The Church and the Age of Reformations (1350–1650): Martin Luther, the Renaissance, and the Council of Trent

Reclaiming Catholic History #5

by Joseph T. Stuart, Barbara A. Stuart, Mike Aquilina (Series Editor)

In 1517, Augustinian monk Martin Luther wrote the infamous Ninety-Five Theses that eventually led to a split from the Catholic Church. The movement became popularly identified as the Protestant Reformation, but Church reform actually began well before the schism. In The Church and the Age of Reformations (1350–1650), historian Joseph T. Stuart and theologian Barbara A. Stuart highlight the watershed events of a confusing period in history, providing a broader—and deeper—historical context of the era, including the Council of Trent, the rise of humanism, and the impact of the printing press. The Stuarts also profile important figures of these tumultuous centuries—including Thomas More, Teresa of Ávila, Ignatius of Loyola, and Francis de Sales—and show that the saints demonstrated the virtues of true reform—charity, unity, patience, and tradition. You will A map and chronology are included. Books in the Reclaiming Catholic History series, edited by Mike Aquilina and written by leading authors and historians, bring Church history to life, debunking the myths one era at a time.

Genres: Nonfiction, Catholic, Church History

192 pages, Paperback

Published April 8, 2022

Reviews

[Steven R. McEvoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have greatly enjoyed the other five volumes in this series that I have read, and I have but 1 to go. They were not released in Chronological order, and have slowly been coming out over the last few years. The secon The Church and the Roman Empire by Mike Aquilina, came out first in 2019 as did the second The Early Church by James L. Papandrea. There will be seven volumes in this series, and this one volume 5 was released second last. Mike Aquilina is the general editor of the series. I can easily state that this volume is an excellent read. This book and the whole series are great reads. I spent 20 years as an undergraduate, for the most part because I loved learning. My last degree was in Religious Studies with a focus on Roman Catholic Thought. I would have loved this book and those I have read in this series as resources, for several of the courses I completed.

Many years ago when I did an Introduction to Church History course at Conrad Grebel College at the University of Waterloo, our professor, Arnold Snider, often said throughout the year, “I do not care as much about dates and names and places, as the story of Christianity. On your final exam the main question will be ‘Your uncle Billy at Christmas dinner says: ‘I hear you did the history of Christianity, tell us the story in your own words?’” And that was the one essay question on the exam. This book and the others I have read in the series would have been great resources for that course. Maybe could have even served as textbooks if the course had not been taught at a Mennonite College, if it had been offered at St Jerome’s University I could see these being the books used today. If I had had them they would have been pulled out often for essays, papers and research. This is a great read in an excellent series. These books are written in an engaging manner that any Catholic could pick them up and benefit from reading them. And this one is on a very hard time frame in Church history.

This is the sixth volume published in this series, Reclaiming Catholic History, though it is the fifth book in the series. The series is being edited by Mike Aquilina and the first published volume was by him as well. About this series we are told by Aquilina:

“The history of the Catholic Church is often clouded by myth, misinformation, and missing pieces. Today there is a renewed interest in recovering the true history of the Church, correcting the record in the wake of centuries of half-truths and noble lies. Books in the Reclaiming Catholic History series, edited by Mike Aquilina and written by leading authors and historians, bring Church history to life, debunking the myths one era at a time.”

Each of the book I have read so far I have benefited from greatly and recommended to several friends and family members. The chapters in this volume are:

Reclaiming Catholic History: Series Introduction
Chronology of The Church and the Age of Reformations (1350–1650)
Map
Introduction

Chapter 1: Reform in the Late Middle Ages
Up Close and Personal: St. Catherine of Genoa
You Be the Judge: Didn’t the Inquisition kill
and torture people because of their faith?
Up Close and Personal: St. Philip Neri
Up Close and Personal: The Papacy in Scripture
and the Church Fathers

Chapter 2: Protestants
You Be the Judge: Didn’t the Catholic Church make
up which books were in the Bible during the Council
of Trent?
You Be the Judge: Don’t Catholics pray to the saints
instead of Christ?
You Be the Judge: Didn’t the Church prohibit Catholics
from reading the Bible?
Up Close and Personal: St. Thomas More
You Be the Judge: Should Pope Pius V have excommunicated
Elizabeth I of England?

