BOOK REVIEWS

David Lowes Watson, The Early Methodist Class Meeting (Nashville: Discipleship Resources, 1985), 273 pages, $10.95. Reviewed by Dr. Steve Harper, Associate Professor of Spiritual Formation and Wesley Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary, Wilmore, Kentucky.

Dr. David Watson has written what may well be the most comprehensive examination of the early Methodist class meeting ever produced. The book is essentially Dr. Watson's Ph.D. dissertation which he completed under the guidance of Dr. Frank Baker at Duke University. The finished product provides the reader with a wealth and depth of information not readily available in any other form.

For me, the most valuable aspect of the book is Dr. Watson's setting of the class meeting in its larger theological and historical setting. In our day when functionalism reigns, it is refreshing to encounter a book that sets the mechanics in the proper context both for understanding and appreciating them. The book tells us why the class meeting was structured as it was.

I believe it is not possible to grasp the significance of the class meeting in early Methodism apart from these larger dynamics. Wesley's choice of form was derived from his theological and missional perspectives, as well as a broad knowledge and valuing of tradition that extended all the way back to the early church. Dr. Watson serves us well by providing this perspective in the introduction and first three chapters.

With this perspective in mind, we are then taken into the class meeting itself. As Dr. Watson puts it, we are allowed to view "the sinews of Methodism." In chapter four we explore the weekly meeting itself, the role of the class leader, the sense of connectionalism among the classes, Wesley's concept of spiritual maturity, and how the early Methodists expressed fellowship beyond the class meeting. This section abounds with primary material, including biographical accounts of class members and records from actual classes. The book gives the reader the feeling of "having been there."

Chapter five concludes the text and describes the significance of the class meeting for Methodism. Dr. Watson shows how it was a central expression of Wesley's ecclesiology, how it provided for meaningful community and relevant mission, and how it served the basic purposes which Wesley had in mind for Methodism. The chapter also analyzes the decline of the class meeting, how it has frequently been misunderstood, and how it may once again form the base for Wesleyans in achieving accountable discipleship.

Persons interested in seriously studying the class meeting will find all this stimulating and indispensable. But the book's value extends further by offering thirty-two pages of detailed endnotes, thirteen appendices containing original materials, an eighteen-page bibliography of both primary and secondary sources, and a most-useful index of names, places, and subjects.

My only caution regarding this book is that it may be too much for those making an initial dip into the subject. But here too, Dr. Watson has helped us by providing a shorter and simplified work entitled, Accountable Discipleship. This may well be the place for the average reader to begin. But these two volumes, taken together, serve as companions on a much-needed journey to recover a key element in our tradition.

Finally, I am greatly impressed by the fact that Dr. Watson is not simply a researcher and theoretician with respect to the early Methodist class meeting. He is also a practitioner, having established contemporary class meetings in connection with his pastoral ministry, his teaching in seminary, and now as part of work with the Board of Discipleship of The United Methodist Church. In The Early Methodist Class Meeting we read the words of one who knows deeply and who practices conscientiously the principles about which he writes. And through his efforts, we are seeing a revival of the class meeting as one further means of renewing the church.

Howard A. Snyder with Daniel V. Runyon. The Divided Flame: Wesleyans and the Charismatic Renewal. Grand Rapids, Mich., Francis Asbury Press, 1986. Reviewed by Melvin E. Dieter, Ph.D., Asbury Theology Seminary, Wilmore. Kentucky.

In this brief 120 page study-manual Snyder and Runyon try to find new ground to widen the very restricted dialogue between Wesleyans and charismatics. The limits of such a format allow the authors to present only the most basic outline of the issues being addressed. However, those who pursue the footnote references will find that the evaluations presented are modest and guarded enough to serve the purpose of the book in stimulating discussion on the questions that are raised. The primary usefulness of the book is within Wesleyan circles; however, the authors' Biblical definition of the nature of a charismatic church will be helpful to the many others who have little concern for the sad history of the past relationships between Wesleyans and Pentecostals.

