parish churches and religious houses in Cornwall and Devon. It shows when their dedications first occur, the changes and misunderstandings that have happened, and the dates of parish feast days. Cornwall is a country of Celtic church dedication, whilst Devon's resemble this of the rest of England, so the book will be helpful in understanding dedications in both traditions.

Covers the story of "The Nine O'Clock Services" which received heavy publicity in 1995, following the exposure of scandals and abuses at the hands of the leader, Chris Brain. This book follows the development of the church and draws comparisons with other alternative churches.

The Archbishops' Commission on the Organisation of the Church of England has carried out a more comprehensive review of the national institutions of the Church than has ever before been undertaken. Its recommendations are far-reaching and, if implemented, would radically change the ways in which the Church of England operates. This would involve a redefinition of how episcopal leadership and synodical governance can work most effectively together in resolving policy and resource issues at the national level, a change of working culture, and much closer integration at the national level and with dioceses. The report sets out clearly the theological principles which led the Commission to its conclusions, describes briefly the existing central structures and goes on to outline the proposals for a new National Council for the Church of England.

n recent years, Church of England church plants have been springing up all over the country at an average rate of one per fortnight. BREAKING NEW GROUND considers the whole phenomenon of church planting, its triumphs and its pitfalls. It looks at stories of life, hope and new beginnings, at growth and learning, and at the possible frustrations, tensions and difficulties surrounding this aspect of the Church's mission. It offers guidance for all kinds of church planting situations, and goes beyond the first stages to consider how to bring these new parts of God's church to fruition and maturity.

Can the Church of England survive the 21st century? What needs to change and what remains? How does the Church deal with contemporary challenges and how are these related to the situation it faced in 1966? This book is an evaluation of Bishop Ronald Williams' 1966 book What's Right with the Church of England identifying the issues of that time with reference to the issues still facing the Church of England today. These include perception and position, resources and finance, ethics, ecumenism, a liberal church in a liberal society, ministry for today, marketing, and a contemporary parochial ecclesiology. Many of the issues from 1966 have not changed but the context is significantly different requiring different responses.

Despite the importance of Evangelism, the history of the Evangelicals in the Church of England has been the subject of no extensive study since G.R. Balleine's classic work of 1908. Incorporating subsequent research, and bringing to bear the most modern scholarly disciplines, Dr Hylson Smith has now provided an up-to-date, comprehensive and perceptive account of the Evangelical movement from the time of the Wesleys and Whitefield to the present day. Kenneth Hylson-Smith has doctoral degrees from Leicester and London. He is Bursar and Fellow of St. Cross College, Oxford.

Many denominations have faced serious identity crisis in recent years. Who are we? We do we exist? What is our mission given the radical political, social, and economic changes that have occurred in this century? What does it mean to be church in a pluralistic, postmodern world? In an effort to answer these and related questions, denominations have rediscovered their origins and redefined themselves and their mission in ways that are consistent with their history. Additional research into denominational histories and the rewriting of these histories has been of significant import in helping today's churches relate to their times. David L. Holmes has produced a relatively concise, highly literary 400-year history of the Episcopal Church, its successes and its failures. He has clearly tied this history to the Anglican Reformation that emerged from Henry VIII's break with Roman Catholicism (an appendix on the annulment of Henry VIII has been included for those who may be unfamiliar with what precipitated the crisis between Henry and the Roman Church). This book, then, provides a readable and accurate account of the beginnings of the Anglican Church in America at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607, to the establishment of the Protestant Episcopal Church in America after the War of Independence, to the present day. Although only sixth in terms of numbers in the United States, David Holmes concludes, the denomination that first appeared in the colonies as the Church of England 400 years ago has become substantially Americanized. It may be second to none in the nation in terms of power and influence. All who are interested in American church history and in the influence of the Episcopal Church on American history will find David Holmes's account fascinating and helpful. David L. Holmes is Professor of American Religion and Church History at the College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia.

