My Dear Erasmus: The Forgotten Reformer

David Bentley-Taylor has written a most interesting account of the Dutch biblical scholar Erasmus, by telling the story of his life and writings by introducing us to him through his writings. Erasmus lived just after the invention of printing and used this new technology to publish the Greek New Testament and to retranslate it into Latin, correcting errors that had persisted for over a thousand years.He tells us of Erasmus' strengths and weaknesses. We see him as the instigator of the Reformation, yet a critic of Luther and others who would take what he had begun to the next logical step.He would sometimes stand up for what he believed in, but at other times would deny what he had previously written, to keep in favour with the leaders of the Church.We see Erasmus' perseverance in the face of opposition and many illnesses, but we are also informed of the many contradictions in what he wrote.This is a great book. It is even better than his very good volume on Augustine. Highly recommended.