Historical Dictionary of the Reformed Churches (Volume 99) (Historical Dictionaries of Religions, Philosophies, and Movements Series, 99) - Hardcover

Benedetto, Robert; McKim, Donald K.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 081085807X ISBN 13: 9780810858077

Publisher: Scarecrow Press, 2009

Synopsis

As its name implies, the Reformed tradition grew out of the 16th century Protestant Reformation. The Reformed churches consider themselves to be the Catholic Church reformed. The movement originated in the reform efforts of Huldrych Zwingli (1484-1531) of Zurich and John Calvin (1509-1564) of Geneva. Although the Reformed movement was dependent upon many Protestant leaders, it was Calvin's tireless work as a writer, preacher, teacher, and social and ecclesiastical reformer that provided a substantial body of literature and an ethos from which the Reformed tradition grew. Today, the Reformed churches are a multicultural, multiethnic, and multinational phenomenon.

The second edition of the Historical Dictionary of the Reformed Churches contains information on the major personalities, events, facts, movements, and beliefs of the Reformed churches. This is done through a list of acronyms and abbreviations, a chronology, an introductory essay, appendixes, a bibliography, and over 800 cross-referenced dictionary entries on leaders, personalities, events, facts, movements, and beliefs of the Reformed churches.

About this title

About the Author:

Robert Benedetto is director of the Flora Lamson Hewlett Library, Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, California. He was previously director of special collections at Princeton Theological Seminary and associate librarian at Union Theological Seminary in Virginia.

Donald K. McKim is Academic and Reference Editor for Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, Kentucky. He was previously academic dean and professor of theology at Memphis Theological Seminary and professor of theology at the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary.

From Booklist:

The Reformed tradition arose in the sixteenth century to “reform” the Roman Catholic Church. Most of the Protestant churches fall within this category regardless of their doctrinal or geographic differences, and this dictionary attempts to cover them all in the compact and comprehensive style that we have come to expect from the publisher’s Historical Dictionaries of Religions, Philosophies, and Movements series. The dictionary has an international perspective, with a strong emphasis on biographical entries. Of the more than 800 entries, 175 are new. Brief biographies of individuals, such as John Bunyan and Samuel Davies, are interspersed with theological concepts, such as Conscience and Salvation. Important events (the Scots Disruption); countries (Brazil, the U.S.); and regions (east Africa, southern Europe) are also included. The volume begins with a list of acronyms that are used in the definitions and a chronology of events, 1500–2009. Following the A to Z dictionary entries are several appendixes, among them a statistical table showing the “Global Demographics of the Reformed Churches” and a list of research centers and publishers that focus on the Reformed Churches. The topical bibliography, which runs more than 150 pages, is one of the strongest features of the book. The listings include very current material as well as historic titles, with many geographic locations among the subject divisions. Academic and large public libraries with an interest in this topic should seriously consider purchase. --Danise Hoover

About this edition

• Publisher: Scarecrow Press
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 081085807X
• ISBN 13: 9780810858077
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 790