The Holy War Paperback - 2006

From the publisher

John Bunyan (1628-88) was an English writer and Puritan preacher best remembered for his Christian allegory The Pilgrim's Progress (1678) which is regarded as one of the most significant works of theological fiction in English literature. It has been translated into over 200 languages and never been out of print, and has been cited as the first novel written in English. In addition to The Pilgrim's Progress, Bunyan wrote nearly 60 titles, many of them expanded sermons. At 16 he joined the Parliamentary Army during the first stage of the English Civil War, serving for three years, after which he took the trade of a tinker. After his marriage he became interested in religion and at the instigation of members of the Bedford Free Church which he had been attending, he began to preach, both in church and to groups of people in the surrounding countryside. The religious freedom which had allowed him to preach was curtailed with the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 and soon led to his arrest. As he refused to give up preaching he was sentenced to 12 years' imprisonment and it was during this time he started writing The Pilgrim's Progress. Bunyan was freed in May 1672 and obtained a licence to preach under the declaration of indulgence. He continued as pastor of the Bedford Meeting and travelled around the adjoining counties preaching, and also as far afield as London. His other allegorical works include The Life and Death of Mr Badman (1680) and The Holy War (1682). His spiritual autobiography Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners was published in 1666 while he was still in jail.