The European Reformations Paperback - 2021

From the rear cover

Rediscover the Reformations in Europe with this insightful and comprehensive new edition of a long-time favorite

Amongst the authoritative works covering the European Reformation, Carter Lindberg's The European Reformations has stood the test of time. Widely used in classrooms around the world for over twenty-five years, the first two editions of the book were enjoyed and acclaimed by students and teachers alike.

Now, the revised and updated Third Edition of The European Reformations continues the author's work to sketch the various efforts to reform received expressions of faith and their social and political effects, both historical and modern. He has expanded his coverage of women in the Reformations and added a chapter on reforms in East-Central Europe.

Comprehensively covering all of Europe, The European Reformations provides an in-depth exploration of the Reformations' effects on a wide variety of countries. The author discusses:

• The late Middle Ages and the historical context in which the Reformations gained a foothold
• Martin Luther, the theological and pastoral responses to insecurity, and the theological implications of those responses
• The implementation of reforms in Wittenberg, Germany
• Zwingli's reform program, the Reformation in Zurich, Switzerland, and the impact of medieval sacramental theology
• The Genevan Reformation and "The Most Perfect School of Christ"

Perfect for undergraduate and graduate students in courses on Reformation studies, history, religion, and theology, this edition of The European Reformations also belongs on the bookshelves of theological seminary students and anyone with a keen interest in the Reformation and its ongoing impact on faith and society.

Cover Illustration

"The Light of the Gospel cannot be Extinguished," a Dutch engraving for the 1617 centenary of the Reformation, promotes an image of a unified Reformation against a militant Counter-Reformation. The blazing candle signifies the true light of the gospel recovered by the Reformers (cf. Matthew 5: 14-16). Facing the viewer is "a great cloud of witnesses to the gospel" (Hebrews 12:1) encompassing Reformers from Wyclif and Hus to Luther and Calvin. Luther and an open Bible are front and center. Facing the Reformers are a cardinal, the devil, the Pope, and a monk. Vainly trying to blow out the candle, they are characterized as "distorters of learning," "father of lies," "false succession," and "hypocrisy." However, the image of a harmonious reforming movement united against Roman Catholicism does not correlate with the historical reality of the various reformations. The Reformers in the image had some very sharp and church-dividing theological conflicts with each other as well as with the Catholic Church. Furthermore, the engraving does not include so-called radical Reformers nor the large number of significant women Reformers. Indeed, the "unity" of the Reformation is more a historical construct than reality.