Book Printing as Impetus for Reformation

In the century just prior to the Reformation, the invention of the printing press enabled the faster production and distribution of books, and the ability of more and more people to own them.

A Number of Different “Reformations”

The term “Reformation” is used in a number of senses, and it is helpful to distinguish them. As used in the historical literature, the term “Reformation” generally refers to reform movements in different areas, each of which had different roots: Lutheranism: This is probably the earliest and best known among the Reformation movements; sparked publicly …

The state of the church at the time of the Reformation

From Alister McGrath, “Reformation Thought: An Introduction” (Kindle Locations 423-440). Wiley. Kindle Edition; pgs 2-3 in the print edition: By the beginning of the sixteenth century it was obvious that the church in western Europe was in urgent need of reform. The popular cry for “reform in head and members” both summed up the problem …

Tracing the Origins of the Reformation

My hope, over the coming year, will be to try to fulfill the promise of this blog – to discuss the Reformation, from the point of view of the need for Reformation. … And in the process, I’ll hope to put some meat onto the bones of the skeletal history of the Reformation.

Calvin and Winthrop Between the Ages: Medievalism, Hierarchy, and Modernity (Part 1 of 4)

The following post is Part 1 of a series on Calvinism and Modernity. The first three posts will show that Calvin’s social and political philosophy is conservative by medieval standards, though there are important modifications to medieval thought. Calvin is not the first modern, a proto-modern or the foundation of modern politics, as many have …

Aquinas was the Problem; the Reformation was the Solution

As a former long-time Roman Catholic (from birth to about 18 and then from ages 23 to 38), I devoutly sought to understand and live according to the Roman Catholic faith. When I read through the New Testament at age 18, I didn’t find Roman Catholicism there; what I found changed the course of my …

Echoes of Scotus, Ockham, and Eck in the Reformed Orthodox discussion of faith and reason

On this topic, I present what Muller has to say, without comment: Medieval Antecedents to the Reformed Discussion The Reformed orthodox debate echoes the debate over the Scotist distinction between the infinite and perfect theologia in se and the various forms of finite theology typical of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. On the one hand, …

The Babylonian Captivity Of The Papacy – R. Scott Clark

Dr. Clark weighed in a topic about which I posted yesterday.  In this 600th anniversary year of the convening of the Council of Constance, his effort is very timely and can be read here. The crux of the matter is put succinctly here:  The Avignon crisis is just one of many examples from the history …

The Art of Being Calvinist: Imitating God in the Divine Drama

γίνεσθε οὖν μιμηταὶ τοῦ θεοῦ, ὡς τέκνα ἀγαπητά, καὶ περιπατεῖτε ἐν ἀγάπῃ, καθὼς καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς ἠγάπησεν ἡμᾶς.  Ephesians 5:1 Calvinism and art have a troubled history. From the iconoclasm of the French Reformation to the “plain style” of the New England meetinghouse, it is clear that the Reformed mind is suspicious of and sometimes …

The Roots of the Reformation: Indulgences

Everyone knows the role that Indulgences played during the Reformation. But does anyone know where they come from? A relatively recent work, The Roots of the Reformation: Tradition, Emergence and Rupture (by G.R. Evans, Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, ©2012), looks at the issues that were prominent in the Reformation, and traces them back to …