Christian Telescope

In this volume Ann Lee Bressler offers the first cultural history of American Universalism and its central teaching -- the idea that an all-good and all-powerful God saves all souls. Although Universalists have commonly been lumped together with Unitarians as "liberal religionists," in its origins their movement was, in fact, quite different from that of the better-known religious liberals. Unlike Unitarians such as the renowned William Ellery Channing, who stressed the obligation of the individual under divine moral sanctions, most early American Universalists looked to the omnipotent will of God to redeem all of creation. While Channing was socially and intellectually descended from the opponents of Jonathan Edwards, Hosea Ballou, the foremost theologian of the Universalist movement, appropriated Edwards's legacy by emphasizing the power of God's love in the face of human sinfulness and apparent intransigence. Espousing what they saw as a fervent but reasonable piety, many early Universalists saw their movement as a form of improved Calvinism. The story of Universalism from the mid-nineteenth century on, however, was largely one of unsuccessful efforts to maintain this early synthesis of Calvinist and Enlightenment ideals. Eventually, Bressler argues, Universalists were swept up in the tide of American religious individualism and moralism; in the late nineteenth century they increasingly extolled moral responsibility and the cultivation of the self. By the time of the first Universalist centennial celebration in 1870, the ideals of the early movement were all but moribund. Bressler's study illuminates such issues as the relationship between faith and reason in a young, fast-growing, and deeply uncertain country, and the fate of the Calvinist heritage in American religious history.

Why live under a pagan sky? For thousands of years, humankind has dwelled under a dome of stars that have been grouped and identified according to ancient superstitions. Today, the official star constellations pay homage to the pagan gods and goddesses of a dark and chaotic world, a world before Christ, and yet these are the constellations that scouting groups and school children all around the world have been encouraged to learn for hundreds of years. Now, for the first time, the sky has been mapped in accordance with easy-to-find star patterns that tell the stories of the Christian faith. No telescope required. No sophisticated instruments needed. After presenting a few simple but very effective techniques for finding your way through the sky at night, the author takes you on a tour of the Christian constellations. Using new constellations inspired by stories from the Bible, you will be able to locate stars, planets, star clusters, and galaxies during any time of the night and at any time of the year. If you have ever wanted to know more about God's grandest creation but have never felt comfortable learning about ancient pagan idols, then this book will provide you with a healthy fresh start.

This remarkable history encompasses not only the achievements of the early inventors and astronomers but also the less frequently recounted stories of the instrument makers and of the actual instruments. A model of unsurpassed, comprehensive scholarship, this volume covers many fields, including professional and amateur astronomy. 196 black-and-white illustrations.