William Booth, who co-founded The Salvation Army with his wife Catherine in 1865, wrote several books on the subject of holiness. Purity of Heart, which was first published in 1902, is one of the most concise of these books. Its chapters were originally open letters Booth wrote and circulated throughout The Salvation Army to be read aloud as a ten-week sermon series on the subject of purity of heart. In the first letter, Booth explains what he means by the phrase "purity of heart", and the subsequent sermons build on this theme...

William Booth was the founding General of the Salvation Army in late nineteenth century England. Finding his salvation as a teenager, he went on to become one of the most controversial and, ultimately, well-loved and respected social reformers of his day. Published in 1890 amidst the turmoil of the death of his beloved wife, Catherine, “In Darkest England” was hailed as a revolutionary approach to coping with the social ills facing Great Britain at the time. Although 130 years old, this revolutionary book of Victorian England still has much to say of note today. - Summary by Tom Hirsch