From a historical point of view Sunday schools have immense significance. In the nineteenth century Sunday schools were part of general educational provision and represented the Christian philanthropic impulse to provide a basic education to the population at large and at low cost. In this book a range of experts assess different aspects of the history of the Sunday school movement. Contributors include Clyde Binfield Faith Bowers John Briggs Grayson Ditchfield Hugh McLeod Stephen Orchard Jack Priestley Geoffrey Robson and Doreen Rosman.

In 1937, prior to the 1948 inauguration of the World Council of Churches, Karl Barth challenged the churches to engage in ""real strict sober genuine theology"" in order that the unity of the church might be visibly realized. At that time The Salvation Army didn't aspire to being formally known as a church, even though it was a founding member of the WCC. Today it is globally known as a social welfare organization, concerned especially to serve the needs of those who find themselves at the margins of society. Less well known is that seventy years after Barth's challenge it has made its peace...

Contemporary texts are used in this volume to illustrate key themes in the history of Nonconformity in England and Wales. Although the twentieth century was in many ways a century of decline, this book shows that there was still much life in the Nonconformist tradition. It also looks at contemporary issues such as racism and the place of women. Through contemporary writings it provides an insight into the life and thought of the English Free Churches in a century in which they expected to come into their own, only to discover that they faced new challenges and the problems of decline. ""An...