Chapter 3: Catholics
Up Close and Personal: Reforming Religious Orders before
the Council of Trent
Up Close and Personal: St. Teresa of Ávila
Up Close and Personal: St. Ignatius
You Be the Judge: Did the Church sell forgiveness of sins?
Up Close and Personal: Pope St. Pius V
Up Close and Personal: St. Charles Borromeo

Chapter 4: Consequences
Up Close and Personal: St. Francis de Sales

Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
About the Authors

The introduction to this book states:

“In the Age of Reformations, numerous challenges converged to confuse people about true reform. The new literate culture emerging due to the invention of the printing press around 1439 seemed to make texts more authoritative than living people such as wise elders or Church leaders. This contributed to a catechetical crisis. In addition, the resurgence of a kind of spiritualism in the Renaissance cast doubt on the material world as a vehicle of spiritual reality, undermining the sacraments.

A new view of history emerged that negated the very idea of tradition. It characterized the “Middle Ages” as dark and unimportant, and the classical era of early Christianity as the ideal pattern for Christian life. All subsequent history was decline. This broke historical continuity and development of doctrine. It also injected a dose of utopianism into the intellectual life of the age by giving rise to unrealistic hopes for Christians to reform by purging all corruption from among themselves and society.

Because the gap between Christian ideals and the messiness of real life seemed wider than ever and corruption clearly remained in the old Church, that seemed to prove the need to “start over.” Several new Christian churches emerged. The resulting conflict of theological voices calling for divergent ideas of reform constituted one of the central dramas of the age.

Then there was the political temptation. Zealous Catholic and Protestant reformers often aspired to governmental control of society. This created militant religious ideologies seeking to force reform in ways that easily betrayed Christian charity and respect for religious freedom. The perceived need to seek political solutions created huge challenges for authentic reform in the long run.

Finally, apocalypticism and impatience with the “ungodly” led to dreams of social revolution and violence. This was the temptation of pride in reformers, wishing God would show himself powerful, put down evil, and create a better world—through their help!

Further on it states:

“We approach our subject from the perspectives of both history and theology, our fields of expertise. That is because more than theological differences came into play during the Age of Reformations. Human spiritual freedom is not the freedom of pure spirits but rather the difficult freedom of people embedded in history and influenced by events outside their control. If one was born in 1550 in Spain, for example, one was likely to be a Catholic; if in Denmark, then a Lutheran. The religious choices of individuals were largely made for them by previous generations. The historian Christopher Dawson wrote that the decisions of one person—an apostle or a heresiarch, a king or a statesman—affected the spiritual destinies of millions of ordinary people. It is no less a mistake for the theologian to ignore historical context than it is for the historian to miss the “reality and the creative power of religious truth.”

I highlighted over 50 passages my first time through this volume. This book, as are all in the series, are excellent resource. It can be read by late high school students or undergrads and used as a resource. It can be read by anyone interested in church history. It is very engaging and often entertaining, though this volume does not have some of the humour of other offerings. It is an excellent resource! Most chapter’s follow the same format of the main history. Then two focused sections. The first is Up Close and Personal and is a profile of a specific person or people. And this volume has a few of each in each chapter. These sections usually focus on saints or blessed. The next is a section called You Be The Judge, which goes deeper into a question, point of interest or conflict. The book would be worth reading for either of these sections alone, and as a whole thing is very well written. The Stuart’s do an excellent job of presenting a balanced and fair view of the subjects and persons covered, maybe even too much so occasionally.

I benefited from reading this volume, and already plan to read it again. And I am certain you will as well. I know that I will be reading the remaining volume in the series. And will likely circle back and reread them all in order.

A good read in an excellent series!

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2022 Catholic Reading Plan!

[Jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr. Joseph Stuart and Barbara Stuart do a wonderful job of concisely relaying information, telling more about the stories and the people that change this time in our history. While I may have heard of many of the people discussed in the book, I was captivated by the rich backstories and information about them all as it filled in many gaps in my knowledge.

The book clearly dispels certain mistaken beliefs about the time frame, and offers a deeper understanding of the beginning of Protestant churches as breaking off from the Catholic Church. Well researched, it offers a wealth of information without bogging the reader down, keeping things interesting as you move through time.

It not only focuses on the events of the time, but also the people that shaped them, which helps you get a better sense of what happened and why. As with all good history books, it also helps us relate to the word today, and to see the cyclical patterns of life through time.

This book is highly recommend for anyone interested in history, the Christian church, or most especially, an intersection of the two.

