The Reformation as Renewal
Retrieving the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church
Matthew Barrett
- A
- holistic,
- eye-opening
- history
- of
- one
- of
- the
- most
- significant
- turning
- points
- in
- Christianity,
- The
- Reformation
- as
- Renewal
- demonstrates
- that
- the
- Reformation
- was
- at
- its
- core
- a
- renewal
- of
- evangelical
- catholicity.In
- the
- sixteenth
- century
- Rome
- charged
- the
- Reformers
- with
- novelty,
- as
- if
- they
- were
- heretics
- departing
- from
- the
- catholic
- (universal)
- church.
- But
- the
- Reformers
- believed
- they
- were
- more
- catholic
- than
- Rome.
- Distinguishing
- themselves
- from
- Radicals,
- the
- Reformers
- were
- convinced
- they
- were
- retrieving
- the
- faith
- of
- the
- church
- fathers
- and
- the
- best
- of
- the
- medieval
- Scholastics.
- The
- Reformers
- saw
- themselves
- as
- faithful
- stewards
- of
- the
- one,
- holy,
- catholic,
- and
- apostolic
- church
- preserved
- across
- history,
- and
- they
- insisted
- on
- a
- restoration
- of
- true
- worship
- in
- their
- own
- day.By
- listening
- to
- the
- Reformers'
- own
- voices,
- The
- Reformation
- as
- Renewal
- helps
- readers
- explore:This
- balanced,
- insightful,
- and
- accessible
- treatment
- of
- the
- Reformation
- will
- help
- readers
- see
- this
- watershed
- moment
- in
- the
- history
- of
- Christianity
- with
- fresh
- eyes
- and
- appreciate
- the
- unity
- they
- have
- with
- the
- church
- across
- time.
- Readers
- will
- discover
- that
- the
- Reformation
- was
- not
- a
- new
- invention,
- but
- the
- renewal
- of
- something
- very old.
