The Methodist Experience in America Volume 2: Sourcebook [Paperback]

Russell E Richey (Author), Kenneth E Rowe (Author), Jean Miller Schmidt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2000 | Series: Methodist Experience in America (Book 2)

Commissioned by the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry for use in United Methodist doctrine/polity/history courses.

From a Sunday school teacher's account of a typical Sunday morning to letters from presidents, from architects' opinions for and against the Akron Plan to impassioned speeches demanding full rights for African Americans, women, homosexuals, and laity in the Church, this riveting collection of documents will interest scholars, clergy, and laity alike. This Sourcebook, part of the two-volume set The Methodist Experience in America, contains documents from between 1760 and 1998 pertaining to the movements constitutive of American United Methodism. The editors identify over two hundred documents by date, primary agent, and central theme or important action. The documents are organized on a strictly chronological basis, by the date of the significant action in the excerpt. Charts, graphs, timelines, and graphics are also included. The Sourcebook has been constructed to be used with the Narrative volume in which the interpretation of individual documents, discussions of context, details about events and individuals, and treatment of the larger developments can be found.

Product Details

• Paperback: 718 pages
• Publisher: Abingdon Press (November 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0687246733
• ISBN-13: 978-0687246731
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 7.1 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #347,074 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally, a decent anthology of Methodist writings., April 7, 2001

By 

Michael K. Turner (Nashville, TN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Methodist Experience in America Volume 2: Sourcebook (Paperback)

Richey, Rowe, and Schmidt are the preeminent authorities on the history of Methodism in the U.S. Richey is Dean of Candler School of Theology, Emory University (largest Methodist seminary in the country), Schmidt is a Professor of Church History at Illif School of Theology (She is preeminent scholar of women in the Methodist tradition), and Kenneth Rowe is Professor of Church History at Drew University and one of the heads of the Methodist Archives. This work represents, for them, a solid collection of primary source material for students of the denomination.

There choices in material ranges from the familar to the obscure,from the colonial to the contemporary, and pays attention to the voice of women, African-Americans, and Native Americans--all of whom are significant voices in the history of American Methodism.

The book is chronologically arranged with an excellent index and solid explanations prefacing each document. The work also contains an excellent timeline of American Methodism.

I would conclude by stating, that this volume is best single volume collection of documents from the Methodism that I have ever seen. It is a far cry from the fairly weak and dated collection put together by Norwood some years ago. It will, thus, be an invaluable addition to the library of students and scholars of Methodism. Its greatest area of usefulness, however, will be in the Methodist history courses necessary for ordination in the UMC Church. This volume will go a long way to aid instructors of those courses in teaching the subject.

This volume is the second volume of 2. The first volume (which will carry the same title) will be a survey text on the history of American Methodism. The work has been in development for some years and many, such as myself, anxiously await its release.