Unity in Diversity: English Puritans and the Puritan Reformation, 1603-1689 (Brill's Series in Church History, 68)

In Unity in Diversity, Randall J. Pederson critiques current trends in the study of Puritanism, and proposes a different path for defining Puritanism, centered on "unitas" and "diversitas," by looking at John Downame, Francis Rous, and Tobias Crisp. Unity in Diversity presents a fresh appraisal of the vibrant and diverse culture of Stuart Puritanism, provides a historiographical and historical survey of current issues within Puritanism, critiques notions of Puritanisms, which tend to fragment the phenomenon, and introduces unitas within diversitas within three divergent Puritans, John Downame, Francis Rous, and Tobias Crisp. This study draws on insights from these three figures to propose that seventeenth-century English Puritanism should be thought of both in terms of Familienähnlichkeit, in which there are strong theological and social semblances across Puritans of divergent persuasions, and in terms of the greater narrative of the Puritan Reformation, which united Puritans in their quest to reform their church and society. - Publisher. This book presents a fresh appraisal of the vibrant and diverse culture of Stuart Puritanism, provides a historiographical and historical survey of current issues within Puritanism, critiques notions of Puritanisms, which tend to fragment the phenomenon, and introduces unitas within diversitas within three divergent Puritans, John Downame, Francis Rous, and Tobias Crisp. This study draws on insights from these three figures to propose that seventeenth-century English Puritanism should be thought of both in terms of Familienähnlichkeit, in which there are strong theological and social semblances across Puritans of divergent persuasions, and in terms of the greater narrative of the Puritan Reformation, which united Puritans in their quest to reform their church and society Part one : Historical method and background. Historiographical introduction, methodology, hypothesis, and structure Seventeenth-century background Part two : Puritans. John Downame (1571-1652) Francis Rous (1580/1-1659) Tobias Crisp (1600-1642/3) Part three : Unity in diversity. Unitas within Diversitas : Downame, Rous, and Crisp Defining Puritans and Puritanism : narrative and metanarrative Conclusion English summary Nederlandse samenvatting