Best of
Church-History

1990

A Quest for Godliness


J.I. Packer - 1990
    I. Packer has had a long-standing passion for the Puritans. Their understanding of God and His ways with man has largely formed his own spirituality and theological outlook. In A Quest for Godliness, the esteemed author of Knowing God and a dozen other books shares with his readers the rich world of Puritanism that has been so influential in his own life.Dr. Packer masterfully uncovers the hidden treasures of Puritan life and thought. With crystalline clarity he reveals the depth and breadth of Puritan spiritual life, contrasting it with the superficiality and deadness of modern Western Christianity.Drawing on a lifetime of study, Dr. Packer takes the reader on a survey of the lives and teachings of great Puritan leaders such as John Owen, Richard Baxter, and Jonathan Edwards. He offers a close look at such subjects as the Puritan view of the Bible, spiritual gifts, the Sabbath, worship, social action, and the family. He concludes that a main difference between the Puritans and ourselves is spiritual maturity--the Puritans had it; we don't.In a time of failing vision and decaying values, this powerful portrait of Puritans is a beacon of hope that calls us to radical commitment and action when both are desperately needed.A Quest for Godliness is a profoundly moving and challenging exploration of Puritan life and thought in a beautifully written book. Here is J. I. Packer at his very best.

George Whitefield


Arnold A. Dallimore - 1990
    Even during his lifetime Whitefield was considered "the most brilliant and popular preacher the modern world has ever known." In the wake of his fearless preaching, revival swept across the British Isles, and the Great Awakening transformed the American colonies.When Whitefield died at age 55, he had preached 30,000 sermons. His hearers included not only the poor and the uneducated, but prominent English aristocrats and American statesmen such as David Hume and Benjamin Franklin.Christians today continue to take courage from Whitefield's humility and deep spirituality. A founder of Methodism, he yielded his leadership to John Wesley rather than risk splitting the movement, thus revealing his fervent commitment to the gospel of Christ rather than to personal plans or hopes.The previous two-volume work, receiving critical praise and popular acceptance, is here condensed into one magnificent volume. A great inspiration to the followers of Jesus Christ in today's pressured world."Perhaps the single most inspiring biography published in English in the 20th century. A masterful work." --Sherwood Eliot Wirt, founding editor, Decision magazine"I feel a permanent debt of gratitude to Dr. Dallimore. His wonderful two-volume study of Whitefield is one of the great biographies of the Christian Church. I share his hope that many more Christians will find this shorter version as enjoyable and stimulating!" --Sinclair B. Ferguson, Westminster Theological Seminary"This condensation of the author's classic two-volume edition contains 23 fast-moving chapters of highly interesting material. A powerful rendering of a life wholly consecrated to God." --G.A. Adams, Principal, Toronto Baptist Seminary

Mañana: Christian Theology from a Hispanic Perspective


Justo L. González - 1990
    It weaves the doctrinal formulations of the early church on creation, the Trinity, and Christology into contemporary theological reflection on the Hispanic struggle for liberation. This volume offers a major theological statement from a respected theologian and author. Richly insightful and unique, Manana is one of the few major theological works from a Protestant representative of the Hispanic tradition. Justo L. Gonzalez offers theological reflections based upon unique insights born of his minority status as a Hispanic American.

The History of Black Catholics in the United States


Cyprian Davis - 1990
    It should be read by all interested in the history and culture of Black Americans.

The Lord Needed a Prophet


Susan Arrington Madsen - 1990
    Examines the lives of the prophets of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Intimacy With God


Clement of Alexandria - 1990
    Among other topics, Clement discusses prayer, the proper use of wealth, marriage, love, separation from the world, and women of wisdom. Translated into fresh, contemporary English. This book was formerly entitled The One Who Knows God.

Good News to the Poor: John Wesley's Evangelical Economics


Theodore W. Jennings Jr. - 1990
    By focusing on the radical nature of Wesley's "evangelical economics," Theodore W. Jennings, Jr., provides an important corrective to the view that Wesley was concerned with the salvation of souls only, and not also with the social conditions of human beings.

