Luther's Fortress: Martin Luther and His Reformation Under Siege
In 1521, the Catholic Church declared war on Martin Luther. The German monk had already been excommunicated the year before, after nailing his Ninety-Five Theses—which accused the Church of rampant corruption—to the door of a Saxon church. Now, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V called for Luther “to be apprehended and punished as a notorious heretic.” The edict was akin to a death sentence: If Luther was caught, he would almost inevitably be burned at the stake, his fragile movement crushed, and the nascent Protestant Reformation strangled in its cradle... Read more.
"James Reston, Jr. is a prolific, best-selling, and, