A Spiritual Home : : Life in British and American Reformed Congregations, 1830-1915 / / Charles D. Cashdollar.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter Penn State University Press Complete eBook-Package Pre-2014
• VerfasserIn: Cashdollar, Charles D.,
• Place / Publishing House: University Park, PA : : Penn State University Press, , [2021]; ©2000
• Year of Publication: 2021
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (352 p.)

A Spiritual Home explores congregational life inside British and American Reformed churches between 1830 and 1915. At a time when scholars have become interested in the day-to-day experience of local congregations, this book reaches back into the nineteenth century, a critically formative period in Anglo-American religious life, to examine the historical roots of congregational life.Taking the perspective of the laity, Cashdollar ranges widely from worship and music to fund-raising and administration, from pastoral care to social work, from prayer meetings to strawberry festivals, from the sanctuary to the kitchen. Firmly rooted in broader currents of gender, class, notions of middle-class respectability, increasing expectations for personal privacy, and patterns of professionalization, he finds that there was a gradual shift in emphasis during these years from piety to fellowship. Based on records, publications, and memorabilia from about 150 congregations representing eight denominations, A Spiritual Home gives us a comprehensive, composite portrait of religious life in Victorian Britain and America.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- PART I The Context for Worship and Work -- One. Introduction From the Perspective of the Pew -- Two. Leadership, Power, Governance -- PART II Worship Together -- Three. The Lord's Day -- Four. ''Without Ceasing'' Prayer Meetings and Occasional Services -- Five. ''A New Song'' The Cultivation of Middle-Class Taste -- PART III Life Together -- Six. Becoming a Member Procedures and Expectations -- Seven. Caring for Each Other Nurture and Discipline -- Eight. The Business of the Congregation The Pursuit of Efficiency and Financial Stability -- Nine. Caring for Others Social Christianity and the Local Congregation -- Ten. Good Friends and Companions Social, Recreational, and Fellowship Activities -- Eleven. Church Buildings Setting and Symbol -- Epilogue. From Piety to Fellowship -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index