The whole venture is tenuous and delicate because of the very restrictive official positions on the charismatic renewal movement which most of the major holiness denominations have adopted. Many readers in these churches will view the effort as an attempt to encourage "tongues" in the Wesleyan movement. This, the authors disclaim; rather, they seek to find a means for better understanding and mutual instruction for the good of both movements as forceful spiritual movements in the world today. As the authors point out (p. 75), both the holiness movement and the charismatic movements are here to stay, and it is imperative that both come to a better working relationship with each other if the church and the world are to see examples of truly Spirit-filled holy and gifted movements.

We may hope that this book will cause at least some small hesitation in the lockstep of polemic which has marked Wesleyan/Pentecostal relationships since the rise of the Pentecostal movement at the turn of the twentieth century. If both parties were able to put the question of glossolalia to the side and get to the broader questions of what it means to be a "church of the Spirit," as the authors attempt to do, that hope could be realized. An open and prayerful response to the central thesis of the book is especially critical to the holiness churches. They grew out of a revival which was the first to clearly confront American Christianity with the Biblical meaning of a Pentecostal ecclesiology. This work may be all too prophetic in its claims that holiness churches in seeking to respond to elements in Pentecostalism with which they disagree have trimmed back their own historical commitments to being "charismatic" churches. The ecclesiological issue is so critical to both the Wesleyan/holiness and Pentecostal/charismatic movements that both parties should welcome every such effort to establish more positive relationships between the two movements.

The Spirit and the New Age: An Inquiry into the Holy Spirit and Last Things from a Biblical Theological Perspective, edited by R. Larry Shelton and Alex R. G. Deasley. Volume V: Wesleyan Theological Perspectives, edited by John E. Hartley and R. Larry Shelton. Anderson, Indiana Warner Press, 1986. vii and 540 pp. Reviewed by Frank G. Carver, Ph.D., Professor of Biblical Theology and Greek, Director of Graduate Studies in Religion, Point Loma Nazarene College, San Diego, California.

This volume is the fifth and final volume in the Wesleyan Theological Perspectives series written and edited by contemporary evangelical scholars in the Wesleyan tradition. The previous volumes, all reviewed in this journal, deal with Soteriology, Hermeneutics, Christian Ethics, and The Church. Interestingly the volumes get progressively longer with the present volume being the largest! All involved in the production of this now completed series are to be commended for their contribution to the Biblical and theological integrity and current relevance of the heritage of Scriptural holiness. Along with this journal these volumes should be read by all who are professionally involved with the Wesleyan message, whether in pulpit or classroom.

With fourteen essays organized into three distinct sections the editors seek "to develop a holistic Biblical and historical treatment of the theology of the Spirit from a Wesleyan perspective." Section I (272 pp.), "The Doctrine of the Spirit," analyzes the development of the doctrine in the Biblical narratives and in selected historical periods. Section II (168 pp.), "The Hope of a New Age," examines the Biblical and historical foundations for eschatology. Section III (97 pp.), "The Church and the Kingdom," seeks to work out the implications of the above doctrines for the life of the Church. In the light of its contents the book is written more from "a Biblical and Theological Perspective" than from "a Biblical Theological Perspective" as the title suggests. Only seven of the fourteen articles can be classified as strictly Biblical exegesis and theology. This is not a criticism of the book for its Biblical, historical, and theological breadth gives it a wholeness of treatment that makes for a most useful volume. This will be evident as we give a brief characterization of each article.

Section I opens rightly as Bruce Baloian, assistant professor of religion and philosophy at Azusa Pacific University, surveys the data concerning "The Spirit of God in the Old Testament." The Old Testament understanding of the Spirit of God is presented under the headings of "leadership," "the Spirit and wisdom/skill," "prophetic inspiration," "life/creation," "judgment/salvation/sanctification," and "the Spirit's role in the age to come." Baloian's survey provides us with a basic, accurate, and convenient summary of the study of the Spirit in the literature of Old Testament theology. The Biblical material could have been handled from a more diachronic perspective opening the way for greater creativity in theological analysis. The mentor-process by which the essay came into being is intimated by the addition of John Hartley's name in the table of contents.

