Mirror and Memory

Let rigorous scholarship shape faithful memory.

Discovery and reflection are the twin tasks of the historian. Discovery is the researcher's work, uncovering what has been lost or overlooked. Reflection is the work of the interpreter, drawing meaning from what has been found. Without discovery, reflection has no factual basis. Without reflection, discovery has no significance for the present.

In this collection of essays, Richard P. Heitzenrater synthesizes the results of his pioneering archival research on early Methodist history and offers careful reflections on what these findings mean for our understanding of the movement. His aim throughout is to provide a clear and undistorted view of the Methodist past, one that allows readers to appreciate the full richness and complexity of the tradition.

Heitzenrater reminds us that knowledge of our history is essential to an honest assessment of who we are today. Those who belong to a living and vital heritage are strengthened not only by remembering the vision that set them on their way but also by recognizing the possibilities that continue to advance their tradition. Mirror and Memory is both a model of rigorous historical scholarship and an invitation to faithful memories.

This volume is intended to set in historical context the official United Methodist theological statements in The United Methodist Book of Disciplines of 1972 and 1988, and to foster reflection on and discussion of the 1988 statement.