The book investigates facets of global Protestantism through Anglican, Quaker, Episcopalian, Moravian, Lutheran Pietist, and Pentecostal missions to enslaved and indigenous peoples and political reform endeavours in a global purview that spans the 1730s to the 1930s. The book uses key examples to trace both the local and the global impacts of this multi-denominational Christian movement. The essays in this volume explore three of the critical ways in which Protestant communities were established and became part of a worldwide network: the founding of far-flung missions in which Western missionaries worked alongside enslaved and indigenous converts; the interface between Protestant outreach and political reform endeavours such as abolitionism; and the establishment of a global epistolary through print communication networks. Demonstrating how Protestantism came to be both global and ecumenical, this book will be a key resource for scholars of religious history, religion and politics, and missiology as well as those interested in issues of postcolonialism and imperialism.

The Roman Catholic Church's critical stance towards liberalism and democracy following the French Revolution and through the 19th century was often entrenched, but the Second Vatican Council of the 1960s saw a shift in the Church's attitude towards democracy. In recent years, a conflict has emerged between Church doctrine and modern liberalism under Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI. This book is a comprehensive overview of the Catholic Church's relationship to modern liberal democracy, from the end of the 18th century until today. It is a connection that is situated within the context of the history of ideas itself.

This volume offers a new translation of the Pseudo-Clementine family narrative here known as The Sorrows of Mattidia. It contains a full introduction which explores the obscured origins of the text, the plot, and main characters, and engages in a comparison of the portrayal of pagan, Jewish, and Christian women in this text with what we encounter in other literature. It also discusses a general strategy for how historians can utilize fictional narratives like this when examining the lives of women in the ancient world. This translation makes this fascinating source for late antique women available in this form for the first time.

The medieval philosopher and theologian John Duns Scotus (1266-1308) was one of the great thinkers of Western intellectual culture, exerting a considerable influence over many centuries. He had a genius for original and subtle philosophical analysis, with the motive behind his philosophical method being his faith. His texts are famous not only for their complexity, but also for their brilliance, their systematic precision, and the profound faith revealed. The texts presented in this new commentary show that Scotus' thought is not moved by a love for the abstract or technical, but that a high level of abstraction and technicality was needed for his precise conceptual analysis of Christian faith. Presenting a selection of nine fundamental theological texts of Duns Scotus, some translated into English for the first time, this book provides detailed commentary on each text to reveal Scotus' conception of divine goodness and the nature of the human response to that goodness. Following an introduction which includes an overview of Scotus' life and works, the editors highlight Scotus' theological insights, many of which are explored here for the first time, and shed new light on topics which were, and still are, hotly discussed. Scotus is seen to be the first theologian in the history of Christian thought who succeeds in developing a consistent conceptual framework for the conviction that both God and human beings are essentially free. Offering unique insights into Scotus' theological writings and faith, and a particular contribution to contemporary debate on Scotus' ethics, this book contributes to a clearer understanding of the whole of Scotus' thought.

When approaching the most public disagreement over predestination in the eighteenth century, the 'Free Grace' controversy between John Wesley and George Whitefield, the tendency can be to simply review the event as a row over the same old issues. This assumption pervades much of the scholarly literature that deals with early Methodism. Moreover, much of that same literature addresses the dispute from John Wesley's vantage point, often harbouring a bias towards his Evangelical Arminianism. Yet the question must be asked: was there more to the 'Free Grace' controversy than a simple rehashing of old arguments? This book answers this complex question by setting out the definitive account of the 'Free Grace' controversy in first decade of the Evangelical Revival (1739-49). Centred around the key players in the fracas, John Wesley and George Whitefield, it is a close analysis of the way in which the doctrine of predestination was instrumental in differentiating the early Methodist societies from one another. It recounts the controversy through the lens of doctrinal analysis and from two distinct perspectives: the propositional content of a given doctrine and how that doctrine exerts formative pressure upon the assenting individual(s). What emerges from this study is a clearer picture of the formative years of early Methodism and the vital role that doctrinal pronouncement played in giving a shape to early Methodist identity. It will, therefore, be of great interest to scholars of Methodism, Evangelicalism, Theology and Church History.