The second essay, "The Spirit in the Gospels," by George Lyons, professor of Biblical literature at Olivet Nazarene University, adds a creative touch to its comprehensive and competent survey of the relevant literature of New Testament study. In the first three subheadings, "the Spirit and the birth of Jesus," "baptism, trial, and the Spirit," and "the Spirit in the ministry of Jesus," the data from the different gospels is treated together with some discrimination between them. But in the fourth, "the Spirit in the message of Jesus," each gospel is examined separately highlighting the unique perspectives of each on the Holy Spirit. I found the treatment of Matthew the most creatively satisfying and that of Mark the least stimulating. Of value is the realization that each of the gospels contributes uniquely to our theological understanding of the Holy Spirit, for in them we have three distinct theologies of the historical Pentecost event -- Matthew (and Mark?), Luke-Acts, and John. One disappointment was that the Gospel of John was not given a separate chapter, for its profound perspective on the Spirit pervades the whole of the gospel and is hardly done justice to by the organization of the essay. I am unconvinced for example that "all it affirms is that God is 'invisible and unknowable' " (p. 73) is at all relevant to the heart of the Johannine theology implicit in 4:24, "God is spirit." I wonder too if Luke and Acts, if it is theological witness that is being examined, could not better have been treated together. But all in all this is one of the stronger chapters in the book.

Since writing the third contribution to this work Wayne McCown has moved from the position of dean and professor of Biblical studies at Western Evangelical Seminary to the post of Conference Superintendent, Southern California-Arizona Conference, Free Methodist Church. He approaches his study of Acts with an announced agenda, "a Wesleyan interpretation of the subject" (p. 89, cf. p. 109) which to some degree has influenced his choice and treatment of the Biblical data. Although he seeks as well to "show the shape of the data" (p. 89) his agenda has a tendency to compromise the article as purely descriptive Biblical theology. McCown's presentation, however, does deal adequately and meaningfully with the theology of the Holy Spirit within the whole of the Lukan witness context. His analysis of the Lukan data relating to the reception and filling of the Holy Spirit and to the issues of tongues and prophecy is excellent and most helpful.

The fourth article, "The Spirit in the Pauline Epistles," written by Alex R. G. Deasley, professor of New Testament at Nazarene Theological Seminary, is an excellent example of how descriptive Biblical theology ought to be done. The thoroughness and competence of his treatment of the Pauline data is greatly aided by an adequate and helpful organizational structure: "Paul's fundamental concept and its origin," "the Spirit and the life of the Christian community," and "the Spirit and the individual Christian life." As resource material for classroom and pulpit, one cannot find a more adequate and useful programmatic treatment.

R. Larry Shelton, professor of historical theology and interpretation and dean of the School of Religion at Seattle Pacific University, takes us into the area of historical theology with his discussion of "The Holy Spirit in the Theology of the Reformers." Primary attention is given to the Holy Spirit in the theologies of Martin Luther, John Calvin, and Huldrych Zwingli. The author helps us see the continuity of Wesley's thought with "the importance of the Spirit's work in salvation and in the understanding of the meaning and authority of Scripture" (p. 116) in the theologies of the three great Protestant Reformers. Shelton's treatment helps us as contemporary Wesleyans to see clearly how we are adulterating our heritage when we are not discerning enough in our "borrowing of theological attitudes and methodologies from the more rationalistic heirs of neo-Scholastic Calvinism and Lutheranism" (p. 166).

