Endorsements

The pastor in print explores the phenomenon of early modern pastors who chose to become print authors. Addressing the ways print could enhance, limit, or change pastoral ministry, the book demonstrates how ministers strategically tailored their content to achieve their religious goals among different audiences and in view of their position vis-à-vis the institutional church. Along with an extended case study of Richard Bernard - a particularly prolific pastor-author whose career provides a coherent framework through which to analyse key features of early modern pastoral-authorial work - the book addresses a number of early modern English pastors who pursued authorship as an intentional part of their religious vocation. The first book-length analysis of the phenomenon of early modern pastors writing for print, it provides a paradigm for understanding these clerics' efforts in print and parish as an integral part of their careers and their overarching religious goals. By addressing pastor-authors' works across a career and in diverse genres, the book engages multiple issues of current scholarly interest: censorship, private religious devotion, polemic, witchcraft, religious education, reference works, and more. As such, it provides a remarkably comprehensive picture of pastoral publishing and offers a new lens through which to view the intersection of emerging print technologies, the printing industry, and clerical work in this pivotal period.