''Gangraena'' is a book by English

puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Catholic Church, Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become m ...

clergyman Thomas Edwards, published in 1646. A notorious work of

heresiography In theology or the history of religion, heresiology is the study of heresy, and heresiographies are writings about the topic. Heresiographical works were common in both medieval Christianity and Islam. Heresiology developed as a part of the emergi ...

, it appeared the year after

Ephraim Pagitt Ephraim Pagit (Pagitt) (c. 1575 – April 1647) was an English clergyman and heresiographer. His ''Heresiography'' of 1645 was a precursor of the better-known ''Gangraena'', and is a well-referenced account of contemporary sectarian Protestanti ...

's ''Heresiography''. These two books attempted to catalogue the fissiparous Protestant congregations of the time, in England particularly, into recognised sects or beliefs. Pagitt worked with 40 to 50 categories, Edwards went further with around three times as many, compiling a list of the practices of the Independents and more extreme radicals:

Nature of ''Gangraena''

''Gangraena'' is generally described as an alarmist work, deducing a collapse of national polity from the ramification of different religious creeds. Typically, the

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

Hanserd Knollys Hanserd Knollys (1599–1691) was an English particular Baptist minister. Life He was born at Cawkwell, Lincolnshire, about 1599. He was educated privately under a tutor, was for a short time at Great Grimsby grammar school, and afterwards ma ...

was accused of being an

Anabaptist Anabaptism (from New Latin language, Neo-Latin , from the Greek language, Greek : 're-' and 'baptism', german: Täufer, earlier also )Since the middle of the 20th century, the German-speaking world no longer uses the term (translation: "Re- ...

Heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...

is foregrounded, and the analogy suggested that heresy is to the soul as

witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have us ...

to the body. Edwards was an unsparing writer and ''Gangraena'' is described as "monumentally vituperative". The title itself refers t
2 Timothy 2:17
and "canker" in the King James translation. It is not really a unified work, called a "complex, ramshackle text" by Nicholas Tyacke. It appeared in three volumes, with information added from correspondents, and

Richard Baxter Richard Baxter (12 November 1615 – 8 December 1691) was an English Puritan church leader, poet, hymnodist, theologian, and controversialist. Dean Stanley called him "the chief of English Protestant Schoolmen". After some false starts, he ...

in particular was also a contributor. Scholarly opinions on it are now mixed, having in the past been somewhat dismissive of the work as paranoid and probably counter-productive in the way of providing and circulating a menu of "heretical" options. Some scholars now see it as made more coherent by its inferences from and to the diabolical element, and more readable casually for the audience of the times, than it has in the past been allowed credit.

Influence

In the work, as the first ideological identification of

Leveller The Levellers were a political movement active during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms who were committed to popular sovereignty, extended suffrage, equality before the law and religious tolerance. The hallmark of Leveller thought was its popul ...

s, Edwards summed up Levellers' views and attacked their radical political egalitarianism that showed no respect for the constitution. The prime targets in part III of his work were the men who were to be recognized as the leaders of the Leveller party.

Reception

It provoked over 30 pamphlet responses in the period 1646-7, mostly hostile. Among them were works by

Jeremiah Burroughes Jeremiah Burroughs (sometimes Burroughes; 1599 – London, 13 November, 1646) was an English Congregationalist and a well-known Puritan preacher. Biography Burroughs studied at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and was graduated M.A. in 1624, bu ...

John Goodwin John Goodwin may refer to: Politicians *John Goodwin (Parliamentarian) (1603–1674), Member of Parliament for Reigate * John B. Goodwin (1850–1921), Mayor of Atlanta, Georgia in the late 1880s *John Noble Goodwin (1824–1887), 1st Governor of ...

,''Cretensis, or, A briefe answer to an ulcerous treatise lately published by Mr. Thomas Edwards, intituled Gangraena; calculated for the meridian of such passages in the said treatise which relate to Mr. John Goodwin, but may without any sensible error indifferently serve for the whole tract'' etc. (1646), anonymous.

John Lilburne John Lilburne (c. 161429 August 1657), also known as Freeborn John, was an English people, English political Leveller before, during and after the English Civil Wars 1642–1650. He coined the term "''freeborn, freeborn rights''", defining them ...

, John Saltmarsh and

William Walwyn William Walwyn (''bap.'' 1600–1681) was an English pamphleteer, a Leveller and a medical practitioner. Life Walwyn was a silkman in London who took the parliamentary side in the English Civil War. He advocated religious toleration and emerged a ...

Notes

External links

Online text, pt. 1 and pt. 2
(Internet Archive)
Online text, pt. 3
(Umich/eebo) Books about Christianity 1646 books Puritanism in England 17th-century Christian texts

Nature of ''Gangraena''

Influence

Reception

Notes

Further reading

External links