Did the Labour Party, in Morgan Phillips' famous phrase, owe 'more to Methodism than Marx'? Were the founding fathers of the party nurtured in the chapels of Nonconformity and shaped by their emphases on liberty, conscience and the value of every human being in the eyes of God? How did the Free Churches, traditionally allied to the Liberal Party, react to the growing importance of the Labour Party between the wars? This book addresses these questions at a range of levels: including organisation; rhetoric; policies and ideals; and electoral politics. It is shown that the distinctive religious setting in which Labour emerged indeed helps to explain the differences between it and more Marxist counterparts on the Continent, and that this setting continued to influence Labour approaches towards welfare, nationalisation and industrial relations between the wars. In the process Labour also adopted some of the righteousness of tone of the Free Churches. This setting was, however, changing. Dropping their traditional suspicion of the State, Nonconformists instead increasingly invested it with religious values, helping to turn it through its growing welfare functions into the provider of practical Christianity. This nationalisation of religion continues to shape British attitudes to the welfare state as well as imposing narrowly utilitarian and material tests of relevance upon the churches and other social institutions. The elevation of the State was not, however, intended as an end in itself. What mattered were the social and individual outcomes. Socialism, for those Free Churchmen and women who helped to shape Labour in the early twentieth century, was about improving society as much as systems.

Surviving Severe Child Abuse, Sexual Assault and Leaving the Amish Church "A must read for everyone who has ever felt imprisoned by others as well as by their own beliefs." Susyn Reeve, Heart Healing: The Power of Forgiveness to Heal a Broken Heart #1 Best Seller in Cults & Demonism, Parenting & Relationships, Notable People, Religious, Survival, Sexual Assault, and Biographies & Memoirs A gripping story that takes you on the journey of a child abuse and sexual assault survivor turned activist. (Photo gallery included) True story of child abuse. When Misty Griffin was six years old, her family started to live and dress like the Amish. Misty and her sister were kept as slaves on a mountain ranch and subjected to almost complete isolation, sexual abuse, and physical violence. Their step-father kept a loaded rifle by the door to make sure the young girls were too terrified to try to escape. No rescue would ever come since the few people who knew they existed did not care. Sexual abuse among the Amish people. When Misty reached her teens, her parents feared she and her sister would escape and took them to an Amish community. Devastated to again find herself in a world of fear, cruelty, and abuse, Misty was sexually assaulted by the bishop. "...I knew I had to get help, and one freezing morning in early March, I made a dash for a tiny police station in rural Minnesota. After reporting the bishop, I left the Amish and found myself plummeted into a strange modern world with only a second-grade education and no ID or social security card." Ultimately Misty graduated nursing school and currently works as an activist for abused children. Through Misty's story, discover: You are not alone A cycle of abuse can be broken Your past does not define your future Abuse was not your fault Moving forward is possible If you have read true crime books and child abuse true stories like Educated, A Child Called It, or Etched In Sand, then Tears of the Silenced is a must-read.