Nigel Yates
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199242382
- eISBN:
- 9780191603815
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199242380.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Church History
This book gives a detailed account of the development of the main religious denominations in Ireland between 1770 and 1850, set against the background of the main economic, political, and social ...
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This book gives a detailed account of the development of the main religious denominations in Ireland between 1770 and 1850, set against the background of the main economic, political, and social developments in Ireland in this period, and the religious history of Ireland between the Reformation and the late 18th century. It makes a comparative analysis of these developments against parallel developments in the other Celtic regions of Britain and Europe: Brittany, Wales, the Isle of Man, and the western highlands and islands of Scotland. The principal arguments of this book are that, on the one hand, it was a period of reform in all the main religious denominations in Ireland, but on the other, it was one which witnessed a serious deterioration of ecumenical relations between the churches, and set the scene for the sectarian violence of the late 19th and 20th centuries. The book is the first major study of Irish religious history to be written from an interdenominational, and in some respects, a clearly non-denominational standpoint. It is based on an extensive analysis of primary source material.Less
This book gives a detailed account of the development of the main religious denominations in Ireland between 1770 and 1850, set against the background of the main economic, political, and social developments in Ireland in this period, and the religious history of Ireland between the Reformation and the late 18th century. It makes a comparative analysis of these developments against parallel developments in the other Celtic regions of Britain and Europe: Brittany, Wales, the Isle of Man, and the western highlands and islands of Scotland. The principal arguments of this book are that, on the one hand, it was a period of reform in all the main religious denominations in Ireland, but on the other, it was one which witnessed a serious deterioration of ecumenical relations between the churches, and set the scene for the sectarian violence of the late 19th and 20th centuries. The book is the first major study of Irish religious history to be written from an interdenominational, and in some respects, a clearly non-denominational standpoint. It is based on an extensive analysis of primary source material.
Andrew R. Holmes
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199288656
- eISBN:
- 9780191710759
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199288656.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Church History
Until now, scholars of Ulster Presbyterianism have focused upon internal theological debates, institutions, and the political implications of Presbyterian theology as a way to explain the origins of ...
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Until now, scholars of Ulster Presbyterianism have focused upon internal theological debates, institutions, and the political implications of Presbyterian theology as a way to explain the origins of the United Irish movement and the swift conversion of Presbyterians to support for the Union with Great Britain thereafter. This book breaks new ground by considering the religious beliefs and practices of Presbyterians in their own right. It examines the various forms of public and private religiosity in order to determine how the community should be characterized. By stressing the integrity and importance of religious motivation, this book examines the dynamic relationship between the beliefs and practice prescribed by the church and those held by the laity, the rise to prominence of evangelicalism and its roots within the Presbyterian theological tradition, and the variety of Presbyterianism in terms of theological belief, social standing, gender, and regional location. During this period, Presbyterian belief and practice was shaped by three principal influences: tradition in the form of the doctrinal standards of the church and also those beliefs and customs of long continuance held by the laity; the forces of reform, particularly evangelicalism, that attempted to transform the structures and beliefs of the church and remove the popular accretions upon official Presbyterian belief and practice; finally, the programme of reform evangelicals embarked upon from the 1820s was stimulated by a broader revival of religion from the 1790s, entailed a revival of traditional Presbyterian practice as laid down in the Westminster standards, and would act as a stimulus to a further revival of religion within the denomination. Rather than seeing evangelicalism as a byword for religious enthusiasm and unbridled individualism, this book defines it as a movement for reformation and revival within Presbyterianism that had its roots in the Presbyterian religious tradition and which ultimately produced the 1859 revival.Less
Until now, scholars of Ulster Presbyterianism have focused upon internal theological debates, institutions, and the political implications of Presbyterian theology as a way to explain the origins of the United Irish movement and the swift conversion of Presbyterians to support for the Union with Great Britain thereafter. This book breaks new ground by considering the religious beliefs and practices of Presbyterians in their own right. It examines the various forms of public and private religiosity in order to determine how the community should be characterized. By stressing the integrity and importance of religious motivation, this book examines the dynamic relationship between the beliefs and practice prescribed by the church and those held by the laity, the rise to prominence of evangelicalism and its roots within the Presbyterian theological tradition, and the variety of Presbyterianism in terms of theological belief, social standing, gender, and regional location. During this period, Presbyterian belief and practice was shaped by three principal influences: tradition in the form of the doctrinal standards of the church and also those beliefs and customs of long continuance held by the laity; the forces of reform, particularly evangelicalism, that attempted to transform the structures and beliefs of the church and remove the popular accretions upon official Presbyterian belief and practice; finally, the programme of reform evangelicals embarked upon from the 1820s was stimulated by a broader revival of religion from the 1790s, entailed a revival of traditional Presbyterian practice as laid down in the Westminster standards, and would act as a stimulus to a further revival of religion within the denomination. Rather than seeing evangelicalism as a byword for religious enthusiasm and unbridled individualism, this book defines it as a movement for reformation and revival within Presbyterianism that had its roots in the Presbyterian religious tradition and which ultimately produced the 1859 revival.
