James E. Bradley

In their widely praised, long popular Church History, James Bradley and Richard Muller lay out the guidelines, methods, and basic reference tools for research and writing in the fields of church history and historical theology. Over the years, this book has helped countless students define their topics, locate relevant source materials, and write quality papers. This revised, expanded, and updated second edition includes discussion of internet-based research, digitized texts, and the electronic forms of research tools and their use. The bibliography of study aids has also been greatly expanded to account for many important new resources made available since the first edition was published (1995). Accessible and clear, this handy introduction will continue to be useful for both students and experienced scholars in the field. Praise for the First Edition:"This is the most comprehensive and most lucidly written introduction to the methods of historical research and writing in the field of church history that I have seen. The authors are to be commended for engaging issues of faith and critical scholarship in ways that detract neither from personal commitment nor from historical rigor. . . . All in all, a magnificent achievement." - Harry S. Stout"While Bradley and Muller show how hard it is to learn the craft, they help the apprentice considerably." - Christian Century"A reliable roadmap for all who would enter the scholarly labyrinth known as `church history.' . . . All new practitioners of the discipline, not to mention old ones, could benefit from this books" -- Religious Studies Review

In the age of the American Revolution, the political issues surrounding John Wilkes, the colonies, and parliamentary reform agitated the nation, and recent studies of party ideology and voting behavior have shown how these national issues divided England. But subsequent work on the peerage and Anglican political theory has depicted a more placid, deferential populace. This book engages the discussion by drawing attention to the social and political activities of the English Dissenters. The Nonconformists’ legal standing, social status, and political behavior help illumine a number of unexamined causes for both the social stability and the political stresses of Hanoverian England. Legal inequities provoked strong opposition to the government’s American policy from the dissenting elite, and while the ministers’ publications suggest the depth of popular discontent, previous accounts have been unable to show how popular sentiment was transformed into radical behavior. By comparing sermons, political pamphlets, and election ephemera to poll books, city directories, and baptismal registers, this book offers an integrated approach to the study of ideology and behavior.