Theologia Cambrensis

* A comprehensive scholarly synthesis of the history of Welsh theology between the eighteenth- and the twentieth century. * An even-handed and meticulous assessment of the impact of the Evangelical Revival on both the Anglican Church and Protestant Nonconformity up to and beyond the Victorian era. * A fresh interpretation based on a wide range of texts, both well-known and obscure, in the light of the latest scholarly consensus

The book describes the development of religious thought in Wales between 1760 and 1900. Although the emphasis is on religious thought, it also includes much on social history including industrialisation, popular Nonconformity, revivalism, the interest in foreign missions and the stirrings of social radicalism.As well as outlining the shape of Welsh religious history generally, this second volume of Theologia Cambrensis describes the development of Calvinistic Methodist thought up to and beyond the secession from the Established Church in 1811, and the way in which the Evangelical Revival impacted the Older Dissent to create a vibrant popular Nonconformity. Along with analysing aspects of theology and doctrine, the narrative assesses the contribution of such key personalities as William Williams Pantycelyn, Thomas Charles of Bala and Thomas Jones of Denbigh, and the Nonconformists Titus Lewis, Joseph Harris ‘Gomer’, George Lewis, David Rees and Gwilym Hiraethog. Following the notorious ‘Treachery of the Blue Books’ of 1847 and the Religious Census of 1851, Anglicanism regained ground, and among the themes treated in the latter chapters of this volume are the influence of High Church Tractarianism and the Broad Church ‘Lampeter Theology’ in the parishes. The volume concludes by assessing the intellectual culture of evangelicalism personified by Lewis Edwards and Thomas Charles Edwards, and describes the challenges posed by Darwinism, philosophical Idealism and a more critical attitude to the biblical text.