Methodism: Empire of the Spirit - Softcover

Hempton, David

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0300119763 ISBN 13: 9780300119763

Publisher: Yale University Press, 2006

Synopsis

"Brilliantly provocative. . . . [A] masterful account."—Grant Wacker, Christian Century

The emergence of Methodism was arguably the most significant transformation of Protestant Christianity since the Reformation. This book explores the rise of Methodism from its unpromising origins as a religious society within the Church of England in the 1730s to a major international religious movement by the 1880s. During that period Methodism refashioned the old denominational order in the British Isles, became the largest religious denomination in the United States, and gave rise to the most dynamic world missionary movement of the nineteenth century. By the end of the nineteenth century, Methodism had circled the globe and was poised to become one of the fastest-growing religious traditions in the modern world.

David Hempton, a preeminent authority on the history of Methodism, digs beneath the hard surface of institutional expansion to get to the heart of the movement as a dynamic and living faith tradition. Methodism was a movement of discipline and sobriety, but also of ecstasy and enthusiasm. A noisy, restless, and emotional tradition, Methodism fundamentally reshaped British and American culture in the age of industrialization, democratization, and the rise of empire.

About this title

Book Description:

This lively history of the rise of Methodism charts the development of the movement from its unpromising origins in England in the 1730s to its major international importance by the 1880s. The book explores Methodism’s phenomenal growth in the British Isles, America, and around the globe, and the complex reasons for its wide-ranging appeal.

About the Author:

David Hempton is University Professor at Boston University, where he directs the university’s program in the History of Christianity. His previous books include Methodism and Politics in British Society, 1750–1850, which won the Whitfield Prize of the Royal Historical Society; Religion and Political Culture in Britain and Ireland; and The Religion of the People: Methodism and Popular Religion, c.1750–1900.

About this edition

• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0300119763
• ISBN 13: 9780300119763
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 304