Overview

""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.

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9780300119763

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Always readable and with a crisp turn of phrase... an admirable introduction to this extraordinary subject. Ferdinand Mount, Times Literary Supplement This impressive book is one of the best - and certainly one of the most lively - books on Methodism to emerge in years. John Walsh, Oxford University a sparkling, landmark study whose timely international approach lifts Methodist history to a new and exiciting level. Richard Carwardine, Rhodes Professor of American History, Oxford University This is an extraordinary book. It is jammed full of scintillating interpretations; it is beautifully written; and it conveys tremendous insight in a short compass. It will be recognized immediately as the classic work on the rise of Methodism. Mark Noll, Wheaton College Clear, concise, original and formidably learned. Eugen Weber, The Key Reporter Brilliantly provocative... A masterful account. Grant Wacker, Christian Century

Author Information

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.

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