The Division of Christendom: Christianity in the Sixteenth Century

by Hans J. Hillerbrand

Overview

In The Division of Christendom, revered historian Hans J. Hillerbrand details the events and ideas of the sixteenth century and contends that the Protestant Reformation must be seen as an interplay of religious, political, and economic forces in which religion played a major role. Hillerbrand tells the fascinating story of the ways in which theological disagreements divided the centuries-old Christian church and the roles that leading characters such as Luther, Zwingli, Anabaptists, and Calvin played in establishing new churches, even as Roman Catholicism continued to develop in its own ways. The book covers all significant aspects of this period and interprets these important events in their own context while reflecting on the consequences of the Reformation for later periods and for today.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780664224028
Publisher:	Westminster John Knox Press
Publication date:	10/29/2007
Pages:	520
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Hans J. Hillerbrand is a distinguished Reformation historian who is the author of a number of books on the sixteenth century, many of which have become standard texts. He is Professor of Religion at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. He has served as President of the American Society of Church History and the American Academy of Religion, and was editor of The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Reformation and The Encyclopedia of Protestantism.

Editorial Reviews

Hillerbrand (religion, Duke Univ.; editor, The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Reformation) tells the story of Christianity in the 16th century, with its striking interplay of prominent religious, political, and economic forces applying his conceptualization and interpretation to major themes and events of the Protestant Reformation. He covers the significant aspects of the period, including the Diet of Worms, the Edwardian Revolution, and Catholicism, interpreting events and theology in their own context with an emphasis on major characters like Martin Luther, the Anabaptists, and Henry VIII. Hillerbrand points out that no single factor-not the personalities of individuals, the state of the Christian church, or society-was responsible for the Reformation. He focuses mostly on Europe, especially Germany, and on Luther as being instrumental in bringing theological notions into the common consciousness. This scholarly book expands the author's Encyclopaedia Britannicaentry on Martin Luther. Recommended for academic collections.
—L. Kriz

Library Journal