Yet saints their watch are keeping: fundamentalists, modernists, and the development of evangelical ecclesiology, 1887/1937

Abstract

Examining the idea of the church, or ecclesiology, within the Northern Protestant ?establishment? in the 19th and 20th centuries, J. Michael Utzinger argues that evangelical ecclesiology was characterized by denominational ambivalence. This ambivalence meant that, while Northern Protestants valued their denominational affiliations, they also had no compunction to work outside of them. Utzinger examines the theological sources of ecclesiological change (doctrine of the Holy Spirit, eschatology, and methods of cultural engagement) that evangelicals promoted, and how these influenced later fundamentalism and modernism. Using the Northern Baptist Convention, the Presbyterian Church in the USA, and Disciples of Christ as case studies, Utzinger shows that, despite their infighting, evangelicals typically found ways to cooperate with one another in order to preserve their denominational institutions. Fundamentalism and modernism acted to revitalize those institutions and help them persist.