Building the Old Time Religion: Women Evangelists in the Progressive Era

by Priscilla Pope-Levison

2015 Smith/Wynkoop Book Award presented by the Wesleyan Theological Society

2014 Choice Outstanding Academic Title


During the Progessive Era, a period of unprecedented ingenuity, women evangelists built the old time religion with brick and mortar, uniforms and automobiles, fresh converts and devoted protégés. Across America, entrepreneurial women founded churches, denominations, religious training schools, rescue homes, rescue missions, and evangelistic organizations. Until now, these intrepid women have gone largely unnoticed, though their collective yet unchoreographed decision to build institutions in the service of evangelism marked a seismic shift in American Christianity.







In this ground-breaking study, Priscilla Pope-Levison dusts off the unpublished letters, diaries, sermons, and yearbooks of these pioneers to share their personal tribulations and public achievements. The effect is staggering. With an uncanny eye for essential details and a knack for historical nuance, Pope-Levison breathes life into not just one or two of these women—but two dozen.

Genres: History

280 pages, Paperback

First published December 6, 2013

About the author

Theology + History + Women Studies professor, Seattle Pacific University, United Methodist Clergy, historian of American religion, feminist theologian.

Before arriving at SPU, Dr. Pope-Levison held faculty appointments at Duke Divinity School and at North Park College and Theological Seminary, where she received the Student Service Award.

Her research areas include American women’s religious history, contextual theology, mission and evangelism, and the ecumenical movement, and she has authored or edited several books in these areas. In addition, her articles have appeared in these academic and ecclesial journals: International Review of Mission, Missiology, Mid-Stream, Methodist History, Catalyst, Prism, Journal of the Academy for Evangelism in Theological Education, Journal for Preachers, and Lectionary Homiletics. Her essay, “A ‘Thirty Year War’ and More: Exposing Complexities in the Methodist Deaconess Movement,” was awarded the 2008 Women’s History Research Writing Award, sponsored by the General Commission of History and Archives of the United Methodist Church.

Dr. Pope-Levison has also contributed to several reference works, including Westminster Dictionary of Women and Religion in America, Encyclopedia of Women and Religion in North America, Global Dictionary of Theology, and Historical Dictionary of the Holiness Movement. .

The Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning selected Professor Pope-Levison to participate in its study of Fifty Effective Teachers of the Introductory Theology and Religion courses, and she has led workshops on teaching at regional and national gatherings.

Reviews

[Samuel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I may be a tad biased because I helped a bit with the bibliography and index, but this is an incredibly well done book. PPL has an intimate knowledge of the women she writes about and her passion for them is evident in her scholarship. She is a story teller by nature, breathing life into the sources she has been pouring over for two decades to present to the reader interesting portraits of the Progressive Era's women evangelists. Highly recommended for the student of recent church history, especially Wesleyan and Methodist history, and also those interested in women's studies.

[Matthew Russell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thoroughly researched look at women evangelists of the Progressive Era, focusing not only on evangelism, but institution building and gender issues. Pope-Levison has created a well-researched piece of historical research and historiographical commentary. The only issue I would raise is that with so many women within one text, I got lost occasionally as to who was being focused on at any given time. This, however, could be seen as a strength of the work, that Pope-Levison found so many women on whom to focus her manuscript.

[Brian LePort · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book. Tells the often untold story of women evangelists during the Progressive Era in the US (1890-1920) as they transitioned to institution builders. I highly recommend!

[Martha Rowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an eye-opening read! I really enjoyed Pope-Levison's writing style.