Paul C. Gutjahr
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- May 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199740420
- eISBN:
- 9780199894703
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199740420.003.0021
- Subject:
- Religion, Church History
Chapter twenty-one tells the story of the changing nature of the Biblical Repertory. Upon his return from Europe, Hodge decides to rename and change the name of this periodical, attempting to make it ...
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Chapter twenty-one tells the story of the changing nature of the Biblical Repertory. Upon his return from Europe, Hodge decides to rename and change the name of this periodical, attempting to make it appeal to a wider audience. Popularizing the journal failed, but the Repertory did become a major theological voice within American Presbyterian circles.Less
Chapter twenty-one tells the story of the changing nature of the Biblical Repertory. Upon his return from Europe, Hodge decides to rename and change the name of this periodical, attempting to make it appeal to a wider audience. Popularizing the journal failed, but the Repertory did become a major theological voice within American Presbyterian circles.
Michael S. Kogan
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195112597
- eISBN:
- 9780199872275
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195112597.003.0010
- Subject:
- Religion, Judaism
This chapter discusses the Israeli-Palestinian dispute's invasion of the Jewish Christian dialogue. Topics covered include the Presbyterian Church's (in the USA) issuance of “A Theological ...
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This chapter discusses the Israeli-Palestinian dispute's invasion of the Jewish Christian dialogue. Topics covered include the Presbyterian Church's (in the USA) issuance of “A Theological Understanding of the Relationship between Christians and Jews” in 1987, the General Assembly of the church's resolution to investigate divestment of the church's $8 billion portfolio in companies doing business with Israel, particularly those aiding in the occupation of the West Bank, in 2004; and the national assembly of 2006.Less
This chapter discusses the Israeli-Palestinian dispute's invasion of the Jewish Christian dialogue. Topics covered include the Presbyterian Church's (in the USA) issuance of “A Theological Understanding of the Relationship between Christians and Jews” in 1987, the General Assembly of the church's resolution to investigate divestment of the church's $8 billion portfolio in companies doing business with Israel, particularly those aiding in the occupation of the West Bank, in 2004; and the national assembly of 2006.
D. G. Hart
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195390971
- eISBN:
- 9780199777099
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195390971.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity, Church History
From 1776 until approximately 1970, American Protestant clergy and academics argued that Calvinism was crucial to their nation’s political institutions and ideals. It was common among the mainstream ...
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From 1776 until approximately 1970, American Protestant clergy and academics argued that Calvinism was crucial to their nation’s political institutions and ideals. It was common among the mainstream Presbyterian groups (termed "libertarian Calvinists") to aver that Calvinism provided the only adequate basis for the American experiment of a republic based on limited government and civil liberty. This chapter examines the contortions necessary for these arguments. Then, the chapter examines the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (termed "authoritarian Calvinists"). It holds closely to the language in the original Westminster Confession, which calls upon the state to protect and foster Christian faith. Given these differing perspectives, the chapter concludes, agreeing with Philip Benedict, that Calvinism’s importance has less to do with its contributions to political theory and more to do with its role as a religion that shapes the personal and familial identities of its adherents.Less
From 1776 until approximately 1970, American Protestant clergy and academics argued that Calvinism was crucial to their nation’s political institutions and ideals. It was common among the mainstream Presbyterian groups (termed "libertarian Calvinists") to aver that Calvinism provided the only adequate basis for the American experiment of a republic based on limited government and civil liberty. This chapter examines the contortions necessary for these arguments. Then, the chapter examines the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (termed "authoritarian Calvinists"). It holds closely to the language in the original Westminster Confession, which calls upon the state to protect and foster Christian faith. Given these differing perspectives, the chapter concludes, agreeing with Philip Benedict, that Calvinism’s importance has less to do with its contributions to political theory and more to do with its role as a religion that shapes the personal and familial identities of its adherents.