At a time if division and crisis in the Church of England, its identity and mission have come into question as never before. Its own members, but also the wider community of Christians in both East and West, need to understand its history and the reasons for its present crisis, as well as the distinctive contribution it can make to the Great Church of the future. Aidan Nichols provides a clear summary and analysis of the history of the Church of England by way of a sensitive appraisal of its rich theological tradition. This also gives the reader a firm grasp of the context of the issues currently being discussed by the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission. Aidan Nichols, O.P. is a member of the Dominican community at Blackfriars, Cambridge. He is the author is Rome and the Eastern Churches, The Shape of Catholic Theology and many other books.

The history of the Methodist attempt to evangelize Native Americans is riddled with spectacular failures as well as dramatic successes. In this balanced yet forthright account, Homer Noley helps you gain new insights and a richer understanding of Methodist missionary activities with native Americans from the 1600s to today."

This historic report, first published in 1985, was released four years after Lord Scarman's report on the Brixton disorders, and at a time of continuing urban unrest, yet is still of great relevance today. Faith in the City asks what future is there for our inner cities and housing estates, and considers how should the Church of England, and other bodies, including government should respond. This was the brief given by the Archbishop of Canterbury to a distinguished 18-member Commission drawn from a wide range of backgrounds. After two years of taking evidence and visiting the major cities where economic, physical and social conditions are at their most acute and depressing, the Commission's report paints a disturbing picture. The report makes recommendations to the Church about its place and responsibilities in the urban priority areas. Important recommendations are also made about public policy issues: unemployment, housing, social and community work, education, policing, and urban policy. In its call for action on a broad front, the Commission argues that Church and State must have faith in the city. There needs to be a clear commitment - and a positive response - by the nation as a whole.

Includes general hymns; hymns for feasts, seasons and saints' days; office hymns for the liturgical year; an enlarged eucharistic section; responsorial psalms, and a new English folk mass setting.

A House of Meanings, now available in Spanish. Author Juan Oliver presents liturgical theology in accessible language, free of technical jargon. The book is designed for individual reading and structured to be a resource for a series of parish workshops, especially during the Easter season. Chapters conclude with a discussion guide intended to assist parishioners in developing their own sense of the value of worship and its relationship to our daily lives. Unique and refreshing, La Liturgia/A House of Meanings will be useful not only to congregations but to seminarians and anyone planning or evaluating worship.

Originating in 1867 under the presidency of the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Lambeth Conference has proactively shaped the modern world by influencing areas as diverse as the ecumenical movement, post-war international relations, and the spiritual lives of hundreds of millions. A team of distinguished scholars from around the world now detail the historical legacy, theological meaning, and pastoral purpose of the Anglican Communion's decennial councils. The next Lambeth Conference will be crucial for the Anglican Communion, which is currently afflicted by destructive tensions over matters long central to Christian identity, such as the nature of holy orders, the definition of sexual morality, and the scope of ecclesial authority. Whether in supplication or celebration, both nurtured by diverse cultural contexts and furthered by the scope of ecumenical horizons, these essays break new ground. The Lambeth Conference is a faithful testament to generations past, and a spur to the ongoing restoration of Anglican theology and devotion in the present.

A very useful source for the history of the early 20th-century church. JOURNAL OF ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY Daily preoccupations of the bishop cast light on church and society in and around Lincoln before and during the first worldwar. Bishop Edward Lee Hicks' diary offers an honest picture of the daily life of a bishop in the period immediately before and during the first world war, a portrait of church and society in a largely rural diocese in the last phase before the radical transformation which the `Great War' hastened. The diary presents a largely church-centred picture; but it is also valuable as a personal view of such matters as Lincolnshire social life including the impact of war on the county, conditions of travel at the beginning of the era of the motor car, characteristics of the clergy, and frequent comment on items of archaeological and antiquarian interest.Canon GRAHAM NEVILLEwas Canon andPrebendary of Lincoln Cathedral from 1982-1987.