There is a huge disconnect between the official account of church demise and the death of faith peddled in political and media circles, and the vitality of churches in every corner of the country. Why do the pundits ignore what is happening? Sean Oliver-Dee counters that the ongoing health of the church is being ignored because it contradicts three myths that the 'new establishment' wants to assert: that the gradual death of religion is a good excuse to ignore the views of Christians; that encouraging Christianity to die will benefit society; and that scientific progress will necessarily cause the death of faith. The growth of the church runs contrary to all three assertions. It's time to challenge the myths.

2015 Book Award for Excellence in Missiology, American Society of Missiology Named an Outstanding Mission Book of 2015, International Bulletin of Mission Research In 1900 many assumed the twentieth century would be a Christian century because Western "Christian empires" ruled most of the world. What happened instead is that Christianity in the West declined dramatically, the empires collapsed, and Christianity's center moved to Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Pacific. How did this happen so quickly? Respected scholar and teacher Scott Sunquist surveys the most recent century of Christian history, highlighting epochal changes in global Christianity. He also suggests lessons we can learn from this remarkable global Christian reversal. Ideal for an introduction to Christianity or a church history course, this book includes a foreword by Mark Noll.

How Baptism and the Eucharist Shaped Early Christian Understandings of Jesus Long before the Gospel writers put pen to papyrus, the earliest Christians participated in the powerful rituals of baptism and the Lord's Supper, which fundamentally shaped their understanding of God, Christ, and the world in which they lived. In this volume, a respected biblical scholar and teacher explores how cultural anthropology and ritual studies elucidate ancient texts. Charles Bobertz offers a liturgical reading of the Gospel of Mark, arguing that the Gospel is a narrative interpretation of early Christian ritual. This fresh, responsible, and creative proposal will benefit scholars, professors, and students. Its ecclesial and pastoral ramifications will also be of interest to church leaders and pastors.

Edition of the register of a late-medieval bishop's register sheds fascinating light on life at the time. Edward Story, fellow of Pembroke Hall, Cambridge, and later master of Michaelhouse, was also, in two terms as chancellor, a university administrator. But it was as a royal servant that he rose to eminence from about 1460 to servesucceeding monarchs with the impartial efficiency of a career civil servant. Bishop of Carlisle from 1468, he was translated in 1478 to Chichester, which, although conterminous with the county of Sussex, contained several exempt jurisdictions, notably the archbishop of Canterbury's deanery of South Malling. The register begins with Story's primary visitation of his diocese.The full record reveals both the shortcomings of the cathedral chapter and of those religious houses subject to episcopal jurisdiction. Besides purely diocesan matters such as ordinations, collations and institutions, clerical indiscipline and the exercise of his judicial authority, the extraordinary actionsrequired of the bishop are reflected not only in reports of local suspicions of heresy, but also in matters of national importance such as summonses to convocation, clerical taxation, natural disasters such as plague, and external threats to the kingdom. The documents are presented here in translation with full notes and introduction. Janet Stevenson, formerly an assistant editor of the Victoria History of Wiltshire, has edited The Edington Cartulary (Wiltshire Record Society, 42, 1987) and The Durford Cartulary (Sussex Record Society, 90, 2006).

This study of recruitment to the ministry of the Church of England in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries overturns many long-standing assumptions about the education and backgrounds of the clergy in late HanoverianEngland and Wales. This study of recruitment to the ministry of the Church of England in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries overturns many long-standing assumptions about the education and backgrounds of the clergy in late HanoverianEngland and Wales. It offers insights into the nature and development of the profession generally and into the role that individual bishops played in shaping the staffing of their dioceses. In its exploration of how it was possible for boys of relatively humble social origins to be promoted into the pulpits of the established Church, it throws light on mechanisms of social mobility and shows how aspirant clergy went about fashioning a credible social andprofessional identity. By examining how would be clergymen were educated and professionally formed, the book shows that, alongside the well-known route through the universities, there was an alternative route via specialist grammar schools. Prospective ordinands might also seek out clerical tutors to help them to study for the academic parts of ordination exams and to prepare for the spiritual and pastoral aspects of their role. These alternativemethods of ordination preparation were sometimes under the cognizance of bishops, and occasionally under their control, but they were generally authored by parish clergy and were small-scale, self-supporting, bottom-up solutions to the needs of upcoming generations of clergy. This book has much to interest historians of religion, culture, class and education, and illustrates how in-depth prosopographical study can offer fresh perspectives. SARA SLINN is Research Fellow at the School of History & Heritage, University of Lincoln.

