My son wrote an essay recently on the cultural antecedents to the French Revolution and declining belief in absolute monarchy. One of the elements discussed was the availability of Bible translations in languages other than Latin, reducing the role of priests as conduits of spiritual authority and raising questions about the parallel role of monarchs […]
Reformation
Science in Review: Reformation Comes to the Book of Nature
This week we observe the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s hammer stroke heard ’round the world.
Book Review: Erasmus and the Age of Reformation, by Johan Huizinga
Summary: An elegantly written biography of Desiderius Erasmus describing his life, thought and character as a scholar who hoped to awaken “good learning” and to bring about a purified Catholic church, and the tensions resulting from being caught between Reformers and Catholic hierarchy.
Book Response: The Courage to Be Protestant, by David F. Wells
Overall I appreciate that instead of attempting to summarize and update fifteen years of intense writing (including five Eerdmans publications); Wells delivered the essence of his work. But I wished from the beginning that he included a limited number of footnotes and/or recommendations for further reading beyond references to his previous titles.
How should Christians approach catechism?
Getting back to basics. A consideration of The Heidelberg Catechism.