Abstract

An age of faith or an age of doubt? - the question has dominated study of Christianity in the Victorian era. This book moves debate forward by placing less emphasis on questions of quantity than on questions of kind. The authors introduce some of the most important varieties of Christianity in the 19th century and explore the diverse ways in which the tradition was radically reinterpreted under the pressure of a range of social and cultural forces.Reinventing Christianity offers a fresh analysis of the vitality and variety of Christianity in Britain and America in the Victorian era. The book draws together the work of a new generation of scholars in a wide range of disciplines including history, literary studies, gender studies, visual arts, sociology and religious studies. It opens with a comprehensive introduction by Linda Woodhead; Part One presents an overview of some of the main varieties of Christianity in the west ranging from the conservative (Protestant evangelicalism and 'fortress' Catholicism) to the radical (Theosophy, Swedenborgianism and Transcendentalism); Part Two reviews negotiations between Christianity and the wider culture, focusing on literature, gender and science. The conclusion reflects on general trends in the period, showing how many of these prefigured later developments in religion.By moving beyond a view of the Victorian era characterised primarily by a 'crisis of faith', this book highlights the creativity and diversity of 19th-century Christianity and to show how developments normally associated with the late 20th century - such as the reassertion of tradition and the rise of feminist theology and alternative spirituality - were already in train a century before.