The Life and Times of Arthur Hildersham: Prince Among Puritans

“Arthur Hildersham is probably not one of the better known Puritan divines, but his life and story are a compelling testimony to the grace and faithfulness of God. The chapters are relatively brief and self-contained. each chapter tells a story, though continuing a larger narrative. The follies and heresies of romanism are helpfully highlighted in contrast to the biblical foundations of Puritanism (though Hildersham preferred the term Precisionist to that of Puritan). The cost of faithfulness to Christ and His gospel is writ large in Hildershams life, and that is a note we need to hear today in evangelical Christianity. especially helpful is the concluding chapter where the author highlights Ten lessons from Hildersham for us Today, spiritual lessons that will speak loudly and searchingly to the readers.”

“Arthur Hildersham was a key figure in English Puritanism during the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I. Lesley Rowes study, based on thorough research in manuscript and printed sources, illuminates not just his career, but the wider Puritan movement. it gives us a vivid picture of what Puritanism meant on the ground in a local community, and how it impacted the national church. A very welcome contribution.”

“Puritan preachers were inevitably rated first by their hearers, and later by their readers. Arthur Hildersham (15631632) was rightly ranked in the top tier of godly ministers, but in this first book-length study of his life Dr. Lesley Rowe demonstrates that his influence extended far beyond his pulpit and even his parish. Hildershams friendships, political connections, and expansive correspondence helped to shape a generation of English Christians and impacted theologians of the Dutch Second Reformation as well. Rowe offers a sweeping and sympathetic study of her subject, and writes in a godly strain which honors, and would no doubt please, Master Hildersham himself. One task of a biographer is to create a likeness that a subjects contemporaries could recognize. Rowe performs this task ably, and there can be little doubt that this first sustained treatment of so substantial a figure will inspire further academic work on Hildersham and his circle as scholars continue to map both persons and places of theological significance in early modern England.”