|
| Christian news worldwide |
 Home |
 Archives |
 Subscriptions |
 Adverts |
 Find a church |
 About us |
 Contact us |
 Site Map |
 PrintableVersion The ReformationFaith and flamesChoice historyTHE REFORMATION A new book on the Reformation always raises expectations. This one immediately draws the eye because of its striking cover and the beautiful presentation we have come to expect from Lion Publishing. Full-colour illustrations, some familiar and others less so, feature on almost every page. The question may be asked, though, whether we need another such book. Here are some considerations. New researchReformation studies have been very active in the last 20 or so years. Many valuable biographies have appeared of leading personalities, such as William Tyndale, Thomas Cranmer and John Calvin. There have been detailed studies of specific areas and countries. Andrew Atherstone, a research fellow of the Latimer Trust and based at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, takes full account of recent research for the benefit of the busy general reader. In particular, he recognises the work of Roman Catholic scholars, who have argued that the medieval church was not as corrupt as Protestants have portrayed it, but was popular and vibrant. Atherstone accepts this fuller picture, while showing that simultaneously scholars influenced by the Renaissance were going back to the sources of Christianity in the original documents. There, they discovered that the 16th-century church, whatever its vibrancy, had moved a long way from its beginnings and had lost the apostolic message. Mainly, however, the book is based squarely on original (printed) records, some of which have only recently been published. Even readers who are fairly well acquainted with the Reformation story will learn a great deal. Atherstone carries his learning lightly, and writes engagingly in non-specialist language. Broader pictureIn the second place, this account gives a broader picture than is customary of the extent of the Reformation movement. Within fewer than 200 pages, it traces the development of Reformed convictions based on the Bible not only in the familiar areas of Germany, the Swiss cantons, France and the British Isles, but also in Poland, Italy, Bohemia, Scandinavia and the Netherlands. It is an exciting survey of a profound and extensive upheaval. The unattractive aspects of the Reformation are also fairly described. This being the 16th century, the language of controversy was often coarse and personal, and may come as a surprise. Differences of interpretation on baptism and the Lord’s Supper led not only to invective, but to persecution and fierce conflict, in which many died. Atherstone does not spare his readers gruesome details of these heart-breaking events. Even Calvin’s Geneva was less perfect than it has sometimes been depicted, but the struggles, set-backs and mistakes ring true to contemporary experience. This is an accurate and realistic account. SelectiveThe Reformation was a multi-faceted movement, and this book skilfully shows the complicated interaction of political, social and spiritual factors and apparent ‘accidents of history’, giving due weight to all. Thus, in England, political considerations caused Henry VIII to bring to positions of influence Bible-believing Christians who had previously been persecuted. Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, Nicholas Ridley and the like were representatives of a genuinely grass-roots movement which was spreading in the country. Then, when Roman Catholicism had been re-established by Mary I, the situation was transformed by the sudden death of the queen. The author’s viewpoint is shown by his selection of material rather than by judgments expressed on the facts he presents. This leaves the reader some work to do in making his own assessments. It would be suitable for students from A-level onwards and for anyone who is concerned to understand the past and who enjoys an exciting read. Joy Horn,
|
|
