This book is the story of the congregation of the First Presbyterian Church, Edmonton and the people who made it such a fascinating religious community. The colourful characters, the saints and sinners, the good and the worthy, the weak and the domineering, and portrayed in a very caring fashion. The dignity and worth of the human spirit along with the foibles of human nature are laid bare in this portrayal of a congregation's struggle to assert a dominant role within the Presbyterian, and Edmonton, communities. With the arrival of the Presbyterian Church in Canada in what latter became the province of Alberta and the formation of the congregation in 1881, the influence and prestige of members of the congregation ensured Presbyterians played a vibrant role over the religious and public affairs of the national Church and throughout northern Alberta until the disruption of 1925. The haemorrhage of members of First Presbyterian Church, Edmonton, to the new United Church of Canada left a weakened congregation with a diminished presence in the Presbyterian Church and provincial society. This book examines how this struggling congregation has attempted to rise to prominence again and move out of the shadow of humanism and play a credible Christian role within our twenty-first century secular environment.

The Prairie Provinces cover Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

In 1905, Westminster Press published History of the Presbyterian Churches of the World by church historian Richard Clark Reed (1851–1925). Reed’s book, intended as a textbook for college and seminary students, covered the history of churches that subscribed to Presbyterian polity from the New Testament era to the beginning of the twentieth century. Based on Reed’s original work as well as an unpublished manuscript by Presbyterian historian Thomas Hugh Spence Jr. (1899–1986), Presbyterian and Reformed Churches: A Global History picks up the story of Presbyterian and Reformed churches where the earlier works left off. In this volume, James McGoldrick revises and updates Reed’s and Spence’s original, historically relevant works, continuing the survey to the twenty-first century. Each chapter traces the history of Presbyterian and Reformed churches in individual nations and regions around the globe. The author covers the major events, leaders, and institutions influencing Presbyterian and Reformed church history in a readable style that is ideally suited for classroom study as well as for independent reading. A list of suggested additional readings concludes each chapter. Nations/regions covered: Switzerland, France, the Netherlands, and other European nations Scotland, Ireland, England, and Wales United States Mexico and Central America Caribbean Basin South America Africa Middle East India Indochina and Southeast Asia China Korea, Japan, and lesser Pacific Islands