Discovering an evangelical heritage [Paperback]

Donald W Dayton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1976

When it first appeared, Discovering an Evangelical Heritage was widely regarded as a groundbreaking historical work. The continued relevance of the issues with which this book deals justifies its reappearance twelve years after its first advent challenged countless people to rethink their Evangelical heritage. If anything, the challenge is even greater now to follow the example set by the forebears of twentieth century evangelicalism.

For instance, Catherine Booth, co-founder of the Salvation Army and ardent feminist, offers a powerful testimony to the impact that Christian witness can and should have upon society. Likewise, abolitionist Theodore Weld, converted under the ministry of Charles G. Finney, showed what a response to the radical call of Christ means as he strove to right social injustice and inequity during his day.

Despite the hardship and consequences of living out their faith, these and other evangelical forerunners left a heritage to be remembered and an example to be followed. Like the author himself, the reader will be challenged to rethink his or her own relationship with Evangelicalism and will have to reflect upon the broader significance of that movement in American culture.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Donald W. Dayton is professor of theology and ethics at Northern Baptist Theological Seminary in Lombard, Illinois. He received his PhD from the University of Chicago. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 147 pages
• Publisher: Harper & Row; 1st edition (1976)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060617802
• ISBN-13: 978-0060617806
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,360,492 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Discovering an Evangelical Heritage--Worth a Look, October 6, 2006

By 

Stephen W. Hiemstra (Centreville, Virginia USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Discovering an Evangelical Heritage (Paperback)

I heard Dayton speak in September at Wesley Theology Seminary here in Washington DC. Dayton was the guest pastor at chapel (something about a 30-year anniversary of the book and an award from the seminary). His address focused on the many faces of John Wesley--something new and interesting to me. His talk prompted me to buy the book, Discovering an Evangelical Heritage, and another of his books, The Theological Roots of Pentecostalism.

The book is interested me because he dials back to the period of Charles Finney during the second Great Awakening. Finney was the Billy Graham of his day. Unlike Graham, Finney was both a great revivalist and a social reformer. Apparently, early evangelicals were at the forefront of the campaigns to abolish slavery, promote woman's rights, and advocating temperance. While I knew some of the history of this reforms, I did not specifically associate these reforms with 19th century evangelicals and the Second Great Awakening--until reading Dayton.

Dayton's historical review includes chapters on abolition of slavery, womens rights, and temporance. Key personalities and financial supporters of these movements were discussed. The roles of Oberlin College and different seminaries (Princeton, Gordon-Conwell, and others) in social reforms (or not) of the 19th century were especially interesting to me.

So why did American Evangelicals come to focus on evangelism and less on social reform? Dayton explains the difference in evangelical attitudes about social reform to a number of things. Among these were disillusionment following the Civil War, a less optimistic view of the impact of sin, and a switch from post-millennial to pre-millennial eschatological views. According to Dayton, if you believe that Christians will be raptured the moment Christ returns rather than after a thousand years of Christ's rule, then evangelism takes a higher priority and social reform goes down in priority.

I found Dayton's analyses of these events credible, informative, and insightful--much like his talk. I can see why Wesley TS presented Dayton with an award.

Stephen

5.0 out of 5 stars Dayton's Revolutionary Work, April 8, 2010

By 

Caleb J. Reynolds (Nampa, ID) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Discovering an Evangelical Heritage (Paperback)

In Donald Dayton's "Discovering an Evangelical Heritage," Dayton sheds light on an oft-avoided side of the history of evangelical Christianity: its social reforming roots. Dayton traces the development of evangelical Christianity through much of the 19th and the early 20th centuries via key figures in evangelicalism. Dayton demonstrates how Evangelicalism's roots are inextricably tied to social justice issues, contrary to contemporary expressions of the same.