Edwards and the Edwardseans gathers into a single volume eight of the author's previously published articles and chapters. Suitable as either a basic or supplementary text for interested lay people and graduate students, this book serves as an introduction to the central spiritual and theological interests of Jonathan Edwards and to the long shadow those interests cast on his eponymous followers. The first four chapters (Part One) focus on Jonathan Edwards--his formative role in the Great Awakening, his biblical understanding of conversion, his perspective on petitionary prayer, and his influence on missionary endeavors. The following four chapters (Part Two) trace a well-defined theological movement from Edwards to his second- and especially third-generation followers. The impact of this movement resulted in the creation of a distinct theological culture that, over two generations, was institutionalized in informal seminaries or "schools of the prophets" in colleges attended by New Divinity students and staffed by New Divinity presidents and in missionary outreach both at home and abroad. Taken together, these chapters introduce theological subjects that mattered most to Edwards and his disciples: spiritual revival, conversion, the Bible, prayer, and extending the kingdom of God.
Industry Reviews
“Sometimes, if they’re lucky—or blessed—a historian can look back over the course of their life and realize that their work has coherence, meaning, and brings continual discovery. Happily, David Kling shares his instructive and ever-deepening odyssey into the world of Jonathan Edwards and generations of his followers in this volume. In these pages, Kling emerges as an insightful guide to the profound importance of Edwards and the Edwardseans not only in American but in global religious history.”
—Kenneth P. Minkema, executive editor, Jonathan Edwards Center, Yale University
“In this collection of previously published works by this respected historian, Kling traces the impact of Jonathan Edwards on and through the New Divinity thinkers that followed. From early chapters that demonstrate the significance of conversion and missions in Edwards’s thought through several case studies of his influence on the next generation of Christian leaders, this work summarizes not only the impact of Edwards on his successors but the influence of Kling’s historiography on students of Edwards.”
—Glenn R. Kreider, professor of theological studies, Dallas Theological Seminary
“David Kling’s book wonderfully brings together features not normally found in one volume: theological wisdom combined with outstanding historical research, a reading of Edwards which does not pit him against the Edwardseans, and astute scholarly reflection coupled with a robust concern for Christian spirituality and mission. A masterful set of essays that illuminates the global reach of Edwards’s ministry. I will be consulting it for years to come.”
—Robert W. Caldwell III, professor of church history, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
“As Jonathan Edwards was fond to say, ‘By their fruits ye shall know them.’ The rich fruit gathered in this volume confirms David Kling’s place as a groundbreaking scholar of the Edwardsean tradition. Each essay is superb, and collected together, they form a new narrative that significantly enlarges our understanding of Edwards and his legacy.”
—Ava Chamberlain, professor emerita of religion, Wright State University
“A rich harvest of the fruits of many years of scholarship by a leading authority in the field, this volume greatly adds to our understanding of Jonathan Edwards and especially the history and significance of the Edwardsean tradition. David Kling sheds much new light on the formidable influence of Edwards’s heirs on so many facets of American religion and culture in the nineteenth century and beyond.”
—Jan Stievermann, professor of the history of Christianity in the US, Heidelberg University
