Conversion of the Church by Samuel M. Shoemaker - First British Edition 1933
The Conversion of the Church By Rev. Samuel M. Shoemaker
First British Edition — June 1933
With a Foreword by L. W. Grensted
Published by Fleming H. Revell Company, London & New York
This is the First British Edition (June 1933) of Samuel M. Shoemaker’s The Conversion of the Church — an influential Oxford Group-era work that laid much of the spiritual groundwork later echoed in the early Alcoholics Anonymous movement.
In this volume, Rev. Shoemaker — rector of Calvary Church, New York, and one of the foremost American leaders of the Oxford Group — calls for the Church to rediscover its living fellowship and practical spirituality. In his words, “When the Church is alive, the desire for fellowship is alive.” One entire chapter, The Genius of Fellowship, is devoted to the power of authentic fellowship — “the power to live and work with people upon the basis of absolute love and honesty.
Shoemaker’s writings deeply shaped the spiritual outlook of A.A. cofounder Bill W., who later described him as “one of A.A.’s indispensables,” writing: “Had it not been for his ministry to us in our early time, our Fellowship would not be in existence today.”
Contents include:
- The Sins of the Church
- The Conversion of Christians
- Living in Touch with God
- Living in Touch with People
- The Genius of Fellowship
- The New Church
The book opens with a Foreword by L. W. Grensted of Oriel College, Oxford (dated February 1933), situating Shoemaker’s message within the growing influence of the Oxford Group movement in England and America.
Condition: Good overall. Clean, intact pages with typical age toning. A previous owner’s name (“Frank M. Musgrave”) is neatly stamped on the front endpaper. Light external wear to the green cloth boards, firm binding, no internal markings beyond the name stamp.
A significant Oxford Group and early A.A.-related title, capturing Shoemaker’s message at the very moment his influence was spreading from Oxford to Calvary Church — and, indirectly, to the early members of Alcoholics Anonymous.
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