Steve Bruce
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199281022
- eISBN:
- 9780191712760
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199281022.003.0002
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter details the history of the Paisley family, clarifies the distinctive elements of Paisley's evangelical Protestant faith, describes the rural roots of his movement, and charts the slow ...
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This chapter details the history of the Paisley family, clarifies the distinctive elements of Paisley's evangelical Protestant faith, describes the rural roots of his movement, and charts the slow growth of his ministry from 1945 to 1965.Less
This chapter details the history of the Paisley family, clarifies the distinctive elements of Paisley's evangelical Protestant faith, describes the rural roots of his movement, and charts the slow growth of his ministry from 1945 to 1965.
STEVE BRUCE
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199281022
- eISBN:
- 9780191712760
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199281022.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter details the growth of the Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster in Northern Ireland (and its international expansion) and its development of schools, missionary work, and theological ...
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This chapter details the growth of the Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster in Northern Ireland (and its international expansion) and its development of schools, missionary work, and theological training. It considers whether success and increasing public acceptance has moderated the Church's distinctive separatism and its puritanism, and concludes that growth has not resulted in much change yet.Less
This chapter details the growth of the Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster in Northern Ireland (and its international expansion) and its development of schools, missionary work, and theological training. It considers whether success and increasing public acceptance has moderated the Church's distinctive separatism and its puritanism, and concludes that growth has not resulted in much change yet.
Steve Bruce
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199281022
- eISBN:
- 9780191712760
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199281022.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter documents the links between Paisley's church and his party. It discusses church reservations about involvement in politics and party attempts to reconcile religious preferences with ...
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This chapter documents the links between Paisley's church and his party. It discusses church reservations about involvement in politics and party attempts to reconcile religious preferences with vote-winning. It also considers the impact of electoral success and generational succession on the party's principles. It concludes that contrary to popular images of a party divided in young secular and older religious wings, the DUP remains firmly united.Less
This chapter documents the links between Paisley's church and his party. It discusses church reservations about involvement in politics and party attempts to reconcile religious preferences with vote-winning. It also considers the impact of electoral success and generational succession on the party's principles. It concludes that contrary to popular images of a party divided in young secular and older religious wings, the DUP remains firmly united.
Gary Scott Smith
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195300604
- eISBN:
- 9780199785285
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195300604.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
His contemporaries, subsequent historians and biographers, and Woodrow Wilson himself have all agreed that his religious convictions are crucial to understanding the Democrat’s political thought and ...
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His contemporaries, subsequent historians and biographers, and Woodrow Wilson himself have all agreed that his religious convictions are crucial to understanding the Democrat’s political thought and actions. Wilson revered the Bible, wore out several of them during his life, quoted it frequently, and sought to use its principles to guide his work as president. He prayed every day on his knees and followed Presbyterian standards in his personal life. While concurring that Wilson’s faith is pivotal to understanding him, scholars disagree over whether it had a positive or negative impact on his performance as president and his policies. Wilson’s firmly rooted and fervently cherished Calvinist faith significantly influenced his thought and actions as president. Clearly America’s preeminent Presbyterian statesman, Wilson’s faith is evident in his philosophy of government, his view of America’s mission in the world, and many of his major domestic and foreign policies, especially his attempts to mediate among the combatants in World War I, his decision to involve the United States in the war, and his role in devising the Paris Peace treaties and the League of Nations.Less
His contemporaries, subsequent historians and biographers, and Woodrow Wilson himself have all agreed that his religious convictions are crucial to understanding the Democrat’s political thought and actions. Wilson revered the Bible, wore out several of them during his life, quoted it frequently, and sought to use its principles to guide his work as president. He prayed every day on his knees and followed Presbyterian standards in his personal life. While concurring that Wilson’s faith is pivotal to understanding him, scholars disagree over whether it had a positive or negative impact on his performance as president and his policies. Wilson’s firmly rooted and fervently cherished Calvinist faith significantly influenced his thought and actions as president. Clearly America’s preeminent Presbyterian statesman, Wilson’s faith is evident in his philosophy of government, his view of America’s mission in the world, and many of his major domestic and foreign policies, especially his attempts to mediate among the combatants in World War I, his decision to involve the United States in the war, and his role in devising the Paris Peace treaties and the League of Nations.
