This book reconstructs the late Anglo-Saxon history of the church of Worcester, covering the period between Bishops Waerferth and Wulfstan II. Starting with an examination of the episcopal succession and the relations between bishops and cathedral community, the volume moves on to consider the development of the church of Worcester's landed estate, its extent and its organization. These are analysed in connection with the very significant measures taken in the eleventh century to preserve - and sometimes manipulate - the memory of past land transactions. Of paramount importance among such measures was the production of two cartularies - Liber Wigorniensis and Hemming's cartulary - respectively compiled at the beginning and at the very end of the eleventh century. Last but not least, the volume considers ecclesiastical organization and pastoral care in the diocese of Worcester, by looking at the relations between the cathedral church and the other churches in the diocese. Special attention is given to the payment of church dues and to such aspects of pastoral care as preaching, penance and visitation of the sick. Thanks to the combined analysis of these areas, the book offers a detailed picture of the main occupations (and preoccupations) of the late Anglo-Saxon church of Worcester in its interaction with society at large: from its tenants to its faithful, from the clergy in its diocese to its opponents in land disputes.

This book reconstructs the late Anglo-Saxon history of the church of Worcester, covering the period between Bishops Wærferth and Wulfstan II. Starting with an examination of the episcopal succession and the relations between bishops and cathedral community, the volume moves on to consider the development of the church of Worcester's landed estate, its extension, organization and pastoral care. In so doing the book offers a detailed picture of the main occupations (and preoccupations) of the late Anglo-Saxon church of Worcester in its interaction with society at large.

A wide-ranging study of the central concepts in epistemology - belief, truth and knowledge. Professor Armstrong offers a dispositional account of general beliefs and of knowledge of general propositions. Belief about particular matters of fact are described as structures in the mind of the believer which represent or 'map' reality, while general beliefs are dispositions to extend the 'map' or introduce casual relations between portions of the map according to general rules. 'Knowledge' denotes the reliability of such beliefs as representations of reality. Within this framework Professor Armstrong offers a distinctive account of many of the main questions in general epistemology - the relations between beliefs and language, the notions of proposition, concept and idea, the analysis of truth, the varieties of knowledge, and the way in which beleifs and knowledge are supported by reasons. The book as a whole if offered as a contribution to a naturalistic account of man.

This book is a wide-ranging treatment of central topics in epistemology. It provides conceptions of belief and knowledge, offers a theory of how they are grounded in our experience and in the social context of testimony, and connects them with the will and with action, moral responsibility, and intellectual virtue.

Knowledge, from Plato onwards, has been considered in relation to justified belief. Current debate has centred around the nature of the justification and whether justified belief can be considered an internal or extenal matter. Epistemological internalists argue that the subject must be able to reflect upon a belief to complete the process of justification. The externalists, on the other hand, claim that it is only necessary to consider whether the belief is reliably formed, and argue that the ability to know by reflection is not required for a justified belief. In the historical section of this book the three most important epistemologists, Plato, Descartes and Hume, as well as the ancient epistemologies of the stoics, Academics and Pyrhonians, are considered. In reconsidering the history of epistemology the author is led to argue against hte view that internalism is historically dominant. His critique of internalism is then developed into a sustained argument against many of its forms, and he goes onto defend an externalist, reliabilist epistemology.

Epistemology is not just about the nature of knowledge or the analysis of concepts such as 'knows' and 'justified'. It is also about what we ought to believe and how we ought to investigate and reason about what is the case. This is a study focused on these normative aspects of epistemology. More specifically, it is concerned with the nature of epistemic norms and their relation both to the value of knowledge and to the structure of cognitive agency. The first part develops a theory of doxastic agency according to which believers exercise agency in the ongoing activity of maintaining systems of belief. The second part defends an account of the grip epistemic norms have on us and the nature of our epistemic values. These are explained in terms of the way that a state, such as a person's belief, can be subject to robust social norms and be valued for its stability not only individually, but, crucially, within epistemic communities. The third part proposes some foundations for a meta-epistemological theory of epistemic discourse that takes seriously the idea that knowledge attributions are partly normative, and hence should be partly classified on the 'ought' side of the division between claims about what reality is like, and claims about what people ought to do, think, and feel.

The Christian Belief for Everyone series comprises five guides to the basic ideas of the Christian faith. Full of stories and helpful illustrations, these guides have been written primarily for ordinary churchgoers, though they will no doubt also appeal to interested readers outside the church. The approach Alister McGrath adopts is non-denominational, very similar to the 'mere Christianity' advocated by C. S. Lewis. Indeed, the series may be seen as a guide to 'mere Christianity', focusing clearly as it does on the life of faith. We look at why Christians believe what they do; how we can best understand these ideas, and the difference they make to the way we think about ourselves and our world. The first volume, Faith and the Creeds, concentrates on the nature of faith and the history and relevance of the Creeds, in a thrilling reflection on what we really mean when we say 'I believe'. This is excellent preparation for exploring the leading themes of the Creeds in four subsequent volumes: The Living God, Lord and Saviour - Jesus of Nazareth, Spirit of the Living God and The Christian Life and Hope.