Women and Belief, 1852-1928, (6 Volume Set)

Co-published by Routledge and Edition Synapse

Over recent years, research into religious belief during the Victorian period and the early twentieth century has grown in diversity and importance. The centrality of faith-based discourses to women of the period has long been recognized by scholars in the field. But until now relatively little significance has been attached to the fundamental relationship between women’s faith and women’s rights. This new title in the History of Feminism series remedies that omission. Women and Belief, 1852–1928 is a six-volume collection of primary materials covering a wide range of opinions about women, their self-identity, and the combination of their spiritual and political beliefs.

Addressing the most debated aspects of women’s religious, social, cultural, and political rights, the collection adopts an historical overview of the period and provides an authoritative representation of the wide body of literature written by and about women’s faith. Beginning with an example of how religious discourse provided a model for acceptable female behaviour and a satirical take on women’s rights and spiritualism and ending with an economist’s psychoanalytic study of female belief from 1928, Women and Belief, 1852–1928 provides a unique collection of different viewpoints. It brings together the work of women writers, theologians, philosophers, and economic and cultural historians to illustrate the multiplicity of voices and opinions on the issues of suffrage and religious faith. This diversity is equally reflected in the broad geographical coverage of the collection which draws on works not only from the United Kingdom and United States but also includes materials from Canada and India, and moves beyond the Christian into the spheres of theosophy, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Judaism. The gathered materials include works of non-fiction, poetry, analytical works, satires, pamphlets, sermons, spiritual (auto)biography, and periodical articles.

Making readily available such materials - which are currently very difficult for scholars, researchers, and students across the globe to locate and use - Women and Belief, 1852–1928 is a veritable treasure-trove. The gathered works are reproduced in facsimile, giving users a strong sense of immediacy to the texts and permitting citation to the original pagination. And with detailed and comprehensive introductory, biographical, and contextual material in each volume illustrating the ways in which the materials chart the gradual evolution of feminist thinking about belief, spirituality, and faith that directly fed into the emerging discourses of political and social rights for women, the collection is destined to be welcomed as a vital reference and research resource.

Volume I

Chapter 1 : Women of Christianity, Exemplary for Acts of Piety and Charity … with Portraits

Volume II

Chapter 2 : Woman’s Right to Preach The Gospel
Chapter 3 : A Book for The Times : Lucy Boston, or, Woman’s Rights and Spiritualism : Illustrating The Follies and Delusions of The Nineteenth Century

Volume III

Chapter 4 : Woman’s Sphere and Work, Considered in The Light of Scripture : A Book for Young Women
Chapter 5 : The Influence of Christianity on The Position and Character of Woman : A Sermon
Chapter 6 : Female Ministry : Or, Woman’s Right to Preach The Gospel
Chapter 7 : Woman’s Work : A Speech Delivered in The Lower House of Convocation on Tuesday
Chapter 8 : Plea for Modern Prophetesses
Chapter 9 : Female Franchise : Have Women Immortal Souls? The Popular Belief Disputed … By a Clerk in Holy Orders

Volume IV

Chapter 10 : Women’s Suffrage : The Reform Against Nature
Chapter 11 : The Importance of Religion to Woman
Chapter 12 : Woman Outside Christendom : An Exposition of The Influence Exerted by Christianity on The Social Position and Happiness of Women
Chapter 13 : What is Spiritualism? A Paper Read at The Annual Conference of The Christian Women’s Union, Held in Glasgow
Chapter 14 : Why Women Should be Secularists

Volume V

Chapter 15 : Religious Education for Women
Chapter 16 : Preface and Introduction to The Woman’s Bible
Chapter 17 : How is Woman Treated by Man and Religion?
Chapter 18 : The God-Idea of The Ancients or Sex in Religion
Chapter 19 : Joyce Maxwell’s Mistakes
Chapter 20 : Women in The Early Christian Ministry
Chapter 21 : Will Women Help? An Appeal to Women to Assist in Liberating Modern Thought from Theological Bonds
Chapter 22 : Towards Freedom : An Appeal to Thoughtful Men and Women’, The Agnostic Journal
Chapter 23 : Thoughts for Creedless Women

Volume VI

Chapter 24 : Phases of Progress : A Study of The Evolution of Religion, Education and Woman
Chapter 25 : God’s Word to Women
Chapter 26 : Christianity and ‘Woman’s Rights
Chapter 27 : The Religious Aspect of The Women’s Movement : Being a Series of Addresses Delivered at Meetings at The Queen’s Hall, London
Chapter 28 : The Legal Position of Women in Islam
Chapter 29 : Theosophy and The Woman’s Movement
Chapter 30 : Woman and Christianity : The Subjection and Exploitation of a Sex
Chapter 31 : Religion and Woman