Are you equipped to reach perfection? God has called his people to a powerful way of living. We are meant to be fully alive in the authority God has ordained. Perfection is a clarion call to God-empowered righteousness, to remember who we are in Christ Jesus, and to evaluate God's expectations for those who claim to be born again in Him. The church can no longer afford to ignore the gospel that empowers it to be both relevant and powerful. It must purvey unsullied the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit and become the solution to the world's ills that God intended and predestined it to be. Pastor Richard Kuehn clearly outlines the problem of man's sinful nature, the carnal state of rebellion against God, and indifference to the well-being of others, which continue to be the source of all interpersonal and international maliciousness.

Although man has tried many philosophies, psychologies, governments, religions, laws, and organizations, none has provided a lasting peace or a framework for harmonious multi-cultural living. Perfection provides a framework for fulfilling God's righteousness in us and walking as Jesus walked. Discover God's full plan for man's reformation, conformation, and transformation and comprehend the depths and the beauty of His plan to bring His kingdom to pass on earth as it is in heaven.

This collection, by leading legal scholars, judges and practitioners, together with theologians and church historians, presents historical, theological, philosophical and legal perspectives on Christianity and criminal law. Following a Preface by Lord Judge, formerly Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, and an introductory chapter, the book is divided into four thematic sections. Part I addresses the historical contributions of Christianity to criminal law drawing on biblical sources, early church fathers and canonists, as far as the Enlightenment. Part II, titled Christianity and the principles of criminal law, compares crime and sin, examines concepts of mens rea and intention, and considers the virtue of due process within criminal justice. Part III looks at Christianity and criminal offences, considering their Christian origins and continuing relevance for several basic crimes that every legal system prohibits. Finally, in Part IV, the authors consider Christianity and the enforcement of criminal law, looking at defences, punishment and forgiveness. The book will be an invaluable resource for students and academics working in the areas of Law and Religion, Legal Philosophy and Theology.

From 2006 to 2011 researchers at Heythrop College and the Oxford Centre for ecclesiology and Practical Theology (OxCEPT, Ripon College Cuddesdon) worked on a theological and action research project: "Action Research - Church and Society (ARCS). 2010 saw the publication of Talking About God in Practice: Theological Action research and Practical Theology (SCM), which presented in an accessible way the work of ARCS and its developing methodology. This turned out to be a landmark study in the praxis of Anglican and Catholic ecclesiology in the UK, showing how theology in these differing contexts interacted with the way in which clergy and congregations lived out their religious convictions. This book is a direct follow up to that significant work, authored by one of the original researchers, providing a systematic analysis of the impact of the "theological action research" methodology and its implications for a contemporary ecclesiology. The book presents an ecclesiology generated from church practice, drawing on scholarship in the field as well as the results of the theological action research undertaken. It achieves this by including real scenarios alongside the academic discourse. This combination allows the author to tease out the complex relationship between the theory and the reality of church. Addressing the need for a more developed theological and methodological account of the ARCS project, this is a book that will be of interest to scholars interested not only Western lived religion, but ecclesiology and theology more generally too.

The church is called to grow in Christ. Yet too often, it ignores the practical dimensions of the faith. The church is one in Christ. Yet too often, it is divided by national, denominational, theological, and racial or ethnic boundaries. The church is a global body of believers. Yet too often, it privileges a few voices and fails to recognize its own diversity. In response, this volume offers a multi-denominational, multi-ethnic vision in which biblical scholars, theologians, and practitioners from around the world join together to pursue a cohesive yet diverse theology and praxis of spiritual formation for the global church. Be fed in your faith by brothers and sisters from around the world.