Complementing Shelton's analysis is the next study, "Wesleyan Perspectives on the Doctrine of the Holy Spirit," by Rob L. Staples, professor of theology at Nazarene Theological Seminary. After a brief characterization of the experiential focus of Wesley's doctrine of the Holy Spirit, Staples moves to the heart of Wesley's pneumatology as he analyzes the "Spirit" in relation to "Word" in reference to Classical Protestantism. Then Wesley's balance between Word and Spirit is examined in two areas, how the "testimony of the Spirit" functions in Wesley's hermeneutic and the place of the "witness of the Spirit" in Wesley's soteriology. How "the Spirit-Word bi-unity that permeated John Wesley's theology" (p. 230) has been lost to some extent in the theology of the American holiness movement is illustrated with an examination of Phoebe Palmer's altar theology. The author's plea for a return to the classical Wesleyan balance, both hermeneutically and soteriologically, between Spirit and Word, deserves to be seriously considered by contemporary Wesleyanism.

Donald Dayton, professor of theology and ethics at Northern Baptist Theological Seminary, in his presentation of "The Historical Background of Pneumatological Issues in the Holiness Movement," gives us an appropriate sequel to the essays of Shelton and Staples. His very succinct historical analysis affords some insight into the tensions, theological and otherwise, within the holiness movement today as well as its uncomfortable relationship with the modern Pentecostal movement. Most fascinating is the author's attempt to see in the filioque controversy "the most essential and profound question of the holiness movement . . . and the greatest ambiguity in its pneumatology" (p. 250) which he proceeds to develop within the history of holiness doctrine itself (pp. 250-258) and in its relation to pentecostalism (pp.258-261). A brief discussion of the relation of the social and political witness of the holiness movement concludes the essay. Closing Section I, "The Doctrine of the Spirit," these three historical analyses by Shelton, Staples, and Dayton when read together, constitute a very valuable contribution to one's understanding of the holiness movement today.

Section II of the volume focusing on eschatology returns to the Biblical perspective in its first two essays. First, Alexander Varughese, associate professor of religion at Mount Vernon Nazarene College, discusses the issue of eschatology in the Old Testament. After developing a working definition of eschatology that attempts to give both the "prophetic" and the "apocalyptic" their due, he defines his sources, and then proceeds to work his way through selected books delineating first the "expressions of prophetic eschatology" followed by the "expressions of apocalyptic eschatology." Varughese's treatment is sane and foundational, elucidating the essential "themes" of the Old Testament hope and avoiding the "schemes" that distort much popular writing on Biblical eschatology.

The second essay on Biblical eschatology is "The Hope of a New Age: The Kingdom of God in the New Testament," written by I. Howard Marshall, professor of New Testament Exegesis at the University of Aberdeen. The author very ably fulfills his aim "to harvest and assess some of the recent scholarly discussion with a view to showing how an understanding of the KG [Kingdom of God] can give fresh vigor to our Christian hope in God" (p. 319). His treatment is detailed, balanced, critically and evangelically sound, and in the main, convincing. I know of no more adequate analysis of the data and recent opinion, an analysis that is very helpful as well as in the meaning and significance of the Kingdom of God for the life and proclamation of the Church.

The historical perspective reappears as David Cubie, chairman of the division of religion and philosophy at Mount Vernon Nazarene College, discusses "Eschatology from a Theological and Historical Perspective." In an illuminating treatment Cubie helps Wesleyans understand their situation in a day of the dominance of premillennial if not dispensational views in evangelical eschatology. Although the author concludes that "probably no single eschatological view can claim to be the view most in harmony with the Wesleyan-Arminian theological perspective" (p. 402) he does draw from his quite detailed survey of the various types of eschatology in the Wesleyan tradition a balanced approach consisting of some essential elements that are in line with Wesleyan thinking (pp. 402-405).

John Stanley, assistant professor of religion and chairman of the department of religion at Warner Pacific College concludes Section II with "The Old Testament Promise of a New Age Fulfilled in the Church." Writing from a confessed amillennial perspective Stanley attempts to show that the Old Testament promise of a new age is partially fulfilled in the Church. From this he makes some helpful suggestions as to eschatological motifs appropriate to Wesleyanism and gives a telling critique of Hal Lindsey's premillennianism.

