Author Description
The Period 1689-1901 Was 'the Golden Age' Of The Sermon In Britain. It Was The Best Selling Printed Work And Dominated The Print Trade Until The Mid-nineteenth Century. Sermons Were Highly Influential In Religious And Spiritual Matters, But They Also Played Important Roles In Elections And Politics, Science And Ideas And Campaigns For Reform. Sermons Touched The Lives Of Ordinary People And Formed A Dominant Part Of Their Lives. Preachers Attracted Huge Crowds And The Popular Demand For Sermons Was Never Higher. Sermons Were Also Taken By Missionaries And Clergy Across The British Empire, So That Preaching Was Integral To The Process Of Imperialism And Shaped The Emerging Colonies And Dominions. The Form That Sermons Took Varied Widely, And This Enabled Preaching To Be Adopted And Shaped By Every Denomination, So That In This Period Most Religious Groups Could Lay Claim To A Sermon Style. The Pulpit Naturally Lent Itself To Controversy, And Consequently Sermons Lay At The Heart Of Numerous Religious Arguments. Drawing On The Latest Research By Leading Sermon Scholars, This Handbook Accesses Historical, Theological, Rhetorical, Literary And Linguistic Studies To Demonstrate The Interdisciplinary Strength Of The Field Of Sermon Studies And To Show The Centrality Of Sermons To Religious Life In This Period.
Menrva's Summary
THE THESIS
This volume investigates the central role of the sermon as a dominant cultural, political, and religious force in Britain between 1689 and 1901. Edited by Keith A. Francis and William Merriam Gibson, the handbook compiles contributions from leading scholars to analyze how preaching shaped public discourse, imperial expansion, and social reform. The text argues that the sermon functioned as the primary medium of communication, influencing everything from electoral politics to scientific debate throughout the long eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
THE SCOPE MAP
What You Will Find
- Analysis of the sermon as a best-selling literary and print commodity.
- Examination of the intersection between preaching and British imperial expansion.
- Interdisciplinary methodologies incorporating theology, rhetoric, linguistics, and history.
- Comparative studies of diverse denominational preaching styles.
Scope Limits
- The analysis is strictly bounded by the years 1689 to 1901.
- The text focuses primarily on the British context and its colonial extensions rather than global sermon traditions.
THE AUTHORITY PERSPECTIVE
Scholars and historians recognize this handbook as a foundational reference for understanding the intersection of religion and print culture in the modern British era. The text is noted for its academic rigor and its success in establishing sermon studies as a legitimate, interdisciplinary field of inquiry.
Page Count:
680
Publication Date:
2012-01-01
ISBN-10:
0191612081
ISBN-13:
9780191612084
History
Religion
British History
Literary Studies
Academic
Theology
Reference