Christianity and Empire Revisited

Buch | Softcover

272 Seiten

2025
Brill (Verlag)
978-90-04-73847-8 (ISBN)

Artikel merken

Christianity’s entanglement with empire remains a subject of fierce debate. This volume brings fresh perspectives to the discussion, drawing on the expertise of historians, literary specialists, mission scholars, and practitioners in a conversation that combines academic rigour with contemporary application.

Were missionaries simply religious agents of imperialism? If you have ever asked—or been asked—this question, then this book is for you. Bringing together historians, literary specialists, and mission scholars, it explores the complexities of the subject, highlighting its many nuances. Figures like Henry Havelock, deeply involved in Britain’s suppression of the 1857 Indian Rebellion, were undoubtedly tied to imperial power. Yet, missionaries and their supporters were also the moral absolutists of their time—sincerely, if at times naively, committed to ideas of human liberation. At the same time, Christianity’s commitment to translation played a role in preserving indigenous languages and literary traditions, adding another layer to this thought-provoking discussion.

Contributors are Brian Stanley, Alec Ryrie, Michael Snape, Nicholas J. Wood, Ashish Alexander, Julian Thompson, Emily Burgoyne, Kyama Mugambi, Kirsteen Kim, and Kang-San Tan.

Brian Stanley (PhD, Cambridge, 1979) is Professor Emeritus of World Christianity at the University of Edinburgh. He has published widely on the history of missions and world Christianity, including Christianity in the Twentieth Century: A World History (2018).

Preface

List of Figures and Tables

Abbreviations

Notes on Contributors

Introduction

Brian Stanley

1 A Pre-History of Protestant Mission and Empire: the Propagation of Civility or Cosmic Conflict?

Alec Ryrie

2 Empires Human and Divine: the Multiple Ambiguities of Mission Christianity in Imperial Contexts

Brian Stanley

3 Missions and the Military: the British Empire and Commonwealth, c.1800–1960

Michael Snape

4 ‘Where Piety and Valour Jointly Go’: 21st-Century Reflections on a 19th-Century British Imperial Hero

Nicholas J. Wood

5 Missionaries and People’s Language: Notes from Colonial Punjab

Ashish Alexander

6 Dark Heart of Empire: Missionaries, Leopold and Mr Kurtz

Julian Thompson and Emily Burgoyne

7 Challenging Empire and Mission: Reflections from Africa

Kyama Mugambi

8 The Conception of World Christianity as a Response to Racism: Addressing the Legacy of Empire

Kirsteen Kim

9 Contested Perspectives on Mission and Empire: Lessons for Post-Colonial Mission Practice

Kang-San Tan

Index

Erscheinungsdatum	02.09.2025
Reihe/Serie	Theology and Mission in World Christianity ; 37
Zusatzinfo	1 Tables, black and white; 3 Illustrations, color
Verlagsort	Leiden
Sprache	englisch
Maße	155 x 235 mm
Gewicht	466 g
Themenwelt	Geschichte ► Teilgebiete der Geschichte ► Religionsgeschichte
Themenwelt	Geisteswissenschaften ► Religion / Theologie ► Christentum
ISBN-10	90-04-73847-9 / 9004738479
ISBN-13	978-90-04-73847-8 / 9789004738478
Zustand	Neuware