The Constitutional History of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America [Volumes 1 & 2]

Note: This e-book contains both volumes of this work.In 1838, Dr. Charles Hodge began research on the history of Presbyterians in America in order to combat a new notion in his day, namely, that Presbyterians in America owe their existence to Congregationalists. A group of clergy and laymen requested that he write a work addressing this concerning belief. During his research, which required more effort than he at first realized, he came to the conclusion that a more thorough work was needed. He began to trace the history of the Presbyterian church from its foundation in America to the year 1788, when the constitution of the Presbyterian church of America was finalized.Although dry at times, this book is very valuable to researchers. Hodge covers the New Side/Old Side controversy, and sympathizes with the Old Side. Not only is that an unusual stance today, but in Hodge's day, it was unheard of, especially given that Dr. Alexander and the others at Princeton were staunch supporters of the New Side. This speaks very favorably of Hodge as a historian, that he would choose the side supported by the facts regardless of opinions.This book is a history, and as such, there is little theological education necessary to follow the work. A basic understanding of colonial history and the years leading up to the American Revolution is helpful, but again, not essential. Any serious student of Presbyterian history ought to read this work.This book was created using OCR software, and was subsequently proof-read closely by a human. While we proof our texts carefully before selling them, occasionally errors do creep in. Please help us perfect our titles by submitting errors to [email protected] numerals for chapters and Bible quotations have been updated to modern numbers. Footnotes have been converted to end notes connected by hyperlinks.