Children before God

“McNeill’s study valuably explores the connections between the pressing concern for the education and care of children and our fundamental, sometimes unreflective, ideas about the nature of childhood as construed by Christian faith. Careful historical work on Calvin, Edwards, and the wider Reformed tradition here funds a better practical wisdom for Christian life with and for children in our own time.”


—Philip G. Ziegler, University of Aberdeen





“A fascinating set of insights into a vastly underdeveloped area of theological reflection. As well as offering an account of Calvin and Edwards on the theology of childhood, this book offers a constructive account which cannot but be helpful for the church today.”


—Tom Greggs, University of Aberdeen


“This is a thoughtful study on an important topic not often addressed by theologians. Dr. McNeill’s historical researches into Calvin and Edwards highlight successes and failures in Christian ministry to children, casting new light on contemporary approaches to pastoral practice.”


— George Newlands, The University of Glasgow





“Every adult was once a child. The lack of attention to childhood by Christian theology is, therefore, at the least a missed opportunity. In Children before God John McNeill uses the Bible to shed light on the way children have been represented, and often misrepresented, in one strand of Christian tradition. The result is an original and ultimately beautiful reappraisal not only of children in the order of salvation, but of the abiding significance of childhood to adult Christians. McNeill’s writing is resourced by an astonishingly deep engagement with Calvin and with Edwards that will also contribute to a more appreciative appraisal of their legacy.”   


—Stephen Plant, University of Cambridge