{"product_id":"a-kingdom-not-of-this-thomas-ripley-myers-9798994041208","title":"A Kingdom Not of This World: Religion, Politics, and the English Revolution 1640 -1689","description":"\u003cb\u003eWhen Conscience Went to War: Religion, Liberty, and England's Revolutionary Century\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eHow theological disputes over bishops, prayers, and church government ignited civil war, regicide, and religious revolution and gave birth to liberty of conscience.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn 1642, England tore itself apart. King faced Parliament. Neighbor fought neighbor. By the time the guns fell silent, a king had been executed, military dictatorship had failed, and revolution had triumphed. The death toll: 200,000 in a nation of five million.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBut this was no ordinary political conflict. It was a war over how to worship God.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eShould churches be governed by bishops or elected elders? Should ministers read set prayers or speak extemporaneously? These questions sound arcane today. In 17th-century England, they were worth killing for, and worth dying for.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFour Visions Competed for England's Soul: \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eAnglicans\u003c\/b\u003e defended bishops, liturgy, and traditional order\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003ePresbyterians\u003c\/b\u003e demanded godly discipline and moral reformation\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eIndependents\u003c\/b\u003e championed voluntary churches and liberty of conscience\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eQuakers\u003c\/b\u003e proclaimed radical equality and refused all violence\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003eNone won completely. None lost entirely. From their collision emerged something unexpected: \u003cb\u003etoleration, \u003c\/b\u003enot from principle but from exhausted pragmatism after every attempt at uniformity failed.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eDramatic Narrative Meets Deep Analysis: \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eExperience the period through vivid scenes: \u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCharles I walking to the scaffold in two shirts so spectators wouldn't think he shivered from fear\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOliver Cromwell dissolving Parliament at gunpoint: \"You have sat too long for any good!\"\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eJames Nayler branded with hot iron for blasphemy while crowds watched in horror\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePresbyterian pastors preaching final sermons before ejection from their parishes\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003eUnderstand how religious ideas shaped political revolution: \u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhy Presbyterians built church courts to enforce discipline\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow Independents' theology led them to champion liberty\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhy Anglicans believed only bishops could prevent chaos\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow Quakers transformed from disruptive prophets to organized pacifists\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Settlement That Changed the World\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBy 1689, England had learned painful lessons: Religious uniformity couldn't be enforced. Conscience couldn't be coerced. Diversity was permanent, not temporary.\u003cbr\u003eThe Toleration Act satisfied no one but proved more durable than the perfect visions that preceded it. From England's failures came modern religious liberty, constitutional government, and denominational pluralism.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThis is the story of how we got here, \u003c\/b\u003etold with scholarly rigor but written for everyone who cares about freedom, faith, and the challenge of building societies where people with irreconcilable beliefs can live together. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003ePerfect For: \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eReaders wanting to understand the roots of religious liberty and constitutional government\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eStudents of the English Civil War, Reformation, or political thought\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAnyone wrestling with questions about conviction, authority, and pluralism\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBelievers and skeptics interested in how theological ideas shape political reality\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cb\u003eBased on extensive primary research. Accessible to general readers. Rigorous for scholars.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Thomas Ripley Myers\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9798994041208\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Telos Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 03\/06\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 306\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.91lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.64d","brand":"Thomas Ripley Myers","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":49001221226751,"sku":"9798994041208","price":18.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/a-kingdom-not-of-this-thomas-ripley-myers-9798994041208","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}