Over recent decades, historians have become increasingly interested in early modern Catholic missions in Asia as laboratories of cultural contact. This book builds on recent ground-breaking research on early modern Catholic missions, which has shown that missionaries in Asia cooperated with and accommodated the needs of local agents rather than being uncompromising promoters of post-Tridentine doctrine and devotion. Bringing together some of the most renowned and innovative researchers from Anglophone countries and continental Europe, this volume investigates how missionaries' entanglements with local societies across Asia contributed to processes of localization within the early modern Catholic church. The focus of the volume is on missionaries' adaptation to four ideal-typical social settings that played an eminent role in early modern Asian missions: (1) the symbolically loaded princely court; (2) the city as a space of especially dense communication; (3) the countryside, where missionary presence was only rarely permanent; (4) and the household - a central arena of conversion in early modern Asian societies. Shining a fresh light onto the history of early modern Catholic missions and the early modern Eurasian cultural exchange, this will be an important book for any scholar of religious history, history of cultural contact/global history and early modern history in Asia.

In this sweeping and richly illustrated history, S. Frederick Starr tells the fascinating but largely unknown story of Central Asia's medieval enlightenment through the eventful lives and astonishing accomplishments of its greatest minds--remarkable figures who built a bridge to the modern world. Because nearly all of these figures wrote in Arabic, they were long assumed to have been Arabs. In fact, they were from Central Asia--drawn from the Persianate and Turkic peoples of a region that today extends from Kazakhstan southward through Afghanistan, and from the easternmost province of Iran through Xinjiang, China. Lost Enlightenment recounts how, between the years 800 and 1200, Central Asia led the world in trade and economic development, the size and sophistication of its cities, the refinement of its arts, and, above all, in the advancement of knowledge in many fields. Central Asians achieved signal breakthroughs in astronomy, mathematics, geology, medicine, chemistry, music, social science, philosophy, and theology, among other subjects. They gave algebra its name, calculated the earth's diameter with unprecedented precision, wrote the books that later defined European medicine, and penned some of the world's greatest poetry. One scholar, working in Afghanistan, even predicted the existence of North and South America--five centuries before Columbus. Rarely in history has a more impressive group of polymaths appeared at one place and time. No wonder that their writings influenced European culture from the time of St. Thomas Aquinas down to the scientific revolution, and had a similarly deep impact in India and much of Asia. Lost Enlightenment chronicles this forgotten age of achievement, seeks to explain its rise, and explores the competing theories about the cause of its eventual demise. Informed by the latest scholarship yet written in a lively and accessible style, this is a book that will surprise general readers and specialists alike.

This eighth volume of Studies in Church History contains twenty-six papers read at two recent meetings of the Ecclesiastical History Society. Popular religion, in theory and practice, within established religious forms and outside them, against a background of acceptance or of controversy, is examined in studies ranging from Professor Momigliano's analysis of the attitude of the later Roman historians to Professor Latreille's discussion of popular piety in modern France. A number of papers focus on the attitudes to sanctity and relics in the central Middle Ages. There is also a significant and wide-ranging discussion centred on the theme of the Presidential Address: post-Reformation popular religion both in its local and general setting. These contributions clearly demonstrate the significance of current research into social and economic influences upon popular faith, practice and allegiance, and indicate the large areas and difficult problems which require further research.

Based on highly original archival and palaeographical research, this is the first methodological and factual primer in English on the distinctive liturgical tradition of early medieval Spain. It provides clear and approachable blueprints for future work on the description and analysis (musical, theological and cultural) of this and other liturgies. For non-specialists, the authors introduce the main features of Old Hispanic liturgy, its manuscripts, its services and its liturgical genres. For specialists, they model a variety of ways to work with the Old Hispanic materials in depth, incorporating notational, musical, theological and historical perspectives. For those interested in musical notation, the book lays out a method for working with unpitched neumes, with illustrative results, that will inspire and challenge others working on monophonic chant. For historians and liturgists, the texts and melodies are analysed in combination with the theological context that informed their creation.