[BJ Richardson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is one in a series called, "Reclaiming Catholic History." Like the others, it packs a lot into its very readable 200 pages. Obviously, when you are talking about 300 very important years in such few words, there will be much that is oversimplified or quite simply left out. Exhaustive, this book is not. Neither is it very nuanced. Instead, it is a simple retelling of the history of Western Christianity roughly from the time of the Black Death until the Peace of Westphalia from a Roman Catholic perspective. Each chapter is peppered with two types of asides. There is the "You be the judge" section that defends the RCC side of a controversial issue, and there is the "Up close and personal" which gives a brief biographical sketch of a major Catholic individual who lived during the time of the events being currently discussed. I think these would make an excellent church history textbook for a Catholic high school or even an introductory undergraduate class.

[Douglas Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is is the first book on the Reformation Era that I have read from a Catholic perspective and I am so glad that I have! “The Church and the Age of Reformations (1350-1650)” by Joseph T. Stuart and Barbara A. Stuart wonderfully illustrates the validity of Yves Congar’s four principles for true institutional reform. The Stuart's recounting of history from this period shows us that, unfortunately for everyone's loss, the reformation era didn’t play out in full accordance with Congar’s principles.

The writing is clear, thoroughly engaging and accessible. I particularly appreciated the “Up Close and Personal” sections that presented brief biographies of outstanding saints of the reformation period such as St Catherine of Genoa, St Thomas More, St Theresa of Ávila, St Ignatius and others. As an open-minded protestant with an esteem for the Catholic Church, I was also grateful for the “You Be the Judge” pieces that laid out controversial issues from the era such as the inquisition, prayers to the saints and indulgences from the point of view of the Catholic Church and historical facts.

Whilst there are statements in the book that I would disagree with, I found myself in broad agreement with the Stuart’s conclusion of the necessity of holding the principle of reform in tension with the principle of apostolic authority in the church. Tragic human failings at either side of this equation resulted in some deeply damaging events in the history of the Church. The writers also rightly, I believe, identify the glaring weakness of the Protestant ethos of Scriptural interpretation by individuals in isolation from the Church community.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in Church History and the Reformation. I think that it is a particularly important read for protestant believers - not every Protestant Reformer was a faultless hero, not every Catholic leader from this time was a corrupt villain! There are pertinent lessons for our current era that we would be wise to pay attention to. As the philosopher, George Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”

[Kid Ferrous · Rating 4 out of 5]

The latest volume in the “Reclaiming Catholic History” series documents the era from 1350 to 1650, incorporating the years leading up to the Protestant Reformation and its aftermath. The series aims to present an unbiased and objective timeline of “Christian history” - ostensibly a “just the facts” from “God’s point of view” - whilst making the story accessible and entertaining. I am not a Christian, but I applaud any attempt at an overview of history from a more honest and human perspective.
The title of the book is a statement of intent - this was the era of not just THE Reformation, but of many. The authors, Joseph T. Stuart and Barbara A. Stuart, offer a contemporary and modern reassessment of the Reformation that is never boring, writing accessibly and vividly to bring the era and it’s people to life. Towering historical figures such as Thomas More, Johanes Gutenberg (whose printing press would have a profound effect on the accessibility of the Reformation) and of course Martin Luther, a personal hero of mine. Rightly remembered as the instigator of change, this book shows that the genesis of that change had begun much earlier.
The book includes a chronological timeline of the era from 1350 to 1650, a map, bibliography and a full index. Sidebars entitled “Up Close And Personal” give concise biographies of the key players of the time, and the “You Be The Judge” panels invite the reader to make up their own mind about events and institutions such as the Spanish Inquisition; the latter having many of its enduring myths debunked.
This book was a refreshing read. It looks at history from a new perspective whilst remaining eminently scholarly, and deserves to be widely read.

[Jacquie Stricklind · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just love this series. I am learning so much about the history of the Catholic Church. I never knew much about Martin Luther and how the Protestant reformation started. Also, the reader will learn how some protestant denominations broke away from politics, for example; the Amish. It was such a hard book to put down. The maps and chronological listing of dates are so helpful. Everyone who wants to learn about the history of the Catholic Church should read this book.

[Jeannine · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author makes a statement in the foreword that he is offering history from a specifically Catholic perspective which is helpful to know. This is a relatively short book about a topic that has scholars with varying viewpoints have written tomes. Understanding what it is is will help the reader, the author really just hits some high points but I would not call it academic or scholarly. Now, that works for many readers who need something more accessible.
I personally was bothered by statements offered as fact by a historian who offers no footnotes or further comments for example in his chapter in Luther he says, " Interestingly, many of the books Luther tries to cast doubt on contained evidence of teaching he later contradicted in his own teachings, like purgatory or the intercessory prayer of saints." I find that a rather incendiary statement and to offer that with no footnotes or substantiation is rather mind-boggling.

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