A Companion to the Reformation in Geneva describes the course of the Protestant Reformation in the city of Geneva from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries. It explores the beginnings of reform in the city, the struggles the reformers encountered when seeking to teach, minister to, educate, and discipline the inhabitants of Geneva, and the methods employed to overcome these obstacles. It examines Geneva's relations with nearby cities and how Geneva handled the influx of immigrants from France. The volume focuses on the most significant aspects of life in the city, examines major theological and liturgical subjects associated with the Genevan Reformation, and describes the political, social, and cultural consequences of the Reformation for Geneva. Contributors include: Jon Balserak, Sara Beam, Erik de Boer, Michael Bruening, Mathieu Caesar, Jill Fehleison, Emanuele Fiume, Herve Genton, Anja Silvia Goeing, Christian Grosse, Scott Manetsch, Elsie McKee, Graeme Murdock, William G. Naphy, Peter Opitz, Jennifer Powell McNutt, Jameson Tucker, Theodore G. Van Raalte, and Jeffrey R. Watt. "This volume is a scholarly and very accessible introduction to the Genevan Reformation that covers history, religious developments, and impact, balancing the perspectives of both historians and theologians. The contributors present an extraordinarily well-rounded view of Geneva during the Reformation. It will be a tremendous aid to scholarship and the book that the next generation of scholars will use both as a handy reference and as the starting point for future work." Amy Nelson Burnett, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

John and Charles Wesley are among the most influential Christians who have ever lived. Their fearless preaching in the face of violent opposition and the rise of the Methodist movement powerfully influenced an eighteenth century England that was rife with corruption, drunkenness, crime and religious apathy. Julian Wilson provides a vividly detailed account of the Wesley brothers' lives and ministries. John Wesley travelled ceaselessly on horseback, preaching gospel sermons that transformed whole communities whilst Charles Wesley became probably the most prolific hymn writer in history. This engaging book will help you to appreciate the significance of John and Charles Wesley in their own time and understand why their spiritual legacy endures today. Content Benefits: Read this fascinating biography of John and Charles Wesley and be inspired by their passion for the gospel. * A biography of both John and Charles Wesley * Understand the beginnings of Methodism * Discover the man behind so many beloved hymns * Includes their conversion experiences, their triumphs and failures and their writings and preaching * Explores John Wesley's involvement in the abolition of slavery * Part of the Classic Authentic Lives Series * Perfect for anyone who wants to learn from the 'heroes of the faith' * Ideal for anyone who loves biographies

The second of three volumes devoted to Wesley s theological writings contains two major sets of material. The first set (edited by Paul Chilcote) contains writings throughout Wesley s ministry devoted to defense of the doctrine of Christian perfection, including "A Plain Account of Christian Perfection." The second set (edited by Kenneth Collins) collects Wesley s various treatises focused on predestination and related issues, often in direct debate with Calvinist writers, including "Predestination Calmly Considered."

This book investigates a puzzling and neglected phenomenon - the rise of English Arminianism during the decade of puritan rule. Throughout the 1650s, numerous publications, from scholarly folios to popular pamphlets, attacked the doctrinal commitments of Reformed Orthodoxy. This anti-Calvinist onslaught came from different directions: episcopalian royalists (Henry Hammond, Herbert Thorndike, Peter Heylyn), radical puritan defenders of the regicide (John Goodwin and John Milton), and sectarian Quakers and General Baptists. Unprecedented rejection of Calvinist soteriology was often coupled with increased engagement with Catholic, Lutheran and Remonstrant alternatives. As a result, sophisticated Arminian publications emerged on a scale that far exceeded the Laudian era. Cromwellian England therefore witnessed an episode of religious debate that significantly altered the doctrinal consensus of the Church of England for the remainder of the seventeenth century. The book will appeal to historians interested in the contested nature of 'Anglicanism' and theologians interested in Protestant debates regarding sovereignty and free will. Part One is a work of religious history, which charts the rise of English Arminianism across different ecclesial camps - episcopal, puritan and sectarian. These chapters not only introduce the main protagonists but also highlight a surprising range of distinctly English Arminian formulations. Part Two is a work of historical theology, which traces the detailed doctrinal formulations of two prominent divines - the puritan John Goodwin and the episcopalian Henry Hammond. Their Arminian theologies are set in the context of the Western theological tradition and the soteriological debates, that followed the Synod of Dort. The book therefore integrates historical and theological enquiry to offer a new perspective on the crisis of 'Calvinism' in post-Reformation England.

