Presents The History Of Tinnevelly From The Earliest Period To The Cession To The English Government In 1801 A.D. 10 Chapters - 5 Appendices - Index.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1881.

Conversion has played a central role in the history of Christianity. In this first in-depth and wide-ranging narrative history, David Kling examines the dynamic of turning to the Christian faith by individuals, families, and people groups. Global in reach, the narrative progresses from early Christian beginnings in the Roman world to Christianity's expansion into Europe, the Americas, China, India, and Africa. Conversion is often associated with a particular strand of modern Christianity (evangelical) and a particular type of experience (sudden, overwhelming). However, when examined over two millennia, it emerges as a phenomenon far more complex than any one-dimensional profile would suggest. No single, unitary paradigm defines conversion and no easily explicable process accounts for why people convert to Christianity. Rather, a multiplicity of factors-historical, personal, social, geographical, theological, psychological, and cultural-shape the converting process. A History of Christian Conversion not only narrates the conversions of select individuals and peoples, it also engages current theories and models to explain conversion, and examines recurring themes in the conversion process: divine presence, gender and the body, agency and motivation, testimony and memory, group- and self-identity, "authentic" and "nominal" conversion, and modes of communication. Accessible to scholars, students, and those with a general interest in conversion, Kling's book is the most satisfying and comprehensive account of conversion in Christian history to date; this major work will become a standard must-read in conversion studies.

The book is a treasure trove for scholars in the field of science of religion who focus on comparative religion, spirituality and the reception of Christianity in India and Ireland. The strength of the book is its comprehensive scope, critical and narratological methodology, and the depth of the data analysis. The exposition of the contextual, creative and strategic missionary work of Amy Beatrice Carmichael in south India is innovative and highly informative. The book contains a high level of original research in that it goes beyond the existing research on the Carmichael biographies. The knowledge of the field is comprehensive and the number and quality of sources impressive. The biographic genre and methodology complement the extensive research in the book. This combination constitutes a genuine historical foundation for the scholarship. The main purpose of the book is to open the field of science to and pique the interest of professional theologians with an interest in missiology and in the valuable contribution of Amy Carmichael of Dohnavur. The book includes a comprehensive overview of the existing scholarly work on the topic and then makes a further innovative contribution to and, in the end, provides the most comprehensive picture of the work of Amy Carmichael to date. It will become the definitive reference book on the history of Christian missionary work in south India. It is original research and no part of the book was plagiarised from any other publication or has been published elsewhere before.

This book traces its subject from the death of Aurunzib to the so-called Indian Mutiny. The history of India since 1498 is of a tremendous confrontation of cultures and religions. Since 1757, the chief part in this confrontation has been played by Britain; and the Christian missionary enterprise has had a very important role.

Bishop Stephen Neill (1900-1984) was one of the most gifted figures of world Christianity during the twentieth century. Once referred to as a «much-tempted, brilliant, enigmatic man» his voluminous writings reveal little about the scholar himself. From his birth in Edinburgh to his stellar student career in Cambridge to his meteoric rise through the clerical ranks in South India, Bishop Neill's life was also riddled with discord. Based on interviews and archival research in India and England, Bishop Stephen Neill: From Edinburgh to South India answers many of the questions surrounding this distinguished Christian statesman's conflicted life up to the abrupt and puzzling termination of his bishopric. This biographical work takes the reader deep into the life and times of one of the doyens of Christian missions. Intersecting with many remarkable personalities during the first half of his life - William Temple, Amy Carmichael, Malcolm Muggeridge, V. S. Azariah, A. D. Nock, Foss Westcott, and Verrier Elwin - Neill's legacy remains. Through his life, readers will enter into the interwoven contexts of India and England during the final decades of the British Raj. Students of Christian missions and world Christianity will find this book indispensable to their libraries.