Mark A. Noll
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195151114
- eISBN:
- 9780199834532
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195151119.003.0013
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
The historic Calvinist churches that still enjoyed significant leadership in American public life thoroughly incorporated common sense and republican emphases into their theology. In general, these ...
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The historic Calvinist churches that still enjoyed significant leadership in American public life thoroughly incorporated common sense and republican emphases into their theology. In general, these theologians condemned the revolutions in France and were suspicious of the “infidel” Thomas Jefferson and his friend James Madison. American Calvinists were, however, not unified; their disputes grew from the different approaches they took to the problems of religious organization and national civilization posed by the new American nation.Less
The historic Calvinist churches that still enjoyed significant leadership in American public life thoroughly incorporated common sense and republican emphases into their theology. In general, these theologians condemned the revolutions in France and were suspicious of the “infidel” Thomas Jefferson and his friend James Madison. American Calvinists were, however, not unified; their disputes grew from the different approaches they took to the problems of religious organization and national civilization posed by the new American nation.
Jeanne Halgren Kilde
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195143416
- eISBN:
- 9780199834372
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195143418.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
Explores the social and religious contexts that informed the development and the widespread adoption of the neomedieval auditorium church type by evangelical Protestants in the late nineteenth ...
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Explores the social and religious contexts that informed the development and the widespread adoption of the neomedieval auditorium church type by evangelical Protestants in the late nineteenth century. The building type is characterized by an architecturally eclectic exterior facade, emphasizing Gothic or Romanesque vocabularies, and an amphitheater‐like main auditorium with theater features. Blending social, religious, and architectural history, the book examines the buildings as texts that bear witness to significant changes in religious creed, code, and cultus. The democratic and homelike character of these buildings indicate shifts in Protestant creed, the facilities for musical performance and congregational participation attest to changes in cultus or worship practice, and the integration of a variety of functional rooms into these churches evidence significant negotiations between the traditional evangelical code or mission of proselytizing and a new mission centered on family ministry. Adopted by Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Methodists, and Baptists across the U.S., these buildings attest to the existence of an evangelical social and theological unity in the final decades of the century, a united Christian front on a public landscape that many feared was marred by social unrest. By the 1920s, that evangelical Christian unity would rupture, congregations would be rent as religious, and social conservatives split from liberals throughout the country. This rupture would significantly reduce the popularity of the neomedieval auditorium church in the twentieth century.Less
Explores the social and religious contexts that informed the development and the widespread adoption of the neomedieval auditorium church type by evangelical Protestants in the late nineteenth century. The building type is characterized by an architecturally eclectic exterior facade, emphasizing Gothic or Romanesque vocabularies, and an amphitheater‐like main auditorium with theater features. Blending social, religious, and architectural history, the book examines the buildings as texts that bear witness to significant changes in religious creed, code, and cultus. The democratic and homelike character of these buildings indicate shifts in Protestant creed, the facilities for musical performance and congregational participation attest to changes in cultus or worship practice, and the integration of a variety of functional rooms into these churches evidence significant negotiations between the traditional evangelical code or mission of proselytizing and a new mission centered on family ministry. Adopted by Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Methodists, and Baptists across the U.S., these buildings attest to the existence of an evangelical social and theological unity in the final decades of the century, a united Christian front on a public landscape that many feared was marred by social unrest. By the 1920s, that evangelical Christian unity would rupture, congregations would be rent as religious, and social conservatives split from liberals throughout the country. This rupture would significantly reduce the popularity of the neomedieval auditorium church in the twentieth century.
S. J. Connolly
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199543472
- eISBN:
- 9780191716553
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199543472.003.0007
- Subject:
- History, European Early Modern History
Penal laws continued to exclude the Catholic, and to a lesser extent, Protestant dissenter populations from full citizenship. Despite major legal disadvantages, there was a substantial Catholic ...