With Section III the essays are directed toward the pastoral work of the Church. In "The Holy Spirit in the New Age" Paul Livermore, professor of Biblical languages and literature at Roberts Wesleyan College, gives us an exegetically and realistically practical essay on Wesleyan holiness in relation to the life of the Spirit. A proper stress is put on personal discipline. Ethical responsibility is given its due and that without any subtle drift into the errors of the moralistic legalism that often infects holiness ethics. Areas discussed are the indwelling Spirit and its dangers, prayer, power over moral failure, and the power to fulfill vocation. The latter includes a very useful treatment of the gifts and fruits of the Spirit.

"Social Holiness for a New Age," written by Howard Snyder, associate professor of theology at North Park Theological Seminary and teaching pastor of Irving Park Free Methodist Church in Chicago, is a challenge to reflect on the issues of social justice in the light of the Kingdom to which the Church witnesses in the world. Snyder's understanding of the Kingdom as relevant to the issues of justice is discussed as "the people of the Kingdom" and "the possibility of the Kingdom." Under "the signs of the Kingdom" he presents a concrete and contrasting list of the ways in which the Church embryonically embodies and betrays the Kingdom now on earth, a list with which not all may agree! Under "the project of the Kingdom" he presents five major areas "as paradigmatic of Kingdom concerns in social order; international peace and justice, militarization, economic options, foreign policy and urbanization" (p. 497). A proper New Testament understanding of the Kingdom, expressed through the motifs of historical Wesleyanism, gives us as a modern holiness people much to search our souls about in terms of our stewardship of the Kingdom.

The final essay of section III and of the book, "In Newness of Life: A Wesleyan Theology of the Kingdom of God," comes from the pen of Charles Dillman, professor of Biblical studies and chairman of the division of philosophy and religion at Spring Arbor College. Much of his material has been paralleled in previous essays, but is here given a more practical touch. Dillman focuses on the theme of newness of life in Scripture in relation to the Kingdom of God which he works out and seeks to apply in terms of a theocracy. The rest of the article moves into eschatological perspectives with a brief Wesleyan evaluation. The main value of the final essay is its refocusing of the central issues of the volume.

The book as a whole gives a balanced impression. Some duplication of material could have been avoided by more discriminating organization (or more faithful adherence by writers to the editors' instructions?) and thus made for a shorter and more readable volume. The strength of the book lies in the scholarly competence of its Wesleyan contributors and in the essential unity of their witness to the character and power of the Wesleyan vision. A host of misconceptions about the true character of Wesleyanism in the context of the contemporary church scene could be eliminated by a careful reading of this volume. This final volume of the series on Wesleyan Theological Perspectives is very possibly the most significant of the five for those who minister within the heritage and for those without who seek to understand what the heritage is about in its contemporary expression. It is "must" reading for those who seek to proclaim holiness in the Wesleyan "spirit."

The book appears relatively unmarred by editorial and typographical errors Among the few which I did catch the omission of a "not" in line 30 of page 267 and especially the assertion that "David built the temple" on page 419 are the most serious. And it was a delight to see John Wesley's thought characterized as "electric" on page 251!

Leading Wesleyan Thinkers, edited by Richard S. Taylor, Vol. III: Great Holiness Classics, Kansas City, Missouri: Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City, 1985. Reviewed by Laurence W. Wood, Ph.D., Professor of Systematic Theology, Asbury Theological Seminary, Wilmore, Kentucky.

This work is volume three of a series of six volumes on Great Holiness classics. Its intent is to present some selected "leading Wesleyan thinkers" ho have been influential in interpreting the doctrine of Christian perfection. No claim is made that this selected list of writers is the best, though t is obvious that the editor believes they do represent the most representative of those writers who are "standard, Methodistic, and Wesleyan theologians."

