The Crisis of Colonial Anglicanism

Reviews / Votes

'Percy argues for the church to come to terms with its ugly past as "spiritual arm of empire."' * <b><I>Morning Star</I></b> * 'A brave, honest and forceful account of the realities of the effect of colonialism on Anglicanism past and present.' * <b><I>Religion Unplugged</I></b> * 'Timely ... an important book.' * <b><I>Ecclesial Futures</I></b> * 'An extraordinary exploration of the complex entanglements between the Church of England and the British Empire. Percy critically examines how the Anglican Church served as both a spiritual arm and a moral justification for imperial expansion while grappling with its enduring legacy of complicity in slavery and colonialism. A compelling and enlightening work that promises to shape our understanding of Anglicanism and its future.' -- <b>Derrick Lemons, Director of the Center for Theologically Engaged Anthropology, University of Georgia</b> 'A brave, honest and compelling account of the realities of the effect of colonialism on Anglicanism past and present.' -- <b>Tom Greggs, Director of the Center of Theological Inquiry, Princeton University</b> 'A provocative contribution to the scholarship and public debates about colonialism and the postcolonial world order.' -- <b>Miri Rubin, Professor of Medieval & Early Modern History, Queen Mary and author of <I>Mother of God: A History of the Virgin Mary</I></b> 'If you thought that the days of imperialism and empire were over, Percy's book shows that the long-term effects are still very much in evidence in the Church of England and that they continue to infect global Anglicanism.' -- <b>Professor Angela Berlis, University of Bern</b> 'A radical and, in many ways, devastating book. Martyn Percy has examined how disestablishment has become more and more inevitable. The English Church can no longer function as a spiritual empire.' -- <b>James Carley, Distinguished Research Professor of Medieval History, York University Toronto, and Fellow, Royal Society of Canada</b> 'Percy exposes the Church's monarchical role in conquering and subordinating people the world over and it sacralised complicity with slavery, classism, racism, sexism and homophobia.' -- <b>Brian Douglas, editor of <I>Journal of Anglican Studies</I>, Charles Sturt University</b> 'A searching use of history for a pre-post-mortem on the Anglican Church that was tied to monarchy and empire from its origins under Henry VIII.' -- <b>Simon Szreter, Professor of History and Public Policy, University of Cambridge</b> 'In this important, well-researched, wide-ranging book, Martyn Percy gives an unflinching account of the Anglican Communion. Anyone who is rooting for the future of the Church of England--or Anglicanism in any region of the world--must face this exposition of its imperial and colonial entanglements squarely. As Faulkner warned us: "The past is never dead. It's not even past."' -- <b>Timothy Larsen, PhD, Wheaton College, School of Theology Illinois</b> 'Martyn Percy explores the undisguised classism and unaccountable hierarchy of colonial Anglicanism in new ways. This is a compelling, original, fresh perspective on privilege and the imposition of a self-serving worldview. Ultimately, he shines a searchlight on the contorted governance of episcopacy since Henry VIII.' -- <b>Sir Iain Torrance PhD, President Emeritus of Princeton Theological Seminary and Pro-Chancellor, University of Aberdeen</b>