The Society of Jesus - the Jesuits - is the largest religious order in the Roman Catholic Church. Distinguished by their obedience and their loyalty to the Holy See, they have never, during nearly five hundred years' history, produced a pope until now: Pope Francis is the first Jesuit Pope. Michael Walsh tells the story of the Society through the stories and exploits of its members over five hundred years, from Ignatius of Loyola to Pope Francis himself. He explores the Jesuits' commitment to humanist philosophy, which over the centuries has set it at odds with the Vatican, as well as the hostility towards the Jesuits both on the part of Protestants and also Roman Catholics - a hostility which led one pope to attempt to suppress the Society worldwide towards the end of the eighteenth century. Drawing on the author's extensive inside knowledge, this narrative history traces the Society's founding and growth, its impact on Catholic education, its missions especially in the Far East and Latin America, its progressive theology, its clashes with the Vatican, and the emergence of Jorge Bergoglio, the first Jesuit to become Pope. Finally, it reflects on the Society's present character and contemporary challenges.

Now a major motion picture *** The Jesus Movement transformed the church--and it can transform you God has always been passionate about turning unlikely people into His most fervent followers. Prostitutes and pagans, tax collectors and tricksters, the pompous and the pious--the more unlikely, the more it seemed to please God to demonstrate His power, might, and mercy through them. America in the 1960s and 1970s was full of many such characters--young men and women who had rejected the conformist religion of their parents' generation, didn't follow conventional rules, and didn't fit in. Their longing for something more set the stage for the greatest spiritual awakening of the twentieth century. Discover the remarkable true story of the Jesus Movement, an extraordinary time of mass revival, renewal, and reconciliation. Setting intriguing personal stories within the context of one of the most tumultuous times in modern history, Greg Laurie and Ellen Vaughn draw important parallels with our own time of spiritual apathy and overt hostility, offering a new vision for the next generation of unlikely believers--and hope for the next great American revival. Because God can always bring a new Jesus Revolution.

The Orthodox Christian tradition has all too often been sidelined in conversations around contemporary religion. Despite being distinct from Protestantism and Catholicism in both theology and practice, it remains an underused setting for academic inquiry into current lived religious practice. This collection, therefore, seeks to redress this imbalance by investigating modern manifestations of Orthodox Christianity through an explicitly gender-sensitive gaze. By addressing attitudes to gender in this context, it fills major gaps in the literature on both religion and gender. Starting with the traditional teachings and discourses around gender in the Orthodox Church, the book moves on to demonstrate the diversity of responses to those narratives that can be found among Orthodox populations in Europe and North America. Using case studies from several countries, with both large and small Orthodox populations, contributors use an interdisciplinary approach to address how gender and religion interact in contexts such as, iconography, conversion, social activism and ecumenical relations, among others. From Greece and Russia to Finland and the USA, this volume sheds new light on the myriad ways in which gender is manifested, performed, and engaged within contemporary Orthodoxy. Furthermore, it also demonstrates that employing the analytical lens of gender enables new insights into Orthodox Christianity as a lived tradition. It will, therefore, be of great interest to scholars of both Religious Studies and Gender Studies.

"An intimate, revealing and sometimes wrenching family memoir of the journalist and social advocate who is now being considered for canonization" (The New York Times), told with illuminating detail by her granddaughter. Dorothy Day (1897-1980) was a prominent Catholic, writer, social activist, and co-founder of a movement dedicated to serving the poorest of the poor. Her life has been documented through her own writings as well as the work of historians, theologians, and academics. What has been missing until now is a more personal account from the point of view of someone who knew her well. Dorothy Day: The World Will Be Saved by Beauty is a frank and reflective, heartfelt and humorous portrayal written by her granddaughter, Kate Hennessy. Dorothy Day, writes Hennessy, is an unusual candidate for sainthood. Before her conversion, she lived what she called a "disorderly life," during which she had an abortion and then gave birth to a child out of wedlock. After her conversion, she was both an obedient servant and a rigorous challenger of the Church. She was a prolific writer whose books are still in print and widely read. Although compassionate, Hennessy shows Day to be driven, dogmatic, loving, as well as judgmental, in particular with her only daughter, Tamar. She was also full of humor and laughter and could light up any room she entered. An undisputed radical heroine, called "a saint for the occupy era" by The New Yorker, Day's story unfolds against a backdrop of New York City from the 1910s to the 1980s and world events spanning from World War I to Vietnam. This thoroughly researched and intimate biography provides a valuable and nuanced portrait of an undersung and provocative American woman. "Frankly," says actor and activist Martin Sheen, "it is a must-read."