Of Intense Brightness

"Be uncommon Christians ...that is, eminently holy, self-denying, cross-bearing, Bible, everyday Christians." So James Brainerd Taylor (1801--1829) encouraged others to be, and so he strived to be himself. Of Intense Brightness reveals aspects of Taylor's uncommon Christianity by allowing the Princeton and Yale-educated evangelist to speak for himself. By means of forty-five selected and edited letters and journal entries of Taylor's (written from ages fourteen to twenty-seven), readers will obtain a unique glimpse into the inner workings of an evangelical Protestant spirituality that was, according to nineteenth-century Princeton Seminary professor Samuel Miller, "so uniform, that we had only, as it were, one face, and that of intense brightness to behold."

ISBN 0761839704   Pages 186 ISBN13 9780761839705 (What's this?)   Volumes 1 Publisher University Press of America   Weight (grammes) 281 Imprint University Press of America   Published in Lanham, MD Format Paperback   Height (mm) 229 Publication date 28 May 2008   Width (mm) 152 Library of Congress BX9225   Spine width (mm) 15 DEWEY 270.092   Academic level General DEWEY edition DC22

Part 1 Foreword by James M. Houston Part 2 Preface Chapter 3 "Of Intense Brightness": The Life and Spirituality of Uncommon Christian James Brainerd Taylor Chapter 4 Chronology of the Life and Ministry of James Brainerd Taylor Chapter 5 Selections from James Brainerd Taylor's Letters and Journal Entries Part 6 Epilogue by Peter Adam: A Special Word to University and Seminary Students Part 7 Select Bibliography: James Brainerd Taylor Part 8 Recommended Reading: Evangelical Protestant Spirituality Part 9 Index

The activism of the 'up and doing' Taylor was fueled by the sweet 'communion with heaven' that characterized his spirituality. Francis Kyle's work in making the brief and inner life of someone who sadly is unknown today has much value. -- Derek Tidball Many thanks to Francis Kyle for this most edifying anthology. It is sad but true: James Brainerd Taylor was an 'uncommon Christian.' My hope and prayer is that these selections from his grace-filled spiritual writings will be used by God to change this situation. -- Sweeney, Douglas A. James Brainerd Taylor inspires and encourages me as I sit in the same Nassau Hall where he lived, studied, and wrote. In Of Intense Brightness, Francis Kyle illuminates Taylor, a truly uncommon Christian and one to whom I and my fellow Princetonians are indebted for helping to establish an historical stronghold for Christ. -- Keller, Jonathan M. So-called postmodernity could do well to retrace the steps of the little known James Brainerd Taylor. I congratulate Francis Kyle for putting the spotlight on a worthy luminary. -- Tony Sargent, Principal Kyle has done the church a great favor by resurrecting the dynamic faith of an earnest young man whose devotion can still breathe life into a sometimes complacent church. -- Gary L. Thomas James Brainerd Taylor was what the Puritans of old would have called a 'hot-gospel Christian.' His life was marked by a zeal for holiness and a desire to serve the cause of Christ in every area of his life. This collection of his writings explores both his evangelical activism and his intense Protestant piety. In doing so, it gives us access to the spirituality of an important shaper of American Christianity. -- Timothy George I am inspired and challenged by J.B. Taylor's love for scripture, holiness, evangelism, and cross-cultural ministry. May God raise up more James Brainerd Taylors among this generation of students. -- Terry Erickson James Brainerd Taylor's life, like his distant relative David Brainerd, reveals a man who packed into a few short years a full lifetime of holiness. The result of Kyle's research and study is an inspiring book, one that takes us to the heart of what it means to give one's all for Christ, his glory and his Church. -- Michael A.G. Haykin The life of this extraordinary young man has been rescued from the dim shadows of the past to be currently spotlighted in an hour when 'uncommon Christians' have become an endangered species. Through Francis Kyle's efforts, may Taylor's literary reappearance challenge our entire contemporary generation to make the Lord Jesus Christ their all in all. -- Richard L. Mayhue This work is not only insightful and inspiring, it is impacting! I hope that every student and campus ministry leader will read this volume carefully and seek God wholeheartedly until he or she enters into a new level of love for God and passionate kingdom service. -- Dave Warn Of Intense Brightness is a book that will touch both the heart and mind of every reader. I pray that our Lord will use it in my life and yours to be more committed to be used of God in every way He desires for revival and spiritual awakening in our day. -- Paul A. Cedar As a student myself near where Taylor lived and ministered in New York City, Taylor's writings provide a great challenge and a dose of encouragement to my own spiritual life. To read about such an intensely spiritual and eternally conscious man and his passion for the gospel affords us all the opportunity to consider what God can do in and through those who truly make their lives 'living sacrifices.' -- James S. Berneking What shines in Taylor's writings is a faith simultaneously brimming with the vitality of the New Republic and deeply rooted in the piety of Puritanism and Jonathan Edwards. Dying of tuberculosis in 1829 and before his twenty-eighth birthday, Taylor's writings bring to life an old exemplar who is--strikingly--forever young. -- Charles E. Hambrick-Stowe The remarkable account of Taylo

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