Faith and Wealth: A History of Early Christian Ideas on the Origin, Significance, and Use of Money


Justo L. González - 1990
    This brilliant and thorough study is a history of the views that Christians held of the origin, significance and use of wealth. Justo Gonzalez examines early Christian ideas, beliefs and teachings about the use of money, property, communal sharing and the rights and obligations of rich and poor. Setting the Christian community in the political, social and economic contexts of the times, Gonzalez highlights the ideas of such prominent writers as Cyprian, Ambrose, Augustine, John Chrysostom, and the Desert Fathers concerning wealth -- noting what traditional scholarship has overlooked. As the author points out, this book is not a social or economic history of Christianity during the first four centuries; it is a history of the views that Christians held on economic matters. This profound, enlightening and highly readable work of excellent scholarship is a major contribution to the study of the history of Christian thought. It clearly demonstrates that the issues of economics and social justice are central theological concerns, deeply rooted in Christian doctrine and Christian tradition.

Dictionary Of Scottish Church History & Theology


David F. Wright - 1990
    

Holy Fairs: Scotland and the Making of American Revivalism


Leigh Eric Schmidt - 1990
    and Elizabeth D. Brewer Prize of the American Society of Church History, Holy Fairs traces the roots of American camp-meeting revivalism to the communion festivals of early modern Scotland. This new paperback edition of Leigh Eric Schmidt's seminal work features updated material, a dozen illustrations, and a new preface by the author.

Encyclopedia of Early Christianity (Garland Reference Library of the Humanities, Vol 846)


Everett Ferguson - 1990
    What's new in the Second Edition:Some 250 new entries-25% more than in the first edition.; 25 new expert contributors; Bibliographies are greatly expanded and updated throughout; More focus on biblical books and philosophical schools, their influence on early Christianity and their use by patristic writers; More information about the Jewish and pagan environment of early Christianity; Greatly enlarged coverage of the eastern expansion of the faith throughout Asia, including persons and literature; More extensive treatment of saints, monasticism, worship practices, and modern scholars; Greater emphasis on social history and more theme articles; More illustrations, maps, and plans; Additional articles on geographical regions; Expanded chronological table; Also includes maps.

Michael Ramsey: A Life


Owen Chadwick - 1990
    The resulting biography gives a uniquely perceptive account of Ramsey's life and work and, through them, his time. `judicially selective and elegantly written... The book will repay several readings by all who are especially concerned with life in the Church of England and life in this country today' (David Jenkins, Bishop of Durham, in The Guardian). `What will no doubt be his definitive Life, a fine gift to us all' (Archbishop Donald Coggan in The Church of England Newspaper). `A triumph of the biographer's art' (Church Times). A splendidly unstately portrait of a highly unorthodox Prince of the Church' (Anthony Howard in The Independent on Sunday). Owen Chadwick is a Fellow of Selwyn College, Cambridge, and Chancellor of the University of East Anglia. He was knighted in 1982.

Thy Kingdom Come: Tracing God's Kingdom Program and Covenant Promises Throughout History


J. Dwight Pentecost - 1990
    A thorough study that traces the kingdom program from Genesis to Revelation, relating the kingdom and the various biblical covenants.

Macmillan Book Of Earliest Christian Prayers


Terrence J. Mulry - 1990
    It includes liturgical and private prayers, early Gnostic writings, prayers composed by women and the early Fathers and culminates with the prayers of St Augustine. The authors have drawn from a variety of sources, offering Coptic, Armenian, Syrian and Ethiopian Christian prayers, in addition to those from Latin and Greek.

John Donne: Selections from Divine Poems, Sermons, Devotions and Prayers


John Donne - 1990
    The books will be a welcome addition to the bookshelf of every literate religious persons". -- The Christian Century

Schilder's Struggle for the Unity of the Church


Rudolf van Reest - 1990
    

God's Last and Only Hope: The Fragmentation of the Southern Baptist Convention


Bill J. Leonard - 1990