ABSTRACT
Evangelical Nonconformist theology during the nineteenth century assumed the existence of the soul and its continued existence after physical death. Any consideration of death among the evangelical Nonconformists must presuppose this underlying theological conviction. The traditional Christian notion about the futility of seeking the fulfilment of hopes in this life would have been warmly embraced by the Nonconformists because they took seriously biblical declarations such as: ‘If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.’ (1 Corinthians 15:19). Their obituaries were often comprehensive summaries of their commitment to evangelical theology, not only because of the central place given to conversion and its accompanying personal relationship with Jesus but also because of the importance placed on holy living. For the Nonconformists, a theology based on forgiveness of sin, a holy life and anticipation of heaven was inseparable from achieving a peaceful and fearless death: this was evident in their dying words and in the descriptive narratives of the obituary authors. Their theological convictions have been analysed in terms of several categories, including conversion, the atonement, awareness of sin and relationship with and salvation through Jesus. This chapter will explore the ways in which doctrinal positions that relate particularly to evangelical Nonconformist beliefs about death and the afterlife changed or remained consistent from 1830 down to 1880.
