History of Christian conversion

Abstract

This book sought to answer these questions: ‘ What is conversion, and under what cir-cumstances do people become Christians? ’ The introductory chapter ‘ An Anatomy of Conversion ’ was an analysis of the conversion narrative of the author ’ s father, Gordon Kling. The book was divided into seven sections. The fi rst: ‘ The Roman World ’ covers in three chapters the story of the Christian Church until the year 500 AD. The second: ‘ Medieval Europe ’ covers in four chapters a time span of a thousand years from 500 – 1500. The third: ‘ Early Modern Europe ’ has chapters on Protestant and Continental Refor-mers (1517 1600), European Catholicism (1500 – 1700), English Protestantism (1520 1700), and The Rise of Evangelicalism (1675 – 1750). The fourth: ‘ The Americas ’ includes Catholics in Colonial America (1500 – 1700), Puritans and the Great Awakening in America (1630 – 1790), American Evangelicalism in Black and White (1750 – Present), and Protestants and Pentecostals in Latin America (1900 – Present). The fi fth: ‘ China ’ has three chapters. The fi rst covers The Church of the East and the First Catholic Missions (635 – 1840), then Protestant Entrance and Christian Expansion (1840 – 1950), followed by Independent Protestant Movements (1930 – Present). The sixth: ‘ India ’ has two chapters divided into Upper-Caste Conversions (1500 – 1900) and Lower-Caste Conversions (1530 – Present). The fi nal section: ‘ Africa ’ contains three chapters: The Age of the Prophets (1900 – 1930), The East Africa Revival (1930 2000), together with Catholic East and Pen-tecostal West (1800 – Present), prior to a concluding chapter on key themes in the history of Christian conversion.