The book contains seven essays on the Reformation written by world-renowned authors. As much as they are widely known in their own academic fields and communities, this is the first time that such authors have come together to reflect on the major contributions of Martin Luther's thought at the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. Luther and Philosophies of the Reformation is a multi-disciplinary critical assessment on the Reformation discourse taking into consideration Luther's rediscovery of the Scripture, primarily looking at readings of St. Paul with the idea of gift and participation. It also presents, compares and contrasts a literary 'Dantean reading' of Luther with the Reformer's daring development of the doctrine of the Church that is relevant today. Consequently, this book offers a strong but constructive criticism of Luther's medieval metaphysics and of the unintended outcomes of his idea from a Hegelian and radical left point of view. The authors demonstrate throughout not only the relevance of Luther's thought for us today but also his possible significance for the future.

"Did the Reformation introduce a new approach to philosophy? How did it influence key thinkers in the history of modern philosophy? The contributions in this volume discuss the Reformation as a philosophical event in the early modern era – and its astonishing impact on key issues in philosophy until today." --back cover

This book explores specific aspects of Martin Luther’s ideas on education in general, and on religious education in particular, by comparing them to the views of other great sixteenth-century reformers: Huldrych Zwingli, John Calvin, and Philip Melanchthon. By doing so, the author highlights both the originality of the German reformer’s perspective, and the major impact of the main religious movement at the dawn of modernity on the development of public education in Western Europe. Although Martin Luther was a religious reformer par excellence, and not an educational theorist, a number of pedagogically significant ideas and ideals can be identified in his extensive theological work, which may also qualify him as an education reformer. The Protestant Reformation changed the world, bringing to the fore the relation between faith and education, and made the latter a public responsibility by proving that the spiritual enlightenment of youth, regardless of gender and social origin, is indissolubly linked to instruction in general, and especially to a more thorough understanding of the classical languages, arts, history and mathematics.

A biography of Martin Luther, a German monk, who led the Protestant Reformation in Europe during the sixteenth century.

The Encyclopedia of Martin Luther and the Reformation is a comprehensive global study of the life and work of Martin Luther and the movements that followed him—in history and through today. Organized by a stellar advisory board of Luther and Reformation scholars, the encyclopedia features nearly five hundred entries that examine Luther’s life and impact worldwide. The two-volume set provides overviews of basics such as the 95 Theses as well as more complex topics such as reformational distinctions. Entries explore Luther’s contributions to theology, sacraments, his influence on the church and contemporaries, his character, and more. The work also discusses Luther’s controversies and topics such as gender, sexuality, and race. Publishing at the five hundredth anniversary of the Reformation, this is an essential reference work for understanding the Reformation and its legacy today.

When Martin Luther published his 95 Theses in October 1517, he had no intention of starting a revolution. But very quickly his criticism of indulgences became a rejection of the papacy and the Catholic Church emphasizing the Bible as the sole authority for Christian faith, radicalizing a continent, fracturing the Holy Roman Empire, and dividing Western civilization in ways Luther—a deeply devout professor and spiritually-anxious Augustinian friar—could have never foreseen, nor would he have ever endorsed. From Germany to England, Luther’s ideas inspired spontaneous but sustained uprisings and insurrections against civic and religious leaders alike, pitted Catholics against Protestants, and because the Reformation movement extended far beyond the man who inspired it, Protestants against Protestants. The ensuing disruptions prompted responses that gave shape to the modern world, and the unintended and unanticipated consequences of the Reformation continue to influence the very communities, religions, and beliefs that surround us today. How Luther inadvertently fractured the Catholic Church and reconfigured Western civilization is at the heart of renowned historian Brad Gregory’s Rebel in the Ranks. While recasting the portrait of Luther as a deliberate revolutionary, Gregory describes the cultural, political, and intellectual trends that informed him and helped give rise to the Reformation, which led to conflicting interpretations of the Bible, as well as the rise of competing churches, political conflicts, and social upheavals across Europe. Over the next five hundred years, as Gregory’s account shows, these conflicts eventually contributed to further epochal changes—from the Enlightenment and self-determination to moral relativism, modern capitalism, and consumerism, and in a cruel twist to Luther’s legacy, the freedom of every man and woman to practice no religion at all. With the scholarship of a world-class historian and the keen eye of a biographer, Gregory offers readers an in-depth portrait of Martin Luther, a reluctant rebel in the ranks, and a detailed examination of the Reformation to explain how the events that transpired five centuries ago still resonate—and influence us—today.

David Pawson provides pointers for the reforms needed in the twenty-first century. He writes: "In countries where the church is in decline, what are we going to pray for and what are we going to do about this? I find that Christians fall into two camps: those who are waiting for God to do something and those who believe God is waiting for us to do things.... "Luther was not comfortable with the whole Bible; that was one of the roots of his inconsistency. The second failure, which came from that, was his failure to apply scripture to every part of the Christian life and the church life of his day. There were areas that he did not touch. I believe that God is calling us now ... to complete that Reformation and take the whole scripture and apply it to the whole Christian life, the whole of our preaching and the whole of our church structure."

Did Martin Luther really post his 95 Theses to the Wittenberg Castle Church door in October 1517? Probably not, says Reformation historian Peter Marshall. But though the event might be mythic, it became one of the great defining episodes in Western history, a symbol of religious freedom of conscience which still shapes our world 500 years later.

The book contains seven essays on the Reformation written by world-renowned authors. As much as they are widely known in their own academic fields and communities, this is the first time that such authors have come together to reflect on the major contributions of Martin Luther's thought at the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. Luther and Philosophies of the Reformation is a multi-disciplinary critical assessment on the Reformation discourse taking into consideration Luther's rediscovery of the Scripture, primarily looking at readings of St. Paul with the idea of gift and participation. It also presents, compares and contrasts a literary 'Dantean reading' of Luther with the Reformer's daring development of the doctrine of the Church that is relevant today. Consequently, this book offers a strong but constructive criticism of Luther's medieval metaphysics and of the unintended outcomes of his idea from a Hegelian and radical left point of view. The authors demonstrate throughout not only the relevance of Luther's thought for us today but also his possible significance for the future.

The three volumes present the current state of international research on Martin Luther’s life and work and the Reformation's manifold influences on history, churches, politics, culture, philosophy, arts and society up to the 21st century. The work is initiated by the Fondazione per le scienze religiose Giovanni XXIII (Bologna) in cooperation with the European network Refo500. This handbook is also available in German.