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Penal laws continued to exclude the Catholic, and to a lesser extent, Protestant dissenter populations from full citizenship. Despite major legal disadvantages, there was a substantial Catholic propertied interest, and a growing ecclesiastical establishment. Presbyterians remained the strongest religious group in Ulster, though now divided between traditional (Old Light) and more liberal (New Light) wings. The Church of Ireland, despite being entangled in the web of public patronage, was not the wholly moribund institution often claimed.Less
Penal laws continued to exclude the Catholic, and to a lesser extent, Protestant dissenter populations from full citizenship. Despite major legal disadvantages, there was a substantial Catholic propertied interest, and a growing ecclesiastical establishment. Presbyterians remained the strongest religious group in Ulster, though now divided between traditional (Old Light) and more liberal (New Light) wings. The Church of Ireland, despite being entangled in the web of public patronage, was not the wholly moribund institution often claimed.
Paul Younger
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195391640
- eISBN:
- 9780199866649
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195391640.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Hinduism
Trinidad had a long history of indigenous and European settlement even before African slaves were brought in. When the Indians joined this complex island culture, they were quickly given their own ...
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Trinidad had a long history of indigenous and European settlement even before African slaves were brought in. When the Indians joined this complex island culture, they were quickly given their own village areas to live in. In 1868, the Canadian Presbyterian mission started a school system dedicated exclusively to the Indian community and educated Indians were soon moving out into society. In 1952, Bhadase Maraj disrupted the rural base of the Indian community further when he started an Indian political party and the Sanatana Dharma Maha Sabha with its own set of Hindu schools. By 1995, a widespread revival of Hindu religious practice was underway, and a new version of the Indian political party, called the United National Congress (UNC), had come to power. In this context the various cultural rivalries in the society were sharp, and Hinduism functioned as an ethnic religion for the Indians.Less
Trinidad had a long history of indigenous and European settlement even before African slaves were brought in. When the Indians joined this complex island culture, they were quickly given their own village areas to live in. In 1868, the Canadian Presbyterian mission started a school system dedicated exclusively to the Indian community and educated Indians were soon moving out into society. In 1952, Bhadase Maraj disrupted the rural base of the Indian community further when he started an Indian political party and the Sanatana Dharma Maha Sabha with its own set of Hindu schools. By 1995, a widespread revival of Hindu religious practice was underway, and a new version of the Indian political party, called the United National Congress (UNC), had come to power. In this context the various cultural rivalries in the society were sharp, and Hinduism functioned as an ethnic religion for the Indians.
Mcbride I. R.
- Published in print:
- 1998
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198206422
- eISBN:
- 9780191677113
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198206422.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History, Political History
This book examines the central role played by Ulster Presbyterians in the birth of Irish republicanism. Drawing on recent trends in British and American historiography, as well as a wide range of ...
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This book examines the central role played by Ulster Presbyterians in the birth of Irish republicanism. Drawing on recent trends in British and American historiography, as well as a wide range of Irish primary sources, the author of this book charts the development of Presbyterian politics between the War of American Independence and the rebellion of 1798. He begins by tracing the emergence of a radical sub-culture in the north of Ireland, showing how traditions of religious dissent underpinned oppositional politics. He goes on to explore the impact of American independence in Ulster, and shows how the mobilization of the Volunteers and the reform agitation of the 1780s anticipated the ideology and organization of the United Irish movement. He describes how, in the wake of the French Revolution, Ulster Presbyterians sought to create a new Irish nation in their own image, and reveals the confessional allegiances that shaped the 1798 rebellion. Above all, this book uncovers the close relationship between theological disputes and political theory, recreating a distinctive intellectual tradition whose contribution to republican thought has often been misunderstood.Less
This book examines the central role played by Ulster Presbyterians in the birth of Irish republicanism. Drawing on recent trends in British and American historiography, as well as a wide range of Irish primary sources, the author of this book charts the development of Presbyterian politics between the War of American Independence and the rebellion of 1798. He begins by tracing the emergence of a radical sub-culture in the north of Ireland, showing how traditions of religious dissent underpinned oppositional politics. He goes on to explore the impact of American independence in Ulster, and shows how the mobilization of the Volunteers and the reform agitation of the 1780s anticipated the ideology and organization of the United Irish movement. He describes how, in the wake of the French Revolution, Ulster Presbyterians sought to create a new Irish nation in their own image, and reveals the confessional allegiances that shaped the 1798 rebellion. Above all, this book uncovers the close relationship between theological disputes and political theory, recreating a distinctive intellectual tradition whose contribution to republican thought has often been misunderstood.
