The unique character of Rudolf Bultmann's thought has been missed by many traditional studies that cast him in exegetical or hermeneutic frameworks. His methods of source criticism and his concept of 'demythologizing'have led some to reject his thought in toto, otherstolabel him as a subjectivist. Tim Labron steps out of such traditional studies by reading Bultmann as a unique scholar and leading to the keys that unlockthe distinct character of Bultmann's thought, namely, John 1,14 and the principle of justification by faith.Bultmann uses them in aparallel function - to burn the traditional subject-object hierarchies and self-made foundationsto the ground. Labron shows the implications this hadfor theology, religious studies and philosophy.

This open access book presents fresh ethnographic work from the regions of Africa and Melanesia-where the popularity of charismatic Christianity can be linked to a revival and transformation of witchcraft. The volume demonstrates how the Holy Spirit has become an adversary to the reconfirmed presence of witches, demons, and sorcerers as manifestations of evil. We learn how this is articulated in spiritual warfare, in crusades, and in healing or witch-killing raids. The contributors highlight what happens to phenomena that people address as locally specific witchcraft or sorcery when re-molded within the universalist Pentecostal demonology, vocabulary, and confrontational methodology.

In histories of American Presbyterianism, the southern branch of the New School Church has received little attention despite its importance to church history as a whole. This new study provides a complete account of the southern church, tracing the events and controversies that led to schism, the founding of the United Synod, and eventual reunification with the Old School, South. The author begins by reviewing the causes of the original and Old School-New School schism of 1837-1838 and the circumstances that gradually deepened the separation between the northern and southern wings of the New School. The emergence of United Synod of the South and its activities in the antebellum period and during the Civil War are considered next. The author concludes with a discussion of the final union with the Southern Presbyterian Church in 1864 and assesses the reasons why the southern New School/United Synod failed to grow and reach the potential of other Presbyterian churches of that day.

This book evaluates William Temple's theology and his pursuit of church unity. It exposes a number of paradoxes and conflicts that have generally gone under-appreciated in assessments of Temple. William Temple was one of the most outstanding leaders of the early ecumenical movement. In many ways his ecumenical efforts provided a paradigm others have looked to and followed. Through detailed analysis of primary sources, this study sheds light on several behind-the-scenes conflicts Temple experienced as he worked toward church unity. Edward Loane explores the foundation of Temple's work by analyzing the philosophy and theology that underpinned and fueled it. The book also exposes the tensions between Temple's denominational allegiance and his ecumenical convictions-a tension that, in some ways, undermined his work for reunion. This book reveals issues that contemporary Christians need to grapple with as they seek to further church unity.

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."

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."

The author argues that Baptist theologian James William McClendon Jr's articulation of the 'baptist' vision entails an account of the real presence of Christ's body and blood that is internally faithful to that vision. Furthermore, such an account of real presence suggests that the 'baptist' vision is itself a contribution of Baptists to ecumenical Christianity. The argument is set in the context of some contemporary Baptist engagement with ecumenical Christianity, particularly historic Catholic Christianity. COMMENDATION "Aaron James shows how an ecumenically minded Baptist theologian can take up this theme with creativity, grace, and an inspiring desire to lift up our hearts toward the wondrous "sacrament of unity" and "sacrament of charity". He powerfully reminds us why this may well be the most important conversation that Christians can have today." - Matthew Levering, University of Dayton, Ohio, USA

Theodore Parker, a great orator of the mid-19th century, was a Unitarian clergyman who directed much of his oratory towards ecclesiastical and social reform. Parker challenged slavery and other social ills. As a volume in the Great American Orators series, the focus is on Parker's oratory and its effect on theology and the social structures of the mid-19th century. Biographical information pertains to those aspects of Parker's life that influenced and shaped his elocution and ideas. Parker's rhetoric and rhetorical techniques are examined. Three of Parker's important speeches are included, each with an introduction that places it in its proper context.

This study will appeal to students of rhetoric, theology, and mid-nineteenth-century American religious history. The book is divided into two sections. The first concentrates on Parker's life, his role as an abolitionist, social reformer, and public order. Part Two scrutinizes three of Parker's most famous discourses. The author establishes Parker's place among mid-19th-century preachers.

A British member of the Society of Friends travels through the United States in areas where members of the Society reside, and makes notes on their lives, describing their services, structures, and educational facilities. Includes notes on slavery.

With its exalted emotionality, Pentecostalism is a widespread religious movement in Latin America and Africa. It is a blend of Methodism and African religious culture which arouses the passions of the poorest Brazilian masses. Pentecostal conversion is experienced as a sudden break which radically transforms the life of these sectors of the population. Pentecostalism is an Utopia of equality, love and emotion, which is staged during the worship service. However, it is also characterized by authoritarian features. Pentecostalism is slowly eroding the foundation of Western political categories.

In this book, author Alan Tulchin breaks apart the process of mass conversion in the sixteenth century to explain why the Reformation occurred, using Nimes, the most Protestant town in France, as a case study. Protestantism was overwhelmingly successful in Nimes, since most people converted, but the process culminated in two bloody massacres of Nimes's remaining Catholics. Beginning in 1559, Nimes underwent a revolutionary period comparable to 1789 in its intensity. Townspeople flocked to hear Protestant preachers, and then took over Catholic churches, destroyed statues and stained glass, and zealously took part in the Wars of Religion, which convulsed France beginning in 1562. As the Protestant movement grew, it had to adapt to changing circumstances. Nimes's first Protestants were attracted to Calvin's Eucharistic theology; later converts believed that the Church needed to be cleansed of its excesses to encourage moral reform of the Crown; and in the end, many converted due to peer pressure or under duress. Thus rather than argue that one factor - whether religious, economic, or political - explains the Reformation, That Men Will Praise the Lord emphasizes that the Protestant movement was the result of compromises forged among its members. The result is a new theory of the Reformation, which explains how previous theories, thought to be incompatible, in fact fit together. In order to prove his thesis, Tulchin constructed a database of all surviving wills and marriage contracts for the period. He also consulted church, court, city council, and tax records. The book thus marries quantitative techniques from the social sciences and anthropology to cultural history in a dramatic analytic narrative.

In life he was larger than life. He made an immediate and memorable impact on those he met and with whom he worked. He was incredibly industrious in all his teaching, speaking, lecturing, composing, and above all in his writing. In the time others would take to think through the possibility of authoring a book, Erik would have gone to his longsuffering and slightly dyslexic typewriter and completed the manuscript. Gathering with his family at Westminster Abbey for his memorial service, the idea of a random collection of essays or a series of personal anecdotes was discarded by the editors. To appropriately honor this substantial life, something more systematic was required. Thus the idea for this volume was born. Each of the contributors, who has benefited in some way from his friendship, teaching and writing, has examined an area or a subject in which Erik Rowley has made his mark. Significantly, it has taken seventeen authors to cover some of the ground where his footprints are still fresh and the clarity of his voice still rings.