Mysticism and Democracy in the English Commonwealth (William Belden Noble Lectures, 5)

## THE WILLIAM BELDEN NOBLE LECTURES "The object of the founder of the Lectures is to continue the mission of William Beiden Noble, whose supreme desire it was to extend the influence of Jesus as the way, the truth, and the life; to make known the meaning of the words of Jesus,' I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.' In accordance with the large interpretation of the Influence of Jesus by the late Phillips Brooks, with whose religious teaching he in whose memory the Lectures are established and also the founder of the Lectures were in deep sympathy, it is intended that the scope of the Lectures shall be as wide as the highest interests of humanity. With this end in view, -the perfection of the spiritual man and the consecration by the spirit of Jesus of every department of human character, thought, and activity, -the Lectures may include philosophy, literature, art, poetry, the natural sciences, political economy, sociology, ethics, history, both civil and ecclesiastical, as well as theology and the more direct interests of the religious life. Beyond a sympathy with the purpose of the Lectures, as thus defined, no restriction is placed upon the lecturer." ' Works, I, 37-38. During the seventeenth century, England made bold experiments in popular self-government, first trying them in the democratic religious sects and then carrying them out into wider areas of the state. Such groups as the Seekers, the Brownists, the Quakers, and other mystics held to the democratic principle of church organization, which became in the course of time the basis of English and American government. Rufus Jones in this volume brings out the close connection between these religious movements and the political issues then being settled. This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work. THE WILLIAM BELDEN NOBLE LECTURES INTRODUCTION CONTENTS I. A GREAT AWAKENING II. BUILDING A SELF-GOVERNING CHURCH III. THE SEEKER MOVEMENT IV. AN OUTBURST OF MYSTICISM OF MANY TYPES V. THE “COMMON MAN” COMES BACK INDEX