Leaders of the Church, 1800-1900. John Keble

It seems appropriate to briefly explain the origin and scope of this new series of biographies. The publisher has formed the opinion that ecclesiastical biography may lose its appeal and interest due to the technical and professional spirit in which it is usually viewed. Guided by this opinion, they decided to publish several short lives of "leaders of the modern church", written exclusively by laymen. They conceived that in this way some freshness could be given to subjects that were already more or less familiar, and that a class of readers who were repulsed by the details of ecclesiasticality could be attracted by a more human and, in a sense, more secular, treatment of religious life. This book is a biography of John Keble, an English poet and churchman of 19th century, who was one of the leaders of the Oxford Movement. The preparation of another biography of John Keble, which followed so soon after the skillful performance of a similar task by Dr. Locke, may seem to require words of explanation. It is not claimed that he made a great contribution to the existing knowledge of the subject, gleaned from sources to which the researcher already had the privilege of access for the most part. But it was evident that no episode could adequately represent the history of the English church in the nineteenth century through the lives of church leaders of that period without including the name of John Keble. The present work was undertaken in order to satisfy this demand, knowing that for those familiar with the history of these years, it was only possible to sketch a story once again, in the main familiar enough even to the general reader. The author is grateful to many of Mr. Kebble's relatives and friends for their kindness in providing documents and information for my services, which were of immense help. To them and others who were so eager to help with suggestions and advice, the author regrets that lack of time prevented him from turning their kindness into a more satisfactory result.