Through a multidisciplinary collection of case studies, this book explores the effects of the digital age on medieval and early modern studies. Divided into two parts, the book examines how people, medieval and modern, engage with medieval media and technology through an exploration of the theory underpinning audience interactions with historical materials in the past and the real-world engagement of a twenty-first century audience with medieval and early modern studies through the multimodal lens of a vast digital landscape. Each case study reveals the diversity of medieval media and technology and challenges readers to consider new types of literacy competencies as scholarly, rigorous methods of engaging in pre-modern investigations of materiality. Essays in the first section engage in the examination of medieval media, mediation, and technology from a theoretical framework, while the second section explores how digitization, smart-technologies, digital mapping, and the internet have shaped medieval and early modern studies today. The book will be of interest to students in undergraduate or graduate intermediate or advanced courses as well as scholars, in medieval studies, art history, architectural history, medieval history, literary history, and religious history.

The Journals of Two Poor Dissenters (1970) is a remarkable example of voices from the past, giving a humble man’s record of his time. William Swan and his son were Nonconformist labourers in London in the early part of the nineteenth century. They were poor, ill, afflicted with family troubles and the constant problem of finding work. In spite of this they thanked God for each misfortune as it arrived, and looked to the next year with gratitude for all the graces which the modern reader may find hard to detect. The Introduction places this account in its context of history and social record.

Religious liberty is one of the most contentious political issues of our time. How should people of faith engage with the public square in a pluralist era? Some citizens hope to reclaim a more Christian vision of national identity, while others resist any religious presence at all. This dispute is not new, and it goes back to the founding era of American history. As the country was being formed, some envisioned a Christian nation where laws would require worship attendance and Sabbath observance. Others advocated for a thoroughly secular society where faith would have no place in public life. But neither extreme won the day, thanks to the unsung efforts of a Connecticut pastor who forged a middle way. Historian Brandon O'Brien unveils an untold story of how religious liberty came to be. Between the Scylla and Charybdis of theocracy and secularism, Baptist pastor Isaac Backus contended for a third way. He worked to secure religious liberty and freedom of conscience for all Americans, not just for one particular denomination or religious tradition. Backus's ideas give us insight into how people of faith navigate political debates and work for the common good. Backus lived in an age of both religious revival and growing secularism, competing forces much like those at work today. The past speaks into the present as we continue to demand liberty and justice for all.

Religion and its History offers a reflection of our operative concept of religion and religions, developing a set of approaches that bridge the widely assumed gulf between analysing present religion and doing history of religion. Religious Studies have adapted a wide range of methodologies from sociological tool kits to insights and concepts from disciplines of social and cultural studies. Their massive historical claims, which typically idealize and reify communities and traditions, and build normative claims thereupon, lack a critical engagement on the part of the researchers. This book radically rethinks and critically engages with these biases. It does so by offering neither an abridged global history of religion nor a small handbook of methodology. Instead, this book presents concepts and methods that allow the analysis of contemporary and past religious practices, ideas, and institutions within a shared framework.

There has been a tendency to the view the history of the early medieval papacy predominantly in ideological terms, which has resulted in the over-exaggeration of the idea of the papal monarchy. In this study, first published in 1979, Jeffrey Richards questions this view, arguing that whilst the papacy's power and responsibility grew during the period under discussion, it did so by a series of historical accidents rather than a coherent radical design. The title redresses the imbalance implicit in the monarchical interpretation, and emphasizes other important political, administrative and social aspects of papal history. As such it will be of particular value to students interested in the history of the Church; in particular, the development of the early medieval papacy, and the shifting policies and characteristics of the popes themselves.

John Cassian is a study of the fifth-century monk who was one of the founders of western monasticism. Christian monasticism flowered in Egypt during the fourth century. Cassias spent several years in Egypt and his writings are important evidence of the earliest period of monastic life. Later in life Cassian came to Provence and adapted the Egyptian ideals and methods for Latin use. The Benedictine Rule owes much to his influence. Benedictine monks still look back upon Cassian as an authority for their way of life. He was the first guide to the contemplative ideal in the history of western thought. Cassias questioned the doctrine of predestination taught by Augustine. Dr Chadwick shows how this argument gave him an ambiguous reputation in medieval history. The first edition of this book was published in 1950. It established itself as a contribution to the history of monasticism and to the origins of the contemplative ideal in Christianity. This is a reprint of the 1968 second edition in which Dr Chadwick made changes to take account of important work published since the first edition.