By utilizing the contributions of a variety of scholars - theologians, historians, and biblical scholars - this book makes the complex and sometimes disparate Anabaptist movement more easily accessible. It does this by outlining Anabaptism's early history during the Reformation of the sixteenth century, its varied and distinctive theological convictions, and its ongoing challenges to and influence on contemporary Christianity. T&T Clark Handbook of Anabaptism comprises four sections: 1) Origins, 2) Doctrine, 3) Influences on Anabaptism, and 4) Contemporary Anabaptism and Relationship to Others. The volume concludes with a chapter on how contemporary Anabaptists interact with the wider Church in all its variety. While some of the authorities within the volume will disagree even with one another regarding Anabaptist origins, emphases on doctrine, and influence in the contemporary world, such differences represent the diversity that constitutes the history of this movement.

This superb collection of Samuel Rutherford's letters includes a biographical account of his life, together with a copious arrangement of notes and an appendix. As one of Scotland's foremost theologians and authors in the 17th century, Samuel Rutherford was a gifted and busy wordsmith. Throughout a career spanning decades, he wrote a series of valued books on both religious topics and Presbyterianism in the political sphere. A lively and engaged thinker, Rutherford's life and thoughts offers a good portrayal of the evolution in both church and state in his era. Although most known for his ideas on constitutionalism and on military principles, Samuel Rutherford in the day-to-day lived for ordinary men and women believers who frequented his church in Kirkcudbrightshire, Galloway. He would often pay visits to the sick, correspond with their families, and offer emotional comfort and reassurance in times of difficulty.

God, as depicted in popular evangelical literature, is loving and friendly, described in heartfelt, often saccharine prose evocative of nostalgia, comfortable domesticity, and familial love. This emotional appeal is a widely-adopted strategy of the writers most popular among American evangelicals, including such high-profile pastors as Max Lucado, Rick Warren, and Joel Osteen. Todd M. Brenneman offers an in-depth examination of this previously unexplored aspect of American evangelical identity: sentimentality, which aims to produce an emotional response by appealing to readers' notions of familial relationships, superimposed on their relationship with God. Brenneman argues that evangelicals use sentimentality to establish authority in the public sphere-authority that is, by its emotional nature, unassailable by rational investigation. Evangelicals also deploy sentimentality to try to bring about change in society, though, as Brenneman shows, the sentimental focus on individual emotion and experience can undermine the evangelical agenda. Sentimentality not only allows evangelicals to sidestep intellectual questioning, but sets the stage for doctrinal change as well as weakening the evangelical vision of transforming society into the kingdom of God.

Churches are increasingly exploring the potential of diaconal ministry to help them serve wider society in the contemporary context. Those involved in this ministry seek to forge improved connections between churches and the wider communities in which they are located. However, the role of those ordained to be deacons is diverse, challenging and often controversial, both within and outside the Church.

This book explores how deacons within the Methodist Church in Britain have understood their own ministry and sought to address these challenges. It draws on innovative research undertaken with the Methodist Diaconal Order over two years. Key questions and implications for practice are provided to help those wishing to reflect further on this ministry.

This book makes a significant contribution to the ecumenical debate on diaconal ministry. It offers much that will be of interest to all those seeking to reflect on, understand, engage in or work with those involved in this ministry in their own contexts."

Exploring one of the most controversial figures in recent evangelical theology, this book thoroughly examines core features of Stanley J. Grenz's Trinitarian vision.