GEMMS Announces Database Launch

GEMMS is looking forward to our official launch, taking place on 4 May, 2017 at Dr. Williams's Library, London, from 4:00 to 7:00 pm. 

If you plan to attend, please register by sending a message to lisa.cheetham@dwl.ac.uk

Our database now includes information on almost 500 manuscripts and over 6500 individual sermons. The manuscripts range from beautiful fair copies of complete sermons to notebooks containing hastily scrawled notes by auditors. While most were preached in the British Isles, a few come from North America. All manuscripts included to date are housed in the UK.

What comes next?

Following our launch, the database – via our new website -- will be available to researchers for searching, as we continue to add new records. Users will be able to search the database for sermons by specific preachers or on specific texts, as well as by date and preaching location. It should also be possible to search by sermon type (notes, outlines, drafts, autograph copies), repository, and genre (e.g. funeral sermons). We anticipate that in the following months researchers will let us know what features they find useful and suggest future enhancements and searching capabilities.

We will also begin developing plans for the next phase, which will allow other researchers to share and store their own data as well as to offer corrections and additions to existing records. Our hope is that this stage of the project will provide opportunities for researchers to share information and collaborate in new ways across disciplinary and geographic boundaries.

As we attempt to engage with researchers who will find our data useful, we encourage them to visit our social media sites and spread the word via Twitter about our new resource. (@GEMMS_sermons).