An interview with Dr. Bruce Hindmarsh, James M. Houston Chair of Spiritual Theology and Professor of History of Christianity at Regent College, on his 2018 book, The Spirit of Early Evangelicalism, with Oxford University Press, and how the early evangelicals can help us think about the task of catechesis in the modern world.
Book Description
Evangelicalism appeared as a new pattern of Christian devotion at a moment in history when the foundations of Anglo-American society were shifting. The Spirit of Early Evangelicalism sheds new light on the nature of evangelical religion by locating its rise with reference to major movements of the 18th century, including Modernity, the Scientific Revolution, and the Enlightenment. Hindmarsh draws on a wide range of sources to make meaningful connections between the evangelical awakening and the history of science, law, art, and literature. Each of these fields placed a profound emphasis on nature and the authority of natural knowledge, and democratic debate was encouraged in the public sphere. In this context, evangelicals forcefully pressed their agenda for "true religion," believing it was still possible to experience "the life of God in the soul of man." The results were dramatic and disruptive.
This book presents a fresh perspective and new research on the religious thought of leading evangelical figures such as John and Charles Wesley, George Whitefield, and Jonathan Edwards. It also traces the significance of evangelical spirituality for non-elites across multiple genres. From the scribbled marginalia of lay Methodists and the poetry of an African-American laywoman to the visual culture of grand manner portraits, lunar drawings, and satirical prints, Hindmarsh traces the meaning of evangelical devotion in a rich variety of contexts. By presenting devotion, culture, and ideas together, The Spirit of Early Evangelicalism shows the advent of evangelicalism to be a significant new episode in the history of Christian spirituality.
Author Bio
Bruce Hindmarsh took his D.Phil. degree in theology at Oxford University in 1993. From 1995 to 1997 he was also a research fellow at Christ Church, Oxford. He has since published and spoken widely to international audiences on the history of early British evangelicalism.
His articles have appeared in respected academic journals such as Church History, the Journal of Ecclesiastical History, and the Huntington Library Quarterly.
The recipient of numerous teaching awards and research grants, he has also been a research fellow at the Huntington Library and recipient of the Henry Luce III Theological Fellowship. He is a fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a past-president of the American Society of Church History. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters degree by Crandall University in 2022.
He teaches the history of Christianity and spiritual theology, and speaks often to lay audiences as well as preaching in his own church and elsewhere. A former staff worker for Youth for Christ and founding director of Camp Cedarwood, he is an active lay member of an Anglican Church. He is married to Carolyn, and they have three children: Bethany, Matthew and Sam.