John A. Ragosta
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195388060
- eISBN:
- 9780199866779
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195388060.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, American History: early to 18th Century
Before the American Revolution, no state more seriously discriminated against and persecuted religious dissenters than Virginia. Over 50 dissenting ministers, primarily Baptists, were jailed, and ...
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Before the American Revolution, no state more seriously discriminated against and persecuted religious dissenters than Virginia. Over 50 dissenting ministers, primarily Baptists, were jailed, and numerous Baptists and Presbyterians were beaten or harassed. By the time the U.S. Constitution was adopted, no state provided more extensive protection to religious freedom, nor did so in terms nearly so elegant as Thomas Jefferson's Statute for Establishing Religious Freedom. This dramatic change occurred because Virginia's dissenters, constituting as much as one‐third or more of the population, demanded religious freedom before they would mobilize for the American Revolution; Virginia's establishment leaders, the same gentry leaders who led much of the persecution, had little choice but to acquiesce. In return, dissenting ministers played an important role in the fight against Britain. By comparison, British efforts to co‐opt religious dissent were wan. By the end of the war, though, religious liberty was not yet complete, and with the necessity of mobilization eliminated, establishment leaders, led by Patrick Henry, sought to reinvigorate the formerly established church through a general tax to benefit all Christian denominations. This proved too much for the dissenters; politicized by the negotiations during the Revolution and with James Madison coordinating legislative efforts, they rose up to quash the religious tax and insisted upon adoption of Jefferson's Statute. In doing so, the evangelicals demanded a strict separation of church and state. The impact of their joining the polity and the robust religious liberty which they left as a legacy still resonate today.Less
Before the American Revolution, no state more seriously discriminated against and persecuted religious dissenters than Virginia. Over 50 dissenting ministers, primarily Baptists, were jailed, and numerous Baptists and Presbyterians were beaten or harassed. By the time the U.S. Constitution was adopted, no state provided more extensive protection to religious freedom, nor did so in terms nearly so elegant as Thomas Jefferson's Statute for Establishing Religious Freedom. This dramatic change occurred because Virginia's dissenters, constituting as much as one‐third or more of the population, demanded religious freedom before they would mobilize for the American Revolution; Virginia's establishment leaders, the same gentry leaders who led much of the persecution, had little choice but to acquiesce. In return, dissenting ministers played an important role in the fight against Britain. By comparison, British efforts to co‐opt religious dissent were wan. By the end of the war, though, religious liberty was not yet complete, and with the necessity of mobilization eliminated, establishment leaders, led by Patrick Henry, sought to reinvigorate the formerly established church through a general tax to benefit all Christian denominations. This proved too much for the dissenters; politicized by the negotiations during the Revolution and with James Madison coordinating legislative efforts, they rose up to quash the religious tax and insisted upon adoption of Jefferson's Statute. In doing so, the evangelicals demanded a strict separation of church and state. The impact of their joining the polity and the robust religious liberty which they left as a legacy still resonate today.
Peter J. Thuesen
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- September 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195174274
- eISBN:
- 9780199872138
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195174274.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology, Church History
This chapter focuses on two Anglo Protestant groups with genetic links to Puritanism: Presbyterians and Baptists. Both are well known in American history for the splits they suffered over revivalism, ...
