The Reformation: A History

Diarmaid MacCulloch is an excellent writer and story teller. I highly recommend this book for it's broad coverage of the reformation. Throughout the book, the reformation is viewed as a theological power struggle that often involved preoccupations with rules that people wanted, not rules that always made rational sense. It is true, as other reviewers have pointed out, that the book places emphasis on the ideas of the reformers and counter-reformers, which surely was important in causing such popular swings of religious viewpoint. Additionally, the printing revolution is emphasized as a primary reason for the reformation. The economic situation is only lightly touched on as a major factor. I personally feel that author did an outstanding job of remaining unbiased throughout this book, which is especially hard to find in history involving religious ideas. As a Roman Catholic, I also think that the author did a tremendous job covering Catholic theology. Although it is touched on very lightly throughout this book, which is my only complaint. Catholic theology is something that most non-Catholic journalists nearly always screw up, and for this reason, it was a pleasant surprise to find the Catholic theology outlined accurately. This book covers the reformation period from the late 15th century to the beginning of the 18th century. Many aspects are touched upon throughout, including the reformer's long beards. MacCulloch brings an expert's insight to a subject that few know much about today. A summary of the historical conclusions made by MacCulloch is found in the final pages of the book. One such conclusion, summarized below, illustrates a common misperception about the reformation, and one that the author is quick to point out. "We have no right to adopt an attitude of intellectual or emotional superiority, especially in the light of the atrocities that twentieth-century Europe produced because of its faith in newer, secular ideologies." 5 stars for The Reformation by Diarmaid MacCulloch

MacCulloch's primary goal is to produce a readable, comprehensive overview of the Reformation. He is particularly concerned with educating the general reading public and aims at exposing the general public to recent advances in scholarship concerning the Reformation. It is clear also that he wishes this volume to be sufficiently rigorous to be useful to scholars. MacCulloch succeeds completely. This is a very well written, well organized, and truly comprehensive survey of the Reformation. MacCulloch begins with an excellent analysis of the features and discontents within the late Medieval church, proceeds to the sequence of events that initiated the Reformation, and then explores the major features of the Reformation and its consequences. There is an excellent, broad view of the events of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation. Rather than just concentrating on the major countries of Europe, MacCulloch provides excellent coverage of regions like Scotland, Lithuania, and Transylvania that were important stages for the Reformation. This is important, not only because these sections fulfill MacCulloch's goal of being comprehensive but also because events in these areas, often regarded as peripheral, are typically revealing of important features of the Reformation. MacCulloch does an excellent job of constructing the basic narrative, presenting the careers and often the personalities of the major figures of the Reformation, discussing the often complicated theological issues, and providing concise analyses for why events at given times and locations resulted in specific outcomes. MacCulloch has no ideological axe to grind and provides equivalent discussion of both the Reform movements and the Counter-Reformation response. Virtually all sections of this book are excellent, and many are outstanding. Among the many highlights are insightful discussions of the impact of printing, the origins of distinctive Anglican theology (the English Reformation is MacCulloch's specialty), the role of the very real threat of Ottoman Islam, and the role of millenarianism in the Thirty Years War. This is a really admirable performance.

While I have had a long-term love of history, my understanding of the Protestant Reformation and the Catholic Counter-Reformation of the 16th and 17th centuries has always been sketchy and superficial.It went something like this: (1) the Catholic Church allowed people to buy their way into heaven (via indulgences); (2) this made Martin Luther mad so he challenged the church by nailing his position on the door of the church (and he also wanted to get married) and so did John Calvin; (3) Henry VIII wanted a divorce but the pope wouldn't let him (which made him mad); (4) therefore, lots of Protestant churches came into being; and (5) the Puritans were part of one of them and they discovered America.The truth of these statements was murky and the causal relationship between them was harder for me to understand than the theory of relativity.I have a feeling I'm not alone. I knew it was all important, but trying to put it all together was beyond by ability. Well, now none of us need to do it alone, because Professor MacCulloch has written a history of the Reformation that is encyclopedic in scope and brilliant in its exectution. He fills in the gaps and clears up the many misconceptions.This is not an easy book to read. But while MacCulloch doesn't make it easy, he avoids the jargon of the professional historian. That said, this is not a casual beach read--it demands a careful and thoughtful reading. And the rewards are great. For the first time, I have a real clue why the reform movement took off is so many ways and in so many places. I have a far better idea of the relationships between and among men like Luther, Zwingli, Calvin, Cramner and so many more. I also now understand that the Reformation was not a linear, coordinated event, but was often chaotic and filled with both both greatness and pettiness.In our secular world, we tend to view the political history of the past in secular terms (or at least in terms where religion is relegated to being merely one factor among many). MacCulloch quite rightly makes it clear that, while many factors contributed, for example, to the 30 Years' War, in the end it was all about religion.This is a wonderful book that will illuminate and clarify history for anyone diligent enough to really read it. Highly recommended

Academics don't need a review of this book and might not need to read it. However, if you are a student of history, particularly American History, you should read this. If you understand that we are a political/social experiment to test the ideas of the Reformation, this book will show you where this "City on a hill" came from. It will make many Americans aware of how and why separation of church and state is so central to our system. It will give you some food for thinking about what has happened in the past 300 years.Do you know what a Protestant is? A Roman Catholic? An Anabaptist? Do you have any idea how important Jewish thought was to the Reformation? How did Reformation era thinking inform our political philosophy? Which version of the 10 Commandments is at issue in some schools and government offices? Did you even know that there are at least two "official" versions? This book shows how a million doubts and questions were addressed by some great and courageous thinkers and how the debates changed the world.In a very direct way, ordinary Europeans began to trust thinking outside the box (Church) during the Reformation. The imperative to put ideas into action was part of the revolution in thinking and drove many communities to gather themselves to remake their societies. Many of them came here. Did you ever wonder why so many religious communities came to colonize North America and were so careful not to allow us to become a Theocracy?This book manages to show a huge variety of the different trains of thought, all of which are different, all of which fall under the definition of Reformation.I've studied the history of thoughts and communities MacCulloch characterizes so well here. I am astonished that he dared to write this book and amazed that he pulled it off. I wish I had written it, or that I could have.It is dense, about 700 pages that will seem like 7000 to some people, but I couldn't put it down. I keep wondering what Erasmus, Luther, Zwingli and my immigrant ancestors would say about 2004. I an sure they would be unhappy that we no longer engage in their level of debate but that can change.