gibson has been described as ‘one of that school of ecclesiastical historians… which in the late twentieth century has given fresh impetus and vitality to the revisionist view of the eighteenth-century church...’ (john guy in "journal of welsh religious history", 1997) gibson’s championing of the ‘optimistic’ view of the eighteenth century church has drawn criticism from historians. the debate has been most recently aired in "reviews in history" (institute of historical research london, ). his biography of benjamin hoadly, though generally well received, has been viewed as an overly strong statement of the optimist’s defence of a latitudinarian bishop (“a valuable if perhaps slightly overstated reappraisal of one of the foremost pillars of the georgian religious establishment” –robin eagles "the eighteenth century" in "annual bulletin of historical literature", december 2006.)