Shows that a religious understanding of illness and health persisted well into post-Enlightenment early America
The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the power of narrative during times of sickness and disease. As Americans strive to find meaning amid upheaval and loss, some consider the nature of God’s will. Early American Protestants experienced similar struggles as they attempted to interpret the diseases of their time.
In this groundbreaking work, Philippa Koch explores the doctrine of providence—a belief in a divine plan for the world—and its manifestations in eighteenth-century America, from its origins as a consoling response to sickness to how it informed the practices of Protestant activity in the Atlantic world. Drawing on pastoral manuals, manuscript memoirs, journals, and letters, as well as medical treatises, epidemic narratives, and midwifery manuals, Koch shows how Protestant teachings around providence shaped the lives of believers even as the Enlightenment seemed to portend a more secular approach to the world and the human body.
Their commitment to providence prompted, in fact, early Americans’ active engagement with the medical developments of their time, encouraging them to see modern science and medicine as divinely bestowed missionary tools for helping others. Indeed, the book shows that the ways in which the colonial world thought about questions of God’s will in sickness and health help to illuminate the continuing power of Protestant ideas and practices in American society today.
"A well-researched, engagingly written, and convincingly argued book … Koch’s interpretation of eighteenth-century religious ideas about health is nuanced, sophisticated, and (it should go without saying) historically grounded. It stands on its own. But if we were to seek lessons in the book that apply to the COVID-19 pandemic, we might look no further than Koch’s argument that communities reveal their priorities and identities as they respond to disease." - Nursing Clio
"A beautifully written cultural and intellectual history focused on intersections between lived theology and medicine in 18th-century America. With an eye toward the realities of today (including the COVID-19 pandemic), Koch dives deeply into the hearts and minds of Enlightenment-era Protestants who “depended on, doubted, challenged, and celebrated God’s providence” as they contended with experiences of sickness and health. She draws on a variety of sources—including pastoral manuals, journals, letters, epidemic narratives, and medical treatises—to show how belief in divine providence shifted perceptions of illness and death, helped people claim agency in their medical treatment, and shaped approaches to midwifery and childbirth." - Christian Century
"In The Course of God’s Providence, Philippa Koch brings to life believers from this era who were confident of God’s direction in their earthly affairs. Koch argues that 18th-century Protestants upheld trust in God’s providence in distinctive ways during sickness ... The idea Koch excavates from the 18th century is serviceable for our time too. Narrative is a necessary response to sickness." - Christianity Today
"The Course of God’s Providence is a model of thorough scholarship crafted by a historian practiced in the art of identifying long-neglected sources of eighteenth-century thought and experience, listening carefully and sensitively to what they have to say about their thoughts and experiences, and organizing her findings into a faithful, persuasive exposition." - Christian Scholar's Review
"Koch’s accomplishments are numerous. By narrowing her focus to the (still capacious) topic of health and the body, she has brought coherence to the sprawling topic of providence. And by placing narrative strategies at the heart of her argument, she has convincingly demonstrated the active role that sufferers and their caretakers played in making sense of sickness—what they viewed as God’s intervention in the world." - Early American Literature
Формат: Скан PDf
The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the power of narrative during times of sickness and disease. As Americans strive to find meaning amid upheaval and loss, some consider the nature of God’s will. Early American Protestants experienced similar struggles as they attempted to interpret the diseases of their time.
In this groundbreaking work, Philippa Koch explores the doctrine of providence—a belief in a divine plan for the world—and its manifestations in eighteenth-century America, from its origins as a consoling response to sickness to how it informed the practices of Protestant activity in the Atlantic world. Drawing on pastoral manuals, manuscript memoirs, journals, and letters, as well as medical treatises, epidemic narratives, and midwifery manuals, Koch shows how Protestant teachings around providence shaped the lives of believers even as the Enlightenment seemed to portend a more secular approach to the world and the human body.
Their commitment to providence prompted, in fact, early Americans’ active engagement with the medical developments of their time, encouraging them to see modern science and medicine as divinely bestowed missionary tools for helping others. Indeed, the book shows that the ways in which the colonial world thought about questions of God’s will in sickness and health help to illuminate the continuing power of Protestant ideas and practices in American society today.
"A well-researched, engagingly written, and convincingly argued book … Koch’s interpretation of eighteenth-century religious ideas about health is nuanced, sophisticated, and (it should go without saying) historically grounded. It stands on its own. But if we were to seek lessons in the book that apply to the COVID-19 pandemic, we might look no further than Koch’s argument that communities reveal their priorities and identities as they respond to disease." - Nursing Clio
"A beautifully written cultural and intellectual history focused on intersections between lived theology and medicine in 18th-century America. With an eye toward the realities of today (including the COVID-19 pandemic), Koch dives deeply into the hearts and minds of Enlightenment-era Protestants who “depended on, doubted, challenged, and celebrated God’s providence” as they contended with experiences of sickness and health. She draws on a variety of sources—including pastoral manuals, journals, letters, epidemic narratives, and medical treatises—to show how belief in divine providence shifted perceptions of illness and death, helped people claim agency in their medical treatment, and shaped approaches to midwifery and childbirth." - Christian Century
"In The Course of God’s Providence, Philippa Koch brings to life believers from this era who were confident of God’s direction in their earthly affairs. Koch argues that 18th-century Protestants upheld trust in God’s providence in distinctive ways during sickness ... The idea Koch excavates from the 18th century is serviceable for our time too. Narrative is a necessary response to sickness." - Christianity Today
"The Course of God’s Providence is a model of thorough scholarship crafted by a historian practiced in the art of identifying long-neglected sources of eighteenth-century thought and experience, listening carefully and sensitively to what they have to say about their thoughts and experiences, and organizing her findings into a faithful, persuasive exposition." - Christian Scholar's Review
"Koch’s accomplishments are numerous. By narrowing her focus to the (still capacious) topic of health and the body, she has brought coherence to the sprawling topic of providence. And by placing narrative strategies at the heart of her argument, she has convincingly demonstrated the active role that sufferers and their caretakers played in making sense of sickness—what they viewed as God’s intervention in the world." - Early American Literature
Формат: Скан PDf
https://www.yakaboo.ua/ua/the-course-of-god-s-providence-religion-health-and-the-body-in-early-america.html