Until now, scholars of Ulster Presbyterianism have focused upon internal theological debates, institutions, and the political implications of Presbyterian theology as a way to explain the origins of the United Irish movement and the swift conversion of Presbyterians to support for the Union with Great Britain thereafter. This book breaks new ground by considering the religious beliefs and practices of Presbyterians in their own right. It examines the various forms of public and private religiosity in order to determine how the community should be characterized. By stressing the integrity and importance of religious motivation, this book examines the dynamic relationship between the beliefs and practice prescribed by the church and those held by the laity, the rise to prominence of evangelicalism and its roots within the Presbyterian theological tradition, and the variety of Presbyterianism in terms of theological belief, social standing, gender, and regional location. During this period, Presbyterian belief and practice was shaped by three principal influences: tradition in the form of the doctrinal standards of the church and also those beliefs and customs of long continuance held by the laity; the forces of reform, particularly evangelicalism, that attempted to transform the structures and beliefs of the church and remove the popular accretions upon official Presbyterian belief and practice; finally, the programme of reform evangelicals embarked upon from the 1820s was stimulated by a broader revival of religion from the 1790s, entailed a revival of traditional Presbyterian practice as laid down in the Westminster standards, and would act as a stimulus to a further revival of religion within the denomination. Rather than seeing evangelicalism as a byword for religious enthusiasm and unbridled individualism, this book defines it as a movement for reformation and revival within Presbyterianism that had its roots in the Presbyterian religious tradition and which ultimately produced the 1859 revival.

Rationale-5-Hydroxytryptamine (5-HT, serotonin) plays a major role in brain ontogeny. Disruption of 5-HT during early postnatal development produces lasting changes in rodent 'emotionrelated' behaviors. Adverse effects of treatment with serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SRI) antidepressants have been reported in human adolescents. However, the long-term effects of chronic SRI treatment during adolescence in rodents remain unclear.Objectives-The objectives of the study are to assess the effects of fluoxetine treatment throughout the adolescent period in measures of fear-, anxiety-and stress-related endpoints in drug-free adults and to examine these effects in two genetic strains of mice differing in baseline stress-and anxietyrelated behaviors and sensitivity to SRIs. Materials and methods-C57BL/6Jand BALB/cJ mice received one of two fluoxetine doses for 4 weeks during adolescence (3-7 weeks old). A separate group of C57BL/6J and BALB/cJ mice received fluoxetine for 4 weeks during adulthood (8-12 weeks old). After a 3-week washout period, mice were tested for anxiety-like behaviors (novel open field, elevated plus-maze), fear conditioning and extinction, and stress-related responses to forced swim, as well as serotonin brain levels.Results-Adolescent fluoxetine treatment did not increase adult measures of anxiety-, fear-or stress-related behaviors, or brain serotonin levels. The same duration of treatment in adulthood also had no effects on these measures when tested after a 3-week washout period.Conclusions-In clear contrast with emotion-related abnormalities caused by preadolescent fluoxetine treatment or genetic inactivation of fluoxetine's pharmacological target, the 5-HT transporter, fluoxetine treatment throughout mouse adolescence did not produce detectable, lasting abnormalities in either "high" or "low anxiety" inbred mouse strains.

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This article explores the various factors that both encouraged Irish Presbyterian involvement in mission and shaped how they understood their missionary calling. It contributes to the recent growth of interest in the Protestant missionary movement and takes issue with the predominant interpretation of Irish Presbyterianism offered by David Miller who misunderstands the complex relationship between traditional Presbyterianism, evangelicalism and modernity. After an overview of the main developments between 1790 and 1840, a consideration of the influence of the Reformed theological tradition, eschatology and the growth of evangelicalism is followed by an examination of the Enlightenment, the expansion of the British empire and the Presbyterian sense of patriotic duty. Though various non-religious factors shaped Presbyterian attitudes to mission, it will be argued that their active involvement was a product of sincere religious conviction and an eschatological reading of the signs of the times.

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