Dissent Or Conform

Dissent or Conform examines how churches reacted to, and were affected by, the two world wars. Its underlying theme, however, is how the Church can be a creatively dissenting community, focusing on how easily the church can turn into a conforming community that only encourages the occurrence of uncreative dissenters, the ones who criticize the power without offering solutions and leading to a real change. Wilkinson opposes this trait of the church, especially given the impact that it has on society as a messenger of the gospel. To this end, the author depicts religious groups during three periods of time: English Nonconformity among the free churches before WWI, pacifists and pacifiers between the two wars and Christianity during WWII, focusing on how church history interacts with the developments in history and society. This book is of particular interest to social and church historians of the 20th century, and to all interested in the history and ethics of war and pacifism. It will also appeal to thoseattracted by the interaction between church and society.

During the 16th century’s tumultuous years of religious reformation and revolution, Pilgram Marpeck consistently but discreetly stood up to the ruling powers, calling for freedom of religion and separation of church and state. Walter Klaassen and William Klassen, editors of The Writings of Pilgram Marpeck, have deeply mined Marpeck’s writing and dialogue with other Reformation leaders. They place his life, work, and theology in the context of his violent, changing times. This thorough biography shows how Marpeck, perhaps more than any other early Anabaptist figure, helped lay the theoretical and practical foundations of the believers church.

Nobody should really have to point out that political philosophy is political. Yet in this highly original and provocative book Lorna Finlayson argues that in fact it is necessary to do so. Offering a critique of mainstream liberal political philosophy through close, critical engagement with a series of specific debates and arguments, Finlayson analyzes the way in which apparently neutral methodological devices such as “charitable interpretation” and “constructive criticism” function so as to protect against challenges to the status quo. At each stage, Finlayson demonstrates that political philosophy is suffering from a complex process of “de-politicization.” Even in cases where it appears that the dominant framework of liberal political philosophy is being strongly challenged—as, for example, in the case of the ‘realist’ critique of “ideal theory”—this book argues that the debate is set up in such a way as to impose strict limits on the kind of dissent that is possible. Only by dragging these hidden presuppositions into the foreground can we arrive at a clear-eyed appreciation of such debates, and perhaps look beyond the artificially constricted landscape in which they seek to confine us.

The Life of Daniel Defoe examines the entire range of Defoe’s writing in the context of what is known about his life and opinions. Features extended and detailed commentaries on Defoe’s political, religious, moral, and economic journalism, as well as on all of his narrative fictions, including Robinson Crusoe Places emphasis on Defoe’s distinctive style and rhetoric Situates his work within the precise historical circumstances of the eighteenth-century in which Defoe was an important and active participant Now available in paperback

Dissenters are often portrayed as selfish and disloyal, but Sunstein shows that those who reject pressures imposed by others perform valuable social functions, often at their own expense.

Located within wider debates about ‘security versus liberty’ in our post 9/11 world, the book analyses the new landscape of UK counter terrorism powers and offences and focuses upon the deleterious consequences of the so-called ‘war on terror’ on freedom of political expression and association. Questioning the compatibility of recent speech-limiting measures with liberalism’s established commitment to free speech and international human rights norms, the book takes a critical look at new powers to proscribe ‘extremist’ political parties, possession offences and other criminal controls (eg. Official Secrets Act prosecutions) as well as new offences such as ‘glorification’ of terrorism. Less visible, extra-legal forms of censorship are also evaluated. The monograph concludes by asking how a more vigorous defence of unorthodox and unpopular forms of expression might be safeguarded in the UK.