From its first publication to the present day, Richard Baxter’s impassioned text
Gildas Salvianus; The Reformed Pastor(1656) has proved to be a successful and influential exploration of the pastor’s role within the parish. The title is taken from two early preachers who called their people to account for sin: Gildas, a monk in sixth century Britain and Salvian, who lived in fifth century Gaul and viewed the collapse of the Roman Empire as a divine judgement. Baxter comments: “I pretend not to the Sapience of Gildas, nor to the Sanctity of Salvian (as to the degree:) but by their names I offer you an excuse for plain dealing”. He takes comfort from the fact that as the direct approach of these men is “so much approved...now they are dead” so he also may look for “success…
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Citation: Searle, Alison . "Gildas Salvianus: The Reformed Pastor". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 13 October 2006 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=13722, accessed 26 November 2024.]