This volume makes a significant contribution to the 'history of ecclesiastical histories', with a fresh analysis of historians of evangelicalism from the eighteenth century to the present. It explores the ways in which their scholarly methods and theological agendas shaped their writings. Each chapter presents a case study in evangelical historiography. Some of the historians and biographers examined here were ministers and missionaries, while others were university scholars. They are drawn from Anglican, Baptist, Congregationalist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Fundamentalist and Pentecostal denominations. Their histories cover not only transatlantic evangelicalism, but also the spread of the movement across China, Africa, and indeed the whole globe. Some wrote for a popular Christian readership, emphasising edification and evangelical hagiography; others have produced weighty monographs for the academy. These case studies shed light on the way the discipline has developed, and also the heated controversies over whether one approach to evangelical history is more legitimate than the rest. As a result, this book will be of considerable interest to historians of religion.

This title was first published in 2001. 'An age of faith or an age of doubt?'- the question has dominated study of Christianity in the Victorian era. Reinventing Christianity offers a fresh analysis of the vitality and variety of Christianity in Britain and America in the Victorian era. Part One presents an overview of some of the main varieties of Christianity in the west ranging from the conservative - Protestant evangelicalism and 'fortress' Catholicism - to the radical - Theosophy, Swedenborgianism and Transcendentalism; Part Two reviews negotiations between Christianity and the wider culture. The conclusion reflects on general trends in the period, showing how many of these prefigured later developments in religion. This book highlights the creativity and diversity of 19th century Christianity, showing how developments normally associated with the late 20th century - such as the reassertion of tradition and the rise of feminist theology and alternative spirituality - were already in train a century before.

A complete transcription of the Lambeth Library MS 1126. Lambeth Library MS 1126 was compiled, probably in late 1663, on behalf of Gilbert Sheldon, the new archbishop of Canterbury, as a conspectus of the parishes of Canterbury diocese and the archiepiscopal peculiars. A number of entries contain illuminating comments on the religious complexion of the parish, relating to both its incumbents and leading laity, of a type not found elsewhere for the 1660s. Its value for historians is twofold: first, the light it throws on the restoration of the episcopalian Church of England in the early 1660s. Notwithstanding the Act of Uniformity enforced at St Bartholomew's Day 1662, it is abundantly clear from this Catalogue that the Church of England remained divided and unsettled in the parishes, at least in Canterbury diocese. Second, the Catalogue is of interest for the administrative processes it records, as an incoming archbishop, necessarily non-resident, sought to become acquainted with the clergy and prominent laity in the parishes, information which was then updated over the next twenty years. In this respect, the Catalogue adumbrates the more routine and fuller collection of information about the parishes in the eighteenth-century church. A few of the comments in the Catalogue have already been referred to by historians, but this complete transcription has allowed in-depth analysis and concludes that Canterbury diocese must have experienced many more ejections of clergy than has previously been recognized, pointing to a need for more detailed examination of events in other dioceses.

The Middle Ages were dubbed the 'Dark Ages' almost before they had begun to draw to a close. Ever since then, they have continued to be seen as a time of hardship and oppression, full of popes and crusades. In the second volume of 2,000 Years of Christ's Power, another side of the Middle Ages shines through though: The continual workings of Christ as He built His kingdom through figures such as Thomas a Kempis and John Wycliffe, who lived and struggled during these centuries. This was far from a period of stagnation; rather it was the fire from which the Reformation was kindled.

