THE kirk session was a group made up of the church minister(s)
of a town with around 12 responsible lay elders of the area. Its
function was disciplinary and administrative. Margo Todd has edited
a version of The Perth Kirk Sessions Books
1577-1590, notable for their comprehensiveness and the
light that they shed on how ordinary people in that area adapted to
the Reformation (Scottish History Society, £40;
978-0-906245-31-6).
Concentrating on a slightly later period of Scottish church
history, Alasdair Raffe looks at The Culture of
Controversy: Religious arguments in Scotland 1660-1714.
His aims are to explore how disagreements were expressed during
this period, and to explain the substance of the discord, arising
from the breakdown of religious uniformity (The Boydell Press, £60
(£54); 978-1-84383-729-9).
Tasting Heaven on Earth: Worship in sixth-century
Constantinople is a case study of everything connected to
its subject.
As Walter Ray explores Byzantine Christianity, he includes
primary source materials such as sermons, liturgies, and prayers,
and accompanies them with diagrams and photographs to give a
comprehensive picture (Wm B. Eerdmans, £18.99 (£17.10);
978-0-8028-6663-9).
Richard Mortimer opens the archives of one of London's
historically most influential churches. In his Guide to the
Muniments of Westminster Abbey, he starts with the
records' history, before looking at their types in more detail, and
giving an outline of the relevant catalogues (Boydell & Brewer,
£25 (£22.50); 978-1-84383-743-5).