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The Reformation (text only) by D. MacCulloch Paperback – January 1, 2005
- LanguageMiddle English
- PublisherPenguin (Non-Classics)
- Publication dateJanuary 1, 2005
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Product details
- ASIN : B004GWXRJ4
- Publisher : Penguin (Non-Classics) (January 1, 2005)
- Language : Middle English
- Item Weight : 0.01 ounces
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
Diarmaid MacCulloch is the author of The Reformation, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award, the Wolfson Prize, and the British Academy Prize, and of Thomas Cranmer, winner of the Whitbread Prize, the James Tait Black Prize, and the Duff Cooper Prize. Professor of the History of the Church at Oxford University, he was brought up in a country rectory in East Anglia.
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MacCullouch does a fine job of balancing the views and actions of Catholics and all the versions of Protestants that arose from the Reformation and Counter-Reformation. The core of the argument between these two varieties of Christianity is whether the Bible should be the go-to guide (Protestant) or whether the Church's teachings are of primary importance (Catholic). Of course, like all human endeavors, religion, politics, economics, art, and personality cults all play their role in history.
This is an area of history that I've generally avoided, as my area of interest is nineteenth-century England and technology. But when I realized that I wasn't understanding some social issues because their roots lie in the Reformation, I signed up for a graduate-level Renaissance and Reformation class. MacCullouch's book is one of several on the reading list, but the only one aimed at the Reformation.
At first glance, this 708-page text (plus notes, bibliography, and index) looks overwhelming, especially if you have to read it in a short amount of time, such as in a class. But I found the professor's writing style to be very clear and it wasn't a chore to read the book. I had so many "aha!" moments when reading this book I can't begin to list them here.
Some other reviewers have complained that this single book cannot span the historical and intellectual range of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, and they're right. No single book or author could accomplish that. But what MacCullouch has done is to write a very readable single volume that introduces many of the themes of that history. He does not focus on a single individual, although some, such as Luther, were certainly very important in the history of the Reformation and are mentioned much more than once. That is to be expected, but it doesn't detract from the quality of the material, and it doesn't mean that MacCullouch never writes about anyone else. He does.
What perhaps was most helpful to me was the last chapter, which summed up some of the current-day arguments over religious beliefs, both in America and Europe, and pointed out how they are just ongoing examples of what amounts to a continuation of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation. If you have any curiosity about this era or want to understand the breach between Catholicism and Protestantism, this book is an excellent first choice. Just be forewarned that, while this book is not exceedingly difficult, neither is it a "dummies" book, and you should come to it knowing a little history in order to get the most out of it. Don't be put off by the sheer size of the book.
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Reviewed in Mexico on February 19, 2023