A stunning overview of the medieval landscape of ScotlandThis is a history of the forging of the Scottish kingdom during the first three centuries of the second millennium. In AD 1000 the Scottish kings had embarked on the annexation of English-speaking Lothian and of Cumbric-speaking Clydesdale, Ayrshire and Dumfriesshire. The countrys enlargement continued under a line of remarkably able kings with the inclusion first of the highlands and then, after the defeat of the Norwegians in 1263, of the islands of the Inner and Outer Hebrides. How Scotlands landscape influenced its people and conditioned its outlook on the world is a theme running throughout the book.Geoffrey Barrow describes the evolution of Scottish kingship and government during the period, in the process examining the character of Scottish feudalism and the manner of its imposition. He discusses the social, economic and political changes of the period, with separate chapters on the expansion of towns and trade, the role of the church, and advances in education and learning. A sense of national identity had, he argues, become sufficiently strong by the end of the thirteenth century for the country to survive humiliation by Edward I and to reunite under Robert Bruce. With Bruces coronation as Robert I in 1306 this richly detailed and readable account of Scotlands formative period comes to an end.Since first publication in 1981, this reissued edition for The Edinburgh Classic Editions series, as indicated in the preface by the series editor Jenny Wormald, can now rightly take its place amongst the classics of Scottish history.Key features:Long seen as a key text for students of medieval ScotlandWritten by a respected and renowned historianReadable, cinematic in scope, colourful and scholarly at the same time

This book examines the Lukan themes of unity and disunity against ancient Greco-Roman and Jewish social and political discourses on concord and discord to better understand the context in which Luke highlights the themes of unity and disunity. The themes of unity and disunity are particularly prominent in ancient discussions of the reigns of rulers, evaluations of laws/constitutions/forms of government, and descriptions of the contrasting effects of unity and disunity in the destruction and preservation of peoples and cities. These themes are grouped under the broad categories of kingship and law, and the preservation and destruction of cities. The book contends that, in the context of its literary setting, the theme of the unity of the church under one Lord in Acts contributes to Lukan Christological claims that Christ is the true king, and Lukan ecclesiological claims that the Christian community is the true people of God.

Why has monarchy been such a prevalent institution throughout history and in such a diverse range of societies? Kingship is at the heart of both ritual and politics and has major implications for the theory of social and cultural anthropology. Yet, despite the contemporary fascination with royalty, anthropologists have sorely neglected the subject in recent decades. This book combines a strong theoretical argument with a wealth of ethnography from kingships in Africa, Asia and the Pacific. Quigley gives a timely and much-needed overview of the anthropology of kingship and a crucial reassessment of the contributions of Frazer and Hocart to debates about the nature and function of royal ritual. From diverse fieldwork sites, a number of eminent anthropologists demonstrate how ritual and power intertwine to produce a series of variations around myth, tragedy and historical realities. However, underneath this diversity, two common themes invariably emerge: the attempt to portray kingship as timeless and perfect, and the dual nature of the king as sacred being and scapegoat.

Combining history, archeology, sociology, political science, and agricultural studies, Y=Arctgx: The Hyperbola of the World Order presents a theory claiming that any political system with a firm agricultural foundation is pre-destined to reach political unity and turn this state into the norm. Using the circumscription theory-the idea that states first arose in areas of the world where agricultural land was in short supply-and exhaustive historical evidence, this timely work proposes the emergence of a single world state.

The wonderful love of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit makes mission possible. A deep christological view of mission must be taken. The offices of Christ, namely his Kingly, Priestly, and Prophetic offices undergird mission. Glorious salvation is then possible. The Holy Spirit confesses that Christ is Lord. The church becomes a vehicle of the love of God through this confession. The Father’s acceptance of the prodigal son is a deep missiological act. In the most challenging times of COVID-19, poverty, and international conflict, mission is radically necessary.

The Old Testament features only one God, YHWH, electing only one people, Israel, not only for its own benefit but also to be eventually a light to the nations. Unfortunately, this singular people struggled in every era with a propensity to divide, thus pitting one segment of the community against another. Israel had to deal with potential division as it was settling in Canaan, in the period of the judges, and throughout the monarchy. Famously, after the Great Schism following Solomon’s reign, Israel (=the Northern Kingdom) and Judah (=the Southern Kingdom) experienced separate exiles. The major narratives treating Israel’s tendency to divide are the subject of this book. The book also features a survey of prophetic perspectives on Israel’s (dis)unity, including hope for its eventually being unified. In a final chapter, the (dis)unity of the fledgling church as well as the implications of viewing canonical Israel as a figure for the church will be considered. In that vein, it appears that the church has emulated its biblical figure, Israel, all too well as it not only displayed division throughout its history but continues to multiply divisions to this day.