Reformations: The Early Modern World, 1450-1650

Description

A lively, expansive history of the Protestant and Catholic Reformations and the momentous changes they set in motion This fast-paced survey of Western civilization’s transition from the Middle Ages to modernity brings that tumultuous period vividly to life. Carlos Eire, popular professor and gifted writer, chronicles the two-hundred-year era of the Renaissance and Reformation with particular attention to issues that persist as concerns in the present day. Eire connects the Protestant and Catholic Reformations in new and profound ways, and he demonstrates convincingly that this crucial turning point in history not only affected people long gone, but continues to shape our world and define who we are today.   The book focuses on the vast changes that took place in Western civilization between 1450 and 1650, from Gutenberg’s printing press and the subsequent revolution in the spread of ideas to the close of the Thirty Years’ War. Eire devotes equal attention to the various Protestant traditions and churches as well as to Catholicism, skepticism, and secularism, and he takes into account the expansion of European culture and religion into other lands, particularly the Americas and Asia. He also underscores how changes in religion transformed the Western secular world. A book created with students and nonspecialists in mind, Reformations is an inspiring, provocative volume for any reader who is curious about the role of ideas and beliefs in history. Cover Half Title Title Copyright Contents Preface PART ONE. On the Edge PRELUDE: Rome, 1450 ONE. An Age of Breakthroughs TWO. Religion in Late Medieval Christendom THREE. Reform and Dissent in the Late Middle Ages FOUR. Italian Humanism FIVE. Humanism Beyond Italy SIX. Forerunners of the Catholic Reformation PART TWO. Protestants PRELUDE: Rome, 1510 SEVEN. Luther: From Student to Monk EIGHT. Luther: From Rebel to Heretic NINE. Luther: The Reactionary TEN. The Swiss Reformation ELEVEN. The Radical Reformation TWELVE. Calvin and Calvinism THIRTEEN. England, Wales, Ireland, and Scotland, 1521–1603 PART THREE. Catholics PRELUDE: Rome, 1564 FOURTEEN. Catholic Reform: Facing the Challenge FIFTEEN. Catholic Reform: Healing the Body of Christ SIXTEEN. Catholic Reform: Fashioning a New Clergy SEVENTEEN. Catholic Reform: The Society of Jesus EIGHTEEN. Missions to the New World NINETEEN. Missions to the East Indies PART FOUR. Consequences PRELUDE: Rome, 1626 TWENTY. The Age of Religious Wars TWENTY-ONE. The Age of Orthodoxy TWENTY-TWO. The Confessional Age TWENTY-THREE. The Age of Devils TWENTY-FOUR. The Age of Reasonable Doubt TWENTY-FIVE. The Age of Outcomes TWENTY-SIX. The Spirit of the Age EPILOGUE. Assessing the Reformations Notes Bibliography Illustration Credits Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Z