These writers include "thinkers" from Richard Watson (1781-1833) whose theological Institutes intended to be the Wesleyan corollary to Calvin's Institutes of the Christian Religion to J. Paul Taylor (1885-1973), a bishop of the Free Methodist Church who is described as "an eloquent preacher, and able administrator, and above all . . . a powerful defender and exponent of Wesleyan doctrine." Other "leading Wesleyan thinkers" included in this volume are Jabez Bunting, Thomas N. Ralston, Luther Lee, Samuel Wakefield, Miner Raymond, William Burt Pope, Benjamin Field, John Miley, Randolf S. Foster, Daniel Steele, Olin Curtis, Wilson Thomas Hogue, Solomon Jacob Gartsfelder, Aaron M. Hills, Albert Frederick Gray, and H. Orton Wiley who is "the plumb line of the entire volume."

The editor is obviously concerned about several key issues surrounding the doctrine of Christian perfection. His editorial notes intend to correct some false notions about certain of these "Wesleyan thinkers," such as the opinion that Richard Watson moved more toward a gradual interpretation of entire sanctification instead of an emphasis upon the instantaneous-crisis aspect. The selection of writings from Watson and others of these "leading Wesleyans" intends to show that they affirmed the doctrine of "two works of grace" and that entire sanctifying grace is received instantaneously. The editor also points out that many of these writers equate the fullness of the Spirit with entire sanctification, another obvious point of view which the editor wants to stress.

One possible weakness of this work is that it restricts Wesleyan thinking too narrowly in terms of the doctrine of holiness, while other Wesleyan distinctives are bypassed or are only slightly mentioned.

Another possible weakness is that the book may be misnamed. The title suggests that the reader should look for those influential Wesleyan thinkers who have been the theological pacesetters and who have engaged in serious dialogue with the best of theological scholarship. Actually, this work is more of a chronological sequencing of Wesleyan writers who may have been more or less influential during certain periods of time. To call them "the leading Wesleyan thinkers" may be an overstatement in some instances, though clearly several persons included in this volume may be said to be leading Wesleyan thinkers at a particular time and were competent scholars.

If by "leading" is meant enduring relevance, then not many in this list are really "leading thinkers." If by "leading" is primarily meant representative holiness thinkers who have had some measure of influence during their life time, then this work succeeds in fulfilling its goal. However, some of the most influential Wesleyan "leaders" of the past were not even "thinkers" but primarily evangelists and preachers whose sermons are nonetheless theologically substantive. Perhaps some justification could be given for including them in this volume, especially since many believe that Wesleyan "thinking" takes place more appropriately in the sermon than in a textbook. To be sure, the editor points out that a primary reason for the selection of persons included in this volume is their having written a "systematic theology." While this point is well taken, some would say this goes against the spirit of Wesleyan theology. Some would say this attempt to identify "leading Wesleyan thinkers" with systematic theology is rationalistic. Perhaps a balance could have been achieved by including some "biographical, devotional, expository, or evangelistic readings."

One cannot help but ask why the contemporary period is largely bypassed with the exceptions of H. Orton Wiley and J. Paul Taylor, neither of whom are recent writers. It may be, in the judgment of some, that the "leading Wesleyan thinkers" should include more contemporary and recent theologians who have a direct bearing on Wesleyan interpretation in the contemporary setting. In fact, the title of this work could suggest to the reader that this expectation is what is intended. To be sure, volume six of this series on Great Holiness Classics deals with the subject of contemporary holiness teaching. But it does not deal directly with the leading holiness thinkers as such.

There is also a glaring absence of contemporary British Methodist writers as well as American United Methodist holiness writers. My judgment is, without attempting to take away from the significance of this present volume, that focusing more on the leading Wesleyan scholars who have a more enduring, or at least a direct relevance, to our contemporary understanding of Wesleyan thought would have been helpful.

