This thesis is a study of the theory and practice of the voluntary principle in English Congregationalism between 1825 and 1862. The voluntary principle came to be seen in this period as of the essence of Congregationalism and its Congregationalist adherents sought to achieve its consistent practice in every aspect of denominational life. Chapter 1 describes the breakdown of the old 'catholic' consensus in British evangelicalism. By the mid-1820s the cooperation born of revival was being sorely tested on a number of fronts. Politics was certainly important, but there was also growing denominational self-interest. This was particularly the case in home and foreign missions and Congregationalists, perhaps the most 'catholic' of bodies, were under pressure from within and without to pursue a more partisan policy. Out of these practical concerns emerged, as chapter 2 points out, a more clearly articulated theory of voluntary churchmanship. Of course voluntarism had been a principle of Congregational Independency since the 17th century, but some adjustment was needed to the new circumstances of the 19th century. Congregationalist and other dissenting apologists honed and refined the principle and gave it a sharpness and comprehensiveness it had never had before. Even such a 'catholic' nonconformist as John Angel James saw the need to instruct his congregation in its Dissenting principles. He and many others provided the theoretical basis for the practical exercise of the voluntary principle. With chapters 3 and 4 I turn to the internal consolidation of the Congregational community. The Congregational Union (chapter 3) provided an agency for denominational activity and a focal point for an otherwise highly decentralised community. In our period the union was only moderately successful in realizing its objectives, but it provided a forum for discussion even if it showed the limitations of Congregational voluntarism. By the late 1850s the union was seriously threatened by its too many commitments, local indifference and internal strife. Perhaps more successful was the Dissenting and denominational press (chapter 4) in consolidating the community. Congregationalists were active in both the wider assenting press as well as their own denominational press. The voluntary principle was seen to be of great importance in the areas of education and chapel building. It was in both these areas that Congregationalism was most seriously challenged by the Establishment and it was here that the voluntary principle was most evidently curtailed. The education battle (chapter 5) was a valiant one, but it was doomed from the start. The Congregationalist system simply could not sustain a viable alternative to the state-supported system. Chapel building (Chapter 6) was more successful, but its success was itself a recognition of the limited resources of the Congregational community and therefore of the voluntary principle.

Congregationalists were a major presence in the ecclesiastical landscape of Edwardian Hampshire. With a number of churches in the major urban centres of Southampton, Portsmouth and Bournemouth, and places of worship in most market towns and many villages they were much in evidence and their activities received extensive coverage in the local press. Their leaders, both clerical and lay, were often prominent figures in the local community as they sought to give expression to their Evangelical convictions tempered with a strong social conscience. From what they had to say about Congregational leadership, identity, doctrine and relations with the wider world and indeed their relative silence on the issue of gender relations, something of the essence of Edwardian Congregationalism emerges. In their discourses various tensions were to the fore, including those between faith and good works; the spiritual and secular impulses at the heart of the institutional principle; and the conflicting priorities of churches and society at large. These reflect the restlessness of the period and point to a possible 'turning of the tide'. They also call into question the suitability of constructs such as 'faith in crisis' or 'faith society' to characterise the church history of the Edwardian era.

This study was conducted with two congregations from two different joining denominations within the United Reformed Church in two post-industrial towns. I spent two years with each congregation as a participant observer, taking part in congregational life and interviewing members for a total of four years. My interest is in the activity that members of these congregations undertake to sustain and change their congregation’s identity. What particularly interested me was how a Reformed cultural identity was sustained, as there is no central body preserving the tradition. In tackling these issues, I explore the interplay of identity with location, community and worship. The recurring tensions drew my attention to the ways identity is renegotiated, which I explore further by engaging with the dynamic metaphor of flow and turbulence. I formulate a concept of belonging by modifying Foucault’s understanding of technology. I go on to explore the way that this technology of belonging is a driver of members’ interaction with the congregational identity. I therefore argue that congregational identity is a recapitulatory process, which engages the members’ understanding of themselves as belonging to the congregation. In doing this I demonstrate the unsettled, contraplex nature of members’ engagement with the congregation’s identity.

This study explores the use of the doctrine of the offices of Christ (prophet, priest, and king) in the literature of the English separatists Henry Barrow (c.1550-1593) and Henry Ainsworth (1569-1622). No study to date explores the English separatists’ use of the doctrine in ecclesiological debates. During the period 1580 to 1620 the doctrine was more commonly referenced when discussing soteriology. Barrow and Ainsworth provide some of the clearest expressions of the doctrine of the offices of Christ in separatist works and their steadfastness in those beliefs in light of opposition make them good candidates for this research. This study sets out to answer the question: what was the significance of participation by the elect in the offices of Christ as used in Barrow and Ainsworth’s writings? This research focuses on the theology of Barrow and Ainsworth and does not consider the social or experiential aspects of their professed beliefs. This study provides a detailed analysis of the writings of Barrow and Ainsworth particularly noting their use of the offices of Christ in discussions of the visible church. It then examines the relationship of Barrow and Ainsworth’s Christology and ecclesiology, expressed through the offices of Christ, in their understanding of the visible church. Finally, this research compares their usage with works published in England from 1580 to 1620, considering whether their usage was distinct. Its findings challenge the traditional historiographical suggestions that purity, polity, discipline, and covenant were the central themes of Barrow and Ainsworth’s ecclesiology. This research suggests that, for Barrow and Ainsworth, the visible church was the visible expression of Christ on earth and the continuation of his earthly ministry begun at the incarnation. They believed that the visible church was the result of union with Christ, not the means of it. Through union with Christ, all the elect participated in Christ’s offices. Barrow and Ainsworth’s understanding of the visible church incorporated their understanding of Christ’s continuing work expressed in his offices of prophecy, priesthood, and kingship. Christ was immediately present in his visible church, working in the elect and through the elect as prophets, priests, and kings. The visible elect, when gathered, became the body of Christ on earth and as his body they continued the work of prophecy, priesthood, and kingship that he had begun.

Traditional patterns of leadership in the Church of England are changing. The demands of mission in post-Christendom, and renewed attention to the theology of social trinitarianism have focussed attention on the health of the local congregation as the place where the future of the church will be determined. Aware of the damage that disharmony can cause, the Diocese of Chelmsford has supported this research which examines how good relationships between lay and ordained leaders may be fostered, as a contribution to the equipping of congregations for mission. A process of facilitated conversations was held with lay and ordained leaders at the end of a ministerial vacancy, after an appointment had been made. These were analysed in the light of both theological and sociological perspectives on the nature of priesthood and of the local church, and of my own experience as a parish priest and training officer in the church. The process of facilitated conversations enabled differences of attitude and understanding to be articulated. Of particular note was a strong preference for, or reaction against, the use of familial language to describe the local congregation. These differences could be categorised as a contrast between the views held by those who had received no academic training in theology and those who had. A revised pattern of meetings is proposed in the light of these results and the feedback received. The conclusion is that relationships between the lay leaders and the newly appointed priest will benefit from facilitated conversations at the outset of this new period of ministry about the nature of the priestly role and the local church. A good relationship, marked by improved mutual understanding and respect between leaders, will better enable the parishes of the Diocese of Chelmsford to re-envision the missionary task.