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This chapter focuses on two Anglo Protestant groups with genetic links to Puritanism: Presbyterians and Baptists. Both are well known in American history for the splits they suffered over revivalism, biblical interpretation, and slavery. But predestination always lurked just below the surface, and controversy erupted every time some faction attempted to articulate the definitive Presbyterian or Baptist position. When a movement arose among Presbyterians in the late 19th century to soften the Westminster Confession's statement on God's eternal decree, traditionalists cried foul. The revisionists eventually won a partial victory, but not before igniting a denominational firestorm and exacerbating North‐South differences. Baptists, meanwhile, had disagreed over predestination since the seventeenth century. In the Southern Baptist Convention, these tensions simmered until the turn of the 21st century, when the conservatives who engineered a successful takeover of denominational institutions descended into a bitter family feud over the Calvinistic doctrine of election.Less
This chapter focuses on two Anglo Protestant groups with genetic links to Puritanism: Presbyterians and Baptists. Both are well known in American history for the splits they suffered over revivalism, biblical interpretation, and slavery. But predestination always lurked just below the surface, and controversy erupted every time some faction attempted to articulate the definitive Presbyterian or Baptist position. When a movement arose among Presbyterians in the late 19th century to soften the Westminster Confession's statement on God's eternal decree, traditionalists cried foul. The revisionists eventually won a partial victory, but not before igniting a denominational firestorm and exacerbating North‐South differences. Baptists, meanwhile, had disagreed over predestination since the seventeenth century. In the Southern Baptist Convention, these tensions simmered until the turn of the 21st century, when the conservatives who engineered a successful takeover of denominational institutions descended into a bitter family feud over the Calvinistic doctrine of election.
JEFFREY R. COLLINS
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199237647
- eISBN:
- 9780191708442
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199237647.003.0004
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History
This chapter further advances the book's account of the English Revolution as a religious war. It offers a reinterpretation of the Independents: that group of religious thinkers who rejected all ...
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This chapter further advances the book's account of the English Revolution as a religious war. It offers a reinterpretation of the Independents: that group of religious thinkers who rejected all clerical forms of national church hierarchy and defended a church of independent congregations supervised by magisterial authority. It argues that Revolutionary Erastianism and Independency shared more political and intellectual common ground than is traditionally conceded. Thus, the Independents emerge as the heirs of the Long Parliament's staunchly Erastian religious project. In the Westminster Assembly of Divines, they cooperated with the Erastians grouped around John Selden. Presbyterians and Episcopalians alike were affronted by this, and royalism increasingly came to be wedded to a staunch defence of episcopacy. The chapter also describes Hobbes's early exposure to the Independent way, and begins to place him within the various factions at the royalist court in exile.Less
This chapter further advances the book's account of the English Revolution as a religious war. It offers a reinterpretation of the Independents: that group of religious thinkers who rejected all clerical forms of national church hierarchy and defended a church of independent congregations supervised by magisterial authority. It argues that Revolutionary Erastianism and Independency shared more political and intellectual common ground than is traditionally conceded. Thus, the Independents emerge as the heirs of the Long Parliament's staunchly Erastian religious project. In the Westminster Assembly of Divines, they cooperated with the Erastians grouped around John Selden. Presbyterians and Episcopalians alike were affronted by this, and royalism increasingly came to be wedded to a staunch defence of episcopacy. The chapter also describes Hobbes's early exposure to the Independent way, and begins to place him within the various factions at the royalist court in exile.
JEFFREY R. COLLINS
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199237647
- eISBN:
- 9780191708442
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199237647.003.0007
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History
This chapter continues the reconstruction of Hobbes's life and reception in Interregnum London. It examines the response of the Independents themselves to Hobbes's Erastianism. Whereas the ...
More
This chapter continues the reconstruction of Hobbes's life and reception in Interregnum London. It examines the response of the Independents themselves to Hobbes's Erastianism. Whereas the republicans were unabashed admirers of Hobbes's Erastianism, the Independents qualified their appreciation with a serious concern about his heretical theological instincts. This conflicting reaction marked a significant number of Interregnum Independents – including Henry Stubbe, John Owen, and Louis du Moulin – and began to play a role in shaping polemical disputes between Presbyterians and Independents, at Oxford in particular.Less
This chapter continues the reconstruction of Hobbes's life and reception in Interregnum London. It examines the response of the Independents themselves to Hobbes's Erastianism. Whereas the republicans were unabashed admirers of Hobbes's Erastianism, the Independents qualified their appreciation with a serious concern about his heretical theological instincts. This conflicting reaction marked a significant number of Interregnum Independents – including Henry Stubbe, John Owen, and Louis du Moulin – and began to play a role in shaping polemical disputes between Presbyterians and Independents, at Oxford in particular.
