Revival and Resurgence in Christian History: Papers Read at the 2006 Summer Meeting and the 2007 Winter Meeting of the Ecclesiastical History Society: v. 44 (Studies in Church History) - Tapa dura

From early in the history of Christianity, there have been numerous attempts to revive ideals and practices believed to be those of the primitive church, or to foster a resurgence of Christian faith and practice, in devotional, intellectual, organizational, or artistic contexts. This volume explores how Christian revivals and resurgences have drawn on an idea of the past, often to criticize what was deemed to be lacking in contemporary experience. The essays collected here range widely both geographically, from Africa to Australia, and historically, from the self-conscious revival of the journeys of the apostles by pilgrims in late antiquity, to the Caribbean revival of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church in contemporary Grenada. Topics covered include the Cistercian movement, devotional resurgence in the British Reformation, the revival of female religious communities under Napoleon, and the effect of religious revival on Welsh rugby football. While asking how far Christian revivals and resurgences were in fact stimulated by the desire to emulate earlier practice or how far they were motivated by present-day concerns, the essays also illuminate the diverse reception - sometimes enthusiastic and sometimes critical - which these movements encountered. A particular feature of the volume is the consideration of the varieties of Evangelical revival within Protestant churches from the eighteenth century to current times, as well as examining how far the concept of revival needs to be extended beyond Protestant Evangelicalism.