From current day sectarianism to the Free Church, religion has had a dominant effect upon society in Scotland for centuries. In this topical and thought-provoking book, Callum Brown examines the role of religion in the making of modern Scottish society. Tackling important contemporary themes such as the role of the Kirk in national identity and the growth of secularisation, he explains the history of Catholicism, Presbyterianism and Episcopalism over the last 250 years in an accessible and readable way.
Piety and progress; the church structure in Scotland 1707-1997; patterns of religious adherence; religion in rural society 1707-1890; the challenge of the cities 1780-1890; the "social question" 1890-1939 - the crisis of religious ideology; the haemorrhage of faith 1939-1997 - the crisis of church connection; religion, identity and conflict in Scotland since 1707.
