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Library | Item Barcode | Call Number | Material Type | Item Category 1 | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Searching... | 30000010261933 | BR477 W674 2006 | Open Access Book | Book | Searching... |
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Summary
Summary
The twentieth century saw changes as dramatic as any in Christian history. The Churches suffered serious losses, both through persecution and through secularisation, in what had been for several centuries their European heartlands, but grew fast in Africa and parts of Asia. This volume provides a comprehensive history of Catholicism, Protestantism and the Independent Churches in all parts of the world in the century when Christianity truly became a global religion. Written by a powerful team of specialists from many different countries, the volume is broad in scope. The first part focuses on institutions and movements which have had a worldwide impact, including the papacy, the ecumenical movement and Pentecostalism. The second provides a narrative of Christian history in each region of the world. The third focuses on selected themes from an international perspective, including changes in worship, relations with Jews and Muslims, science and the arts, gender and sexuality.
Reviews 1
Library Journal Review
These are the final two volumes in a groundbreaking Cambridge series that presents Christianity not simply as a Middle Eastern/Western religion but as a worldwide phenomenon extending to India, East Asia, the Pacific Islands, and sub-Saharan Africa. Volume 8 covers the years between 1815 and 1914. Edited by theologians Stanley (The Bible and the Flag) and Gilley (Newman and His Age), this excellent collection of 36 signed articles is grouped into three parts: "Christianity and Modernity," "The Churches and National Identities," and "The Expansion of Christianity." The contributors' different views are not glossed over or synthesized in this volume, which treats the Enlightenment as both threat and catalyst as Christianity engages or rejects science and biblical criticism; sees colonialism as the contributing factor to the spread of Christianity, even if tainted by political domination; and explains how an already-divided Christianity became Christianities. The omission of Eastern Orthodox and Oriental churches (covered separately in Volume 5) is an unfortunate decision, especially considering that Eastern Catholic (a.k.a. "Uniate") churches are included. Nevertheless, this volume should appeal to historians, literary and academic religious scholars, Christian clergy, and others. Volume 9, covering the period between 1914 and the turn of the century, comprises 33 chapters and involves over 30 contributors. It is divided into three distinct parts: "Institutions and Movements" (e.g., ecumenism), "Narratives of Change" (e.g., the Great War), and "Social and Cultural Impact" (e.g., relations with other religions). Church historian McLeod (Piety and Poverty: Working Class Religion in Berlin, London and New York 1870-1914) has authored the first two and last two chapters while doing an excellent job of framing five dominant issues in the rest of the articles: the development of Christianity into a worldwide religion, challenges to the religion in Europe and North America, the decreased importance of denominations and increased contact with followers of other faiths, the role of war, and the relationship between movements for emancipation and Christianity. He also articulates a sixth issue that is treated pervasively rather than in discreet sections: the "revolution in communications" brought about by advancements in travel and new media. Both volumes, much like the series as a whole, are essential acquisitions not only for academic and seminary libraries but for large public libraries as well.-Carolyn M. Craft, Longwood Univ., Farmville, VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
