Poet John Greenleaf Whittier (1807-1892) proved a significant contributor to American Protestant hymnody--since 1843, more than 2,100 hymnals published in the United States have included adaptations of his works--despite the fact that Whittier never considered himself a hymnist. This book compares and contrasts Whittier's original published texts with versions adapted as hymns, exhibiting the hymnodic elements of his poetry and displaying the textual changes to Whittier's lines by hymnal editors from a variety of denominations. The work offers in-depth comparative studies of many of his poems and their resultant hymns, a catalogue of hymns-from-poems, a chronology of Whittier's life and works, notes, bibliography and index.

Uniquely authoritative and wide-ranging in its scope, The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church is the indispensable reference work on all aspects of the Christian Church. It contains over 6,500 cross-referenced A-Z entries, and offers unrivalled coverage of all aspects of this vast and often complex subject, from theology; churches and denominations; patristic scholarship; and the bible; to the church calendar and its organization; popes; archbishops; other church leaders; saints; and mystics. In this new edition, great efforts have been made to increase and strengthen coverage of non-Anglican denominations (for example non-Western European Christianity), as well as broadening the focus on Christianity and the history of churches in areas beyond Western Europe. In particular, there have been extensive additions with regards to the Christian Church in Asia, Africa, Latin America, North America, and Australasia. Significant updates have also been included on topics such as liturgy, Canon Law, recent international developments, non-Anglican missionary activity, and the increasingly important area of moral and pastoral theology, among many others. Since its first appearance in 1957, the ODCC has established itself as an essential resource for ordinands, clergy, and members of religious orders, and an invaluable tool for academics, teachers, and students of church history and theology, as well as for the general reader.