The Reading and Preaching of the Scriptures in the Worship of the Christian Church, Volume 5: Moderatism, Pietism, and Awakening

Reading & Preaching of the Scriptures in the Worship of the Christian Church #5

by Hughes Oliphant Old

The Reading and Preaching of the Scriptures in the Worship of the Christian Church is a multivolume study by Hughes Oliphant Old that explores the history of preaching from the words of Moses at Mount Sinai through modern times. In Volume 5, Moderatism, Pietism, and Awakening, Old brings the story of preaching up through the eighteenth century, showing how, after the tumultuous age of the Reformation, preaching in the eighteenth century was driven in several very different directions. The book’s first chapter considers moderatism, an inevitable reaction against the high tensions of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation. In the second chapter Old discusses pietism, examining the contributions of Philipp Jakob Spener, Theodorus Jacobus Frelinghuysen, John Wesley, George Whitefield, Samuel Davies, and other preachers. The remaining seven chapters delve into a variety of national or denominational schools of preaching.

Genres: History

638 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Dr. Hughes Oliphant Old was the John H. Leith Professor of Reformed Theology and Worship at Erskine Theological Seminary and Dean of the Institute for Reformed Worship. He was a graduate of Princeton Theological Seminary and studied at the University of Tübingen, the Protestant Theological Faculty of Paris, the Institute Catholique of Paris, and the University of Basel. He completed a D. théol. at the University of Neuchâtel and was appointed a member of the Center of Theological Inquiry in Princeton, New Jersey. His 18 years of pastoral ministry in two churches, combined with meticulous research, has informed his prolific publishing.

Reviews

[Glenn Crouch · Rating 5 out of 5]

I continue to thoroughly enjoy my journey through the Reading and Preaching of the Scriptures in the Worship of the Christian Church, with now the 5th Volume completed and about to start the 6th Volume.

This time the Author brings up to the early years of the 19th Century, covering the Great Awakening in America, 18th Century Pietism, Franciscan Preaching in Spanish California, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Romanian and Russian Orthodox Church, and finishing with Scottish Preaching and Evangelical Anglicanism. So quite a decent volume!

For areas like the Romanian Orthodox and Russian Orthodox, the Author goes back in time that parallels previous volumes but these places were omitted, so that they would have fuller coverage here - which I think was a wise approach. Similar the extensive coverage of Scotland goes back to Knox so that a better overview is given.

I was most pleasantly surprise by the coverage of the Franciscan preaching in Spanish California. Whilst I had a little knowledge (though probably new more about this period from Zorro than anything else) of this period, I discovered how inadequate that knowledge was. This section alone made the volume worthwhile for me.

As with previous volumes, I would recommend this series to all preachers and to all who which to travel through Church History through a different method.

[Eric Molicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Olds does a great job with this masterful survey of preaching. For pastors, it is so helpful to see the efficacy of expository preaching across the ages as well as learn how differently it can be done from one period to the next. These volumes and the accompanying secondary study of key figures in each period has greatly encouraged my preaching ministry.