Life of William Robertson
Life of William Robertson

Author: Jeffrey R. Smitten

Publisher: Edinburgh University Press

Published: 2016-10-26

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 0748646116

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The first modern biography of William Robertson, a key figure of the Scottish EnlightenmentA prominent figure in the Scottish Enlightenment, William Robertson differed from his contemporaries, such as Voltaire, Hume and Gibbon, because he used the critical tools of the Enlightenment to strengthen religion, not to attack it. As an historian, he helped shape 18th-century historiography. As a minister of the Church of Scotland, he sought to make the church fit for a polite age. And, as principal of the University of Edinburgh, he presided over a flourishing of intellectual inquiry in the midst of the Enlightenment. But despite his European fame, he was a controversial figure. Drawing extensively on his unpublished correspondence, Jeffrey Smitten captures both the man and his work in his own words. By foregrounding Robertsons religious outlook, Smitten gives us a more contextualised and nuanced interpretation of Robertson's motives, intentions and beliefs than we have had before.Key Features:Includes new biographical information drawn from archival sources and from all Robertson's largely unpublished correspondenceDiscusses Robertson's works, published and unpublishedAssesses Robertson's achievement based on fresh consideration of all facets of his career as minister, historian and principal

William Robertson Smith
William Robertson Smith

Author: Bernhard Maier

Publisher: Mohr Siebeck

Published: 2009

Total Pages: 364

ISBN-13: 9783161499951

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William Robertson Smith (1846-1894) was successively the embattled champion of the emergent higher criticism as applied to the Old Testament, chief editor of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, and Professor of Arabic at Cambridge University. Today he is acknowledged to have been a pioneering figure in both social anthropology and the study of comparative religion, deeply influencing the thinking of J. G. Frazer, Emile Durkheim and Sigmund Freud. The first full-length biography of Robertson Smith to be published for almost a hundred years, this text makes use of hitherto unknown material preserved by the Smith family and draws upon the extensive range of correspondence between Smith and such scholars as Albrecht Ritschl, Paul de Lagarde, Julius Wellhausen, Abraham Kuenen and Theodor Noldeke. Adopting an interdisciplinary approach, the biography locates and defines the place of this remarkable polymath within the context of Free Church Calvinism, the Scottish Enlightenment and 19th century German Protestant theology. It highlights Smith's interest in physics and philosophy, his friendship with contemporary artists, his Oriental travels, and his involvement in the social life of Edinburgh and Aberdeen. In recent years, the image of Smith as a comparative religionist has come to dominate all other perspectives and indeed tends now to overshadow his fame as an Old Testament scholar. This book seeks to redress the balance, aiming to discover the theological drive behind Smith's manifold activities.

Lifting Every Voice
Lifting Every Voice

Author: William B. Robertson

Publisher:

Published: 2022

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780813947174

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"The memoir of the life of William Bernard Robertson, telling of his early years in Roanoke, Virginia, and college in Bluefield, West Virginia, during segregation; his years as a public school educator and principal; his time as aide to Linwood Holton, Republican governor of Virginia; and the years that followed, including his work for the Peace Corps in Kenya and the state department, assuming duties under five presidential administrations, as well as his longtime volunteer work for Camp Virginia Jaycee, supporting those with special needs"--

Voice of Nonconformity
Voice of Nonconformity

Author: Keith A Ives

Publisher: Lutterworth Press

Published: 2011-05-26

Total Pages: 458

ISBN-13: 071884520X

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"A study of William Robertson Nicoll, a non-conformist individual who had considerable influence in the late 19th Century. Originally a minister, he was considered a great leader and was also a theological conservative, and therefore committed to maintaining the orthodox stance of the Christian Churches, but at the same time, he encouraged many of the new ideas, which he felt would prove a useful and hopeful benefit for the Church. Due to health issues he was later forced to retire his position and focused on work as an editor and journalist, bringing with him the same sense of leadership he had previously been known for. The debate over his legacy continues and is addressed within this study using previously unstudied information on Nicoll's life."