It is obvious this volume intends to acquaint the reader with some representative holiness "thinkers" throughout the Wesleyan tradition who exerted some influence in their time. Whether or not this feature qualifies calling them "leading Wesleyan thinkers" is a matter of perception. Regardless, this is a helpful volume and it will cause one to be better informed of some of our forgotten theological forefathers. We are indeed indebted to the editor of this volume, as well as to the editors of the entire series, for making available to us these writings on holiness thinking of the past.

No Time for Silence: Evangelical Women in Public Ministry Around the Turn of the Century, by Janette Hassey. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1986. 150 pp. plus appendices. Reviewed by Randy L. Maddox, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Religion, Sioux Falls College, Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

The counter-traditional opening of ministry to women by Wesleyans during the last half of the nineteenth century is a source of pride for Wesleyan feminists. By contrast, the significant restriction of this openness in the same Wesleyan circles during the first half of the twentieth century is a source of chagrin and perplexity. What caused the reversal? The most commonly suggested culprit is the influx of a fundamentalist "leavening" into Wesleyan circles. Hassey's study both substantiates and nuances this explanation.

Indeed, the burden of Hassey's investigation is to demonstrate that there was a beginning acceptance of and then growing disassociation from women in ministry within early fundamentalist circles as well. To make this case, Hassey first surveys the Bible Institutes that were the primary sources of continuity and leadership for the early evangelical and fundamentalist movements. She demonstrates convincingly that they were nearly unanimous in accepting women for ministerial training and in supporting their alumnae in ministry during the latter half of the nineteenth century. This fact is particularly noteworthy since many of these schools now prohibit women from their "ministerial" programs and claim historical precedent for this practice (see especially her chapter on Moody Bible Institute).

To further substantiate her claim, Hassey analyzes the various denominational approaches to women in ministry. Her analysis provides one of the best surveys available of the "earliest" openings of ministry to women in America: from Quaker openness to women preachers (without ordination, of course), to the first licensing of a woman to preach by the Free Will Baptists in 1815, to the first full ordination of a woman by the Congregationalists in 1853. What is most intriguing about this survey is Hassey's focus on conservative traditions like the General Conference Baptists and the Evangelical Free Church-demonstrating some early openness to the full ministry rights of women in these denominations, even though they now deny such rights.

Hassey dates the reversal on acceptance of women's ministry which she has highlighted in evangelical and fundamentalist circles to the time "between the wars" (10). This context provides her suggestion for the primary causes of the change. World War I had pressed American women into the public "working sphere" and American men into unfamiliar cultures in unprecedented numbers. These new experiences led to a sense of social relativity and a wide-spread challenge of traditional social values following the war. It also led to a strong conservative Protestant call to reject these "innovations" and uncertainties in favor of old standards. When such a call was not heeded by the culture at large it encouraged the emergence of separatist sub-culture mentalities and a search for an unquestioned source of truth and order in the midst of the shifting times. These developments were particularly evident in fundamentalist circles. Indeed, they characterize the emergence of "fundamentalism" in its most precise sense from the broader evangelical arena. More importantly, these developments also undercut the fledgling support for women in ministry since such was construed as a concession to "modern" culture which contradicted a literal (i.e., unquestioning) reading of Scripture.

Obviously, part of the value for Wesleyans of Hassey's study is the insight it provides into the context of the related developments in Wesleyanism. In addition, she provides an excellent summary of early evangelical feminist Biblical exegesis, including many Wesleyan representatives (chapter6). Her most important contribution, however, is to those Wesleyans who wish to defend the continuing practice of women's ministry against the common criticism that it is an unscriptural concession to present social pressures. Hassey has shown convincingly that the conservative position is equally a product of cultural forces and motivations. Thereby, she undercuts its pious assertions about merely affirming the "obvious" literal meaning of Scripture.

Indeed, Hassey ultimately argues that the issue of women in ministry is not whether evangelicals should let the teachings of Scripture critique their culture or not but whether evangelicals are sufficiently sensitive to how subtly culture affects their "literal" readings of Scripture. Her hope is that an exposure to this segment of evangelical history will help cultivate such a sensitivity. We join her in affirming both this need and this hope.