audiobook The Intellectual Origins of the European Reformation by Alister E. McGrath in History

Review

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Great Piece of Scholarly WritingBy K. DroddyWhile this book is written at a scholarly level it remains approachable by the student of history. A primer is necessary for one not familiar with the general terms; people; and movements of the Late Medieval; Renaissance; and Reformation periods of history. In this relatively concise work McGrath forcefully argues that the Reformation must not be viewed as a movement with a single; coherent cause. Instead; he posits; a series of local reforms took place all throughout Europe; each with their own literary and historical contexts to be examined and understood. While his book is somewhat lacking in scope; he does a marvelous job describing the intricacies surrounding those periods of reform originating with Luther; Calvin; and Zwingli. He discusses common sources of controversy; such as the interpretation of Scripture; which are still relevant to today’s reader. Overall; this is a book which should certainly be consulted if gaining a critical understanding of the various intellectual developments surrounding the European Reformation is one’s goal.1 of 2 people found the following review helpful. very helpfulBy richard millerI love this book because of the philosophical nature and review of the good and bad philosophical roots of the Reformation. This helps understand the errors of the Reformers; and why they thought the crazy things they did. It also helps appreciate the good philosophy of theologians today such as Dr. N. Geisler. This was helpful for research paper2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Two Protestant ReformationsBy NovaSince others have offered much in their reviews; I will confine myself to the element from it I appreciated the most. While not entirely original; McGrath brilliantly sets forth the argument that there were fundamentally two intellectual origins for the two magisterial strands of the Protestant Reformation: Late Medieval and Humanistic. He does so in a manner that is eminently scholarly; succinct; teeming with good evidence and insight; and very convincing. He engages directly with the primary texts both of the major reformers as well as their predecessors; while also taking stock of important surrounding literature and history. Some readers might get frustrated at the rather extensive inclusion of original Latin phrases without translation; however this is not really an obstacle to comprehension as the point is typically reiterated in straightforward English. As I said; the basic argument is not exactly new; however this book is so far the best overall that I've found for making it.