Historical themes in the Diocese of London: Faith and Worship
Where can I read sermons preached in London churches?
Any copyright library, such as the British Library, will have a vast collection of sermon literature, sometimes in the form of book-length collections, more usually in the form of pamphlet-length single publications or in bound volumes of one or more author’s sermons. You can locate sermons associated with persons or particular churches using a good online catalogue such as the online catalogue of the British Library, or Copac which brings together the catalogues of many important libraries. Lambeth Palace Library itself holds a very fine collection of pamphlets, not least those previously owned by Sion College, an organization of London clergy. And sermons are such ephemeral pieces that you may also find some preserved in other collections that do not make into the copyright collections or Sion: for London, it is worth being aware of the collections in St Paul’s Cathedral Library and at Pusey House in Oxford, for example (the latter is very strong on Anglo-catholic material); and it is always worth trying local studies collections in the local library. Many sermons were also reported in the press or periodicals, and it is possible to search for these online in many libraries such as the British Library (unless you know a particular date and place for a particular sermon, searching the print versions will be a laborious and possibly unrewarding effort).