Is 'newer' really 'better'? We often assume so, but if we do treat the past as inferior, we will ignore the legacy of history, and thus will find ourselves stranded on the tiny desert island of our own moment in time. In particular, this applies to Christian theology, which should be thought, and lived, corporately by the church down through the ages. The remedy to 'chronological snobbery' is, as C. S. Lewis put it, 'to keep the clean sea breeze of the centuries blowing through our minds'. Such is the motivation behind Michael Reeves' introduction to a selection of influential or significant Christian theologians. This accessible and informative volume covers the Apostolic Fathers, Justin Martyr and Irenaeus, Athanasius, Augustine, Anselm, Aquinas, Luther, Calvin, Owen, Edwards, Schleiermacher, Barth and Packer. Each chapter begins with a brief biography and some background, and then surveys each theologian's major work or works, gives a timeline for historical context, and ends with guidance for further reading. This book was previously available as two separate volumes (The Breeze of the Centuries and On Giants' Shoulders), but now repackaged together with a new chapter on J I Packer.

This is a popular introduction, aimed at general readers, to prayer and the spiritual life in the tradition of Ignatius Loyola. A deep prayer life is not just something for mystics or religious specialists. It's for everyone, and everyone has a capacity for it. There is a great thirst for spiritual depth among Christians and seekers. This is a popular introduction to prayer and the spiritual life - a guide for Lent and the rest of the year - in the tradition of Ignatius Loyola. Simmonds also explores Ignatian influence on the life of the seventeenth-century Yorkshire woman, Mary Ward. The Ignatian tradition is hugely adaptable to different approaches. At its heart is personal encounter with Jesus, so The Way of Ignatius will help people to pray with the Scriptures in an imaginative way. It includes questions to aid reflection and discussion at the end of each chapter, and also looks at the way in which the Passion and resurrection of Jesus are woven into the patterns of human life.

Founded in 1421, the Collegiate Church of Manchester, which became a cathedral in 1847, is of outstanding historical and architectural importance. But until now it has not been the subject of a comprehensive study. Appearing on the 600th anniversary of the Cathedral's inception by Henry V, this book explores the building's past and its place at the heart of the world's first industrial city, touching on everything from architecture and music to misericords and stained glass. Written by a team of renowned experts and beautifully illustrated with more than 100 photographs, this history of the 'Collegiate Church' is at the same time a history of the English church in miniature. -- .

This final volume of the Heads of Religious Houses: England and Wales series takes the lists of monastic superiors from 1377 to the dissolution of the monastic houses ending in 1540 and so concludes a reference work covering six hundred years of monastic history. In addition to surviving monastic archives, record sources have also been provided by episcopal and papal registers, governmental archives, court records, private, family and estate collections. Full references are given for establishing the dates and outline of the career of each abbot or prior, abbess or prioress, when known. The lists are arranged by order: the Benedictine houses; the Cluniacs; the Grandmontines; the Cistercians; the Carthusians; the Augustinian canons; the Premonstratensians; the Gilbertine order; the Trinitarian houses; the Bonhommes; and the nuns. An introduction discusses the use and history of the lists and examines critically the sources on which they are based.

Despite the existence of many hermitages and eremitic communities recorded throughout the medieval period, they have, somewhat surprisingly, received little archaeological attention. Consequently, this book offers an archaeological history of hermitages and eremitic communities, with reference to key examples and case-studies. It has a particular emphasis on the British medieval period, but it also contextualises this within a wider comparative framework. Many hermitages and eremitic communities are recorded throughout the medieval period, yet to date there has been no comprehensive archaeological study. This richly illustrated book will consequently discuss a range of hermitages and introduce the reader to their architectural forms, spaces, location and environments as well as the religious practices associated with them. It will focus primarily on the British material but will nonetheless consider this within a wider comparative framework. Overall, it will offer an archaeological history of hermitages and presents a unique window into a lost world of medieval spirituality and religious life. Key related themes will include the earliest archaeological evidence for hermits (eremitic life) in India, China and East Asia, pre- and early Christian desert hermitages, cave hermitages, eremitic communities, saints and missionary hermits, life and diet, medieval mysticism and the contemplative tradition, secular and ornamental hermitages and hermits in post-medieval and contemporary society. This book offers an illustrated archaeological history of hermitages and eremitic communities, with reference to key examples and case-studies. It will therefore appeal to both academics, students and a more general readership interested in archaeology, history, comparative religion, architecture, religion and belief, spirituality, medieval Britain, modern contemplative practice and contemporary heritage issues.