Every Leaf, Line, and Letter: Evangelicals and the Bible from the 1730s to the Present

"I was filled with a pining desire to see Christ's own words in the Bible. . . . I got along to the window where my Bible was and I opened it and . . . every leaf, line, and letter smiled in my face." —The Spiritual Travels of Nathan Cole, 1765From its earliest days, Christians in the movement known as evangelicalism have had "a particular regard for the Bible," to borrow a phrase from David Bebbington, the historian who framed its most influential definition. But this "biblicism" has taken many different forms from the 1730s to the 2020s. How has the eternal Word of God been received across various races, age groups, genders, nations, and eras?This collection of historical studies focuses on evangelicals' defining uses—and abuses—of Scripture, from Great Britain to the Global South, from the high pulpit to the Sunday School classroom, from private devotions to public causes.Contributors:David Bebbington, University of StirlingKristina Benham, Baylor UniversityCatherine Brekus, Harvard Divinity SchoolMalcolm Foley, Truett SeminaryBruce Hindmarsh, Regent College, VancouverThomas S. Kidd, Baylor UniversityTimothy Larsen, Wheaton CollegeK. Elise Leal, Whitworth UniversityJohn Maiden, The Open University, UKMark A. Noll, University of Notre DameMary Riso, Gordon CollegeBrian Stanley, University of EdinburghJonathan Yeager, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Read more