British History Archives - Beth Allison Barr

British History Church History Contemporary Connections Evangelicalism Medieval History Women's History

Romans 8:31, Chris Tomlin, And The Faith Of A Medieval Woman

Norman apse and chancel of St. Bartholomew the Great, Smithfield, London “Water You turned into wine; Opened the eyes of the blind; There’s no one like you; None like you; Into the darkness You shine; Out of the ashes we rise; There’s No one like…

Beth Allison BarrOctober 18, 2017

British History Christian Patriarchy Church History Evangelicalism Medieval History

Burning Witches in Medieval Europe?

Kilkenny lies deep in southern Ireland. Its history lies just as deep in the medieval past. The thirteenth-century cathedral of St. Canice stands next to a 9th-century monastic tower; a castle still sits on the site of William Marshall’s 12th-century Norman foundations; and a fourteenth-century…

Beth Allison BarrSeptember 21, 2017

American Religion British History Christian Patriarchy Contemporary Connections Evangelicalism Women's History

Should Women Rule? Netflix’s The Crown and Complementarian Theology

Riding the London Eye is deceptively peaceful. The city that slowly unfolds below seems a different place from the noise and heat of the crowded South Bank. I always look first for Cleopatra’s Needle, the 3500 year-old Egyptian obelisk shipped to England in the nineteenth-century…

Beth Allison BarrAugust 9, 2017

American Religion British History Christian Patriarchy Church History Contemporary Connections Evangelicalism Medieval History

Lysa TerKeurst, Bible Gateway, and Fides ex Auditu: the Biblical Heart of Medieval Faith

Rochester Cathedral Several months ago I heard a catchy phrase preached in a sermon. But it wasn’t until recently, when I began to compare popular medieval Bible verses with popular modern bible verses (thanks Bible Gateway!), that I began to think about the phrase more…

Beth Allison BarrMay 21, 2017

British History Church History Medieval History the Bible

The Bible in Medieval Sermons: Part I for Understanding the Top Ten Bible Verses in Medieval England

My husband recently noted in his Facebook series on local church highlights in Waco, TX, (yes, we live–literally–in the middle of the Fixer Upper world) how modern Protestants characterize the Medieval church as keeping people from the Bible. I have talked about medieval views of…

Beth Allison BarrMay 17, 2017

Book Reviews British History Church History Medieval History

A Reasonable Reading List for Medieval Christianity: Part 2

If you ever have the chance, visit the church of St. Bartholomew the Great in London St. Bart’s, as it is affectionately known, stands in Smithfield, just outside the old London wall. I recommend a Sunday morning walk to it from St. Paul’s Cathedral. Go…

Beth Allison BarrMarch 22, 2017

American Religion British History Church History Contemporary Connections Evangelicalism Medieval History

Did Medieval Christians Know Jesus?

St. Peter's Basilica, Rome Recently I was made aware of an online church history curriculum. At first glance, it seemed promising (at least from my perspective as a medievalist). It dedicated two weeks to the Medieval Church (five if you include the three weeks of…

Beth Allison BarrFebruary 22, 2017

#ChurchToo Activism American Religion British History Christian Patriarchy Church History Complimentarianism Contemporary Connections Evangelicalism Medieval History

A Tale of Two Pastors: Mark Driscoll and A (Medieval) New Year’s Proposal for the 2017 Church

This is a story of two pastors. The first was a vicar in the deanery of Salisbury, England, in 1412. His name was Alexander Champion. He was accused of abusing his ecclesiastical authority by sexually exploiting the women in his care. His parishioners claimed he…

Beth Allison BarrDecember 28, 2016

British History Church History Featured Medieval History

Because Xmas really is Xpian…

I literally stumbled across St. Bride’s church in London this summer. Walking down Fleet Street toward St. Paul’s Cathedral, I was considering eating at Ye Olde Chesire Cheese when I looked up and saw the wedding cake spire designed by Christopher Wren. It wasn’t until…

Beth Allison BarrDecember 17, 2016

British History Church History Medieval History

The Peace of Christmas during the Pain of Life

St. Alkmund’s, Shrewsbury, Shropshire In the far west of England, almost to Wales, the medieval spire of St. Alkmund’s parish church reaches high above the old city of Shrewsbury. One “vane” of A.E. Housman’s immortal line: “High the vanes of Shrewsbury gleam islanded in Severn…

Beth Allison BarrDecember 14, 2016

British History