The Nineteenth-Century Church and English Society [Paperback]

The first study of lay people and parish clergy in the nineteenth-century Church of England.This is the first study to consider the meaning of Anglicanism for ordinary people in nineteenth-century England. It is concerned equally with the beliefs of lay people and parish clergy, examining Anglicanism both as a supernatural belief system and as part of English society. It draws extensively on unpublished sources, particularly those for rural areas. Frances Knight argues that in the period up to 1870 the Church retained its popularity among a sizeable proportion of the people.This is the first study to consider the meaning of Anglicanism for ordinary people in nineteenth-century England. It is concerned equally with the beliefs of lay people and parish clergy, examining Anglicanism both as a supernatural belief system and as part of English society. It draws extensively on unpublished sources, particularly those for rural areas. Frances Knight argues that in the period up to 1870 the Church retained its popularity among a sizeable proportion of the people.This is the first study to consider the meaning of Anglicanism for ordinary people in nineteenth-century England. It is concerned equally with the beliefs of lay people and parish clergy, examining Anglicanism both as a supernatural belief system and as part of English society. It draws extensively on unpublished sources, particularly those for rural areas. Frances Knight argues that in the period up to 1870 the Church retained its popularity among a sizeable proportion of the people.Preface; List of abbreviations; 1. Interpreting the nineteenth-century Church; 2. Lay religion; 3. Church and community; 4. Clerical life; 5. Relations remoulded; 6. Conclusion; Select bibliography; Index. ...stimulating....An authoritative coverage....this is an important and suggestive book. John Wolffe, The Catholic Historical Review