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Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Protestantism & Protestant Churches > General
Denominations. The word itself often sparks strong reactions,
causing us to wonder if there are merits to our factions and if
it's possible to come together as one.
Showing how denominational affiliation can be natural without
being negative, and how evangelical identity can help rather than
hinder Christian unity, Why We Belong explains both the personal
and doctrinal reasons each of the following contributors fit not
only in their church, but also in the Church: Gerald L. Bray
(Anglican) Timothy F. George (Baptist) Douglas A. Sweeney
(Lutheran) Timothy C. Tennent (Methodist) Byron D. Klaus
(Pentecostal) Bryan Chapell (Presbyterian)
Demonstrating that Christians have significant reasons for
identifying with a denomination, this book also helps us see and
belong to something much larger than our own traditions--the family
of God.
This book does not only deal with the history, but also with the
effects of the Reformation over the mentality, education and
scientifical research among Hungarians during the last five
centuries. The spirit of the Reformation has not only been a
church-forming factor, but also a force of nation-building and
salvation. This volume includes 17 studies of Hungarian Reformed
theologians presented at a conference in November 2016. The main
goal was to give an overview of the most recent research results in
history and theology regarding Reformation and its effects over
society and mentality among Hungarians. The contributors come from
various Hungarian theological universities from the Carpathian
basin, thus the book is an overview of their research topics and
results. The City Cluj-Napoca was, became and remained an important
center of the Reformation, as significant events took place in its
surroundings as well. The Faculty of Reformed Theology of the
Babes-Bolyai University and the Protestant Theological Institute
has always functioned in an environment, where the challenges of
multi-confessionalism and multiethnicity are also present beside
interdisciplinarity.
The role of liberalized, ecumenical Protestantism in American
history has too often been obscured by the more flamboyant and
orthodox versions of the faith that oppose evolution, embrace
narrow conceptions of family values, and continue to insist that
the United States should be understood as a Christian nation. In
this book, one of our preeminent scholars of American intellectual
history examines how liberal Protestant thinkers struggled to
embrace modernity, even at the cost of yielding much of the
symbolic capital of Christianity to more conservative, evangelical
communities of faith.
If religion is not simply a private concern, but a potential
basis for public policy and a national culture, does this mean that
religious ideas can be subject to the same kind of robust public
debate normally given to ideas about race, gender, and the economy?
Or is there something special about religious ideas that invites a
suspension of critical discussion? These essays, collected here for
the first time, demonstrate that the critical discussion of
religious ideas has been central to the process by which
Protestantism has been liberalized throughout the history of the
United States, and shed light on the complex relationship between
religion and politics in contemporary American life.
"After Cloven Tongues of Fire" brings together in one volume
David Hollinger's most influential writings on ecumenical
Protestantism. The book features an informative general
introduction as well as concise introductions to each essay.
During the sixteenth century, England underwent a religious
revolution. This book examines the reverberations of this
Protestant Reformation, which continued to be felt until at least
the end of the seventeenth century. Brings together twelve essays
by Nicholas Tyacke about English Protestantism, which range from
the Reformation itself, and the new market-place of ideas opened
up, to the establishment of freedom of worship for Protestant
nonconformists in 1689. For this collection the author has written
a substantial introduction, and updated the essays by incorporating
new research. -- .
In August of 1520, Martin Luther published the first of three
incendiary works, Address to the German Nobility, in which he urged
secular authorities to take a strong hand in "reforming" the Roman
church. In October, he published The Church Held Captive, and by
December the deepest theological rationale appeared in The Freedom
of a Christian. With these three books, the relatively unknown
Friar Martin exploded onto the Western European literary and
religious scene. These three works have been universally
acknowledged as classics of the Reformation, and of the Western
religious tradition in general. Though Reformation scholars have
been reluctant to single out one as the most important of the
three, Denis Janz proposes a bold case for The Church Held Captive.
In the first entirely new translation in more than a century, Janz
presents Luther's text as it hasn't been read in English before.
Previous translations stifle the original text by dulling the
sharpest edges of its argumentation and tame Luther by substituting
euphemisms for his vulgarities. In Janz's dual language edition we
see the provocative, offensive, and extreme restored. In his
wide-ranging introduction, Janz offers much-needed context to
clarify the role of The Church Held Captive in Luther's life and
the life of the Reformation. This edition is the most
reader-friendly scholarly version of Luther's classic in the
English language.
Our world is awash in sex. We are bombarded with it everywhere we
turn--TV, newspapers and magazines, music, movies and the Internet.
When this ever-present temptation mixes with human weaknesses and
unmet needs, many get pulled into addiction to sexually sinful
behavior. They may detest their own habits, but they can't seem to
break free. Is there any hope? Russell Willingham speaks from his
own experience and that of the many he has counseled. His answer?
"Yes There is hope. Jesus offers forgiveness and healing." True
stories show how the principles in this book can be put into
action. The essentials are spelled out in practical steps that can
help people begin to break free. Willingham deals with such issues
as what all addicts have in common the hunt of the malnourished
heart where to find the courage to face the dark side wrestling
with shame and grace the healing effect of radical honesty This
realistic yet hopeful book offers a new way to see the world for
every person who wants to understand and break free from sexual
addiction.
Considered by many to be one of the most influential German
Pietists, August Hermann Francke lived during a moment when an
emphasis on conversion was beginning to produce small shifts in how
the sacraments were defined-a harbinger of later, more dramatic
changes to come in evangelical theology. In this book, Peter James
Yoder uses Francke and his theology as a case study for the
ecclesiological stirrings that led to the rise of evangelicalism
and global Protestantism. Engaging extensively with Francke's
manuscript sermons and writings, Yoder approaches Francke's life
and religious thought through his theology of the sacraments. In
doing so, Yoder delivers key insights into the structure of
Francke's Pietist thought, providing a rich depiction of his
conversion-driven theology and how it shaped his views of the
sacraments and the church. The first in-depth study of Francke's
theology written for an English-speaking audience, this book
supports recent scholarship in English that not only challenges
long-held assumptions about Pietism but also argues for the role of
Pietism's influence on the changing religious landscape of the
eighteenth century. Through his examination of Francke's theology
of the sacraments, Yoder presents a fresh view into the
eighteenth-century ecclesiological developments that caused a
rupture with the dogmas of the Reformation. Original and vital,
this study recognizes Francke's importance to the history of
Pietism in Germany and beyond. It will become the standard
reference on Francke for American audiences and will influence
scholarship on Lutheranism, Pietism, early modern German studies,
and eighteenth-century history and religion.
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