Philip N. Mulder
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195131635
- eISBN:
- 9780199834525
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195131630.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
Presbyterians, Baptists, and Methodists in the American South competed divisively with each other during the First and Second Great Awakenings, establishing a spirited evangelical presence in the ...
More
Presbyterians, Baptists, and Methodists in the American South competed divisively with each other during the First and Second Great Awakenings, establishing a spirited evangelical presence in the region, but left wanting a common religious influence that would fulfill ecumenical ideals. Presbyterians and Baptists set the tone by subordinating New Light techniques to their denominational traditions, the Presbyterians countering the novelties of the revivals with their long‐standing emphasis on education and decorum, and the Baptists demanding that converts be judged by their knowledge of core doctrines. The two Calvinist denominations successfully limited the innovative Methodists, who had hoped to transcend the others’ sectarian spirit with piety and ecumenism – the very definition of the New Light. Methodists were absorbed into the arguments over denominational differences, and all the groups turned their aggressiveness toward each other as the Anglican Church, formerly their target of mutual dissent, disintegrated during the American Revolution. Left to encounter each other during outdoor preaching, camp meetings, and neighborhood discussions, Presbyterians, Baptists, and Methodists became obsessed with their own debates over proper religion and the acceptable measure of New Light piety. In their polities, beliefs, rituals, and conversions, these churches, led by the Baptists, defined evangelicalism as a controversial spirit, with the New Light ideal of the Methodists falling into the rivalry of denominationalism.Less
Presbyterians, Baptists, and Methodists in the American South competed divisively with each other during the First and Second Great Awakenings, establishing a spirited evangelical presence in the region, but left wanting a common religious influence that would fulfill ecumenical ideals. Presbyterians and Baptists set the tone by subordinating New Light techniques to their denominational traditions, the Presbyterians countering the novelties of the revivals with their long‐standing emphasis on education and decorum, and the Baptists demanding that converts be judged by their knowledge of core doctrines. The two Calvinist denominations successfully limited the innovative Methodists, who had hoped to transcend the others’ sectarian spirit with piety and ecumenism – the very definition of the New Light. Methodists were absorbed into the arguments over denominational differences, and all the groups turned their aggressiveness toward each other as the Anglican Church, formerly their target of mutual dissent, disintegrated during the American Revolution. Left to encounter each other during outdoor preaching, camp meetings, and neighborhood discussions, Presbyterians, Baptists, and Methodists became obsessed with their own debates over proper religion and the acceptable measure of New Light piety. In their polities, beliefs, rituals, and conversions, these churches, led by the Baptists, defined evangelicalism as a controversial spirit, with the New Light ideal of the Methodists falling into the rivalry of denominationalism.
John Wigger
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- September 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195387803
- eISBN:
- 9780199866410
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195387803.003.0020
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
Francis Asbury’s mother, Elizabeth Asbury, died in January 1802, severing his last tie to England. The revival sweeping through American Methodism continued unabated, with an increase of more than ...
More
Francis Asbury’s mother, Elizabeth Asbury, died in January 1802, severing his last tie to England. The revival sweeping through American Methodism continued unabated, with an increase of more than 30,000 members in 1802 and 1803. Camp meetings were an important component of this success. Asbury began encouraging their use as early as 1802. For Methodists, camp meetings were a logical extension of the quarterly meeting system. Methodists more readily incorporated camp meetings and accommodated the accompanying enthusiasm (including “the jerks”) than did the Presbyterians or Baptists. Contrary to past accounts, for Methodists the revival was not tied in any meaningful way to the frontier. Though Presbyterians and Methodists initially worked together to promote the revival in the West, by 1809 most of this goodwill had evaporated.Less
Francis Asbury’s mother, Elizabeth Asbury, died in January 1802, severing his last tie to England. The revival sweeping through American Methodism continued unabated, with an increase of more than 30,000 members in 1802 and 1803. Camp meetings were an important component of this success. Asbury began encouraging their use as early as 1802. For Methodists, camp meetings were a logical extension of the quarterly meeting system. Methodists more readily incorporated camp meetings and accommodated the accompanying enthusiasm (including “the jerks”) than did the Presbyterians or Baptists. Contrary to past accounts, for Methodists the revival was not tied in any meaningful way to the frontier. Though Presbyterians and Methodists initially worked together to promote the revival in the West, by 1809 most of this goodwill had evaporated.
