Bishops Past, Present and Future

by Martin Davie

Bishops, Past, Present, and Future is the fruit of over twenty years of study and reflection on the topics it covers. It is the most comprehensive and up-to-date Anglican study of episcopacy produced in recent times. Drawing on primary sources from the New Testament to the present day, it provides detailed answers to three key ‘Why should the Church of England have bishops?’ ‘What is the proper role of bishops?’ and ‘How should bishops respond to the challenges facing the Church of England and the Church in the West in general?’

828 pages, Paperback

Published July 24, 2022

Reviews

[Samuel G. Parkison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much of this book deserves far more than three stars. The historical and biblical portions at the beginning are the best: Davie makes as good a case for episcopal ecclesiology as I have ever read, even if I find myself unconvinced. But unfortunately, the book is bloated and would really benefit from editing (not just copy editing, though there are a lot of typos, but also content editing). Some of the quotes, for example, are so long they span multiple pages.

Additionally (and this is really not Davie's fault--it doesn't impact my rating, but I have to mention it), the typesetting and visual structure of the book is assaultingly unattractive...