A Glossary of Ecclesiastical Terms. Edited by the Rev. Orby
Shipley,
(Rivington.)—Mr. Shipley and his coadjutors deserve great praise—the chief share being, of course, the editor's due—for the indus- try and care with which this glossary has been compiled and for the com- pleteness which it possesses. We have not found, as far as our search has gone, anything missing or anything like a blunder. Of course, we have found plenty of things with which we disagreed. A book of this kind gives many opportunities for the statement of personal opinions. Any one could have seen from Johnson's Dictionary that the author was a Tory who hated Scotchmen. So any one may conclude from the glossary be- fore us that the editor and his collaborateurs are High Churchmen. But it can always be said for the definitions which they give that they are backed by some authority, and represent one view of theo- logical facts. And after all, the proportion of the work that is affected by these influences is but small, and does not materially detract from its value as a work of reference. Its brevity is especially admirable. It would be difficult to find as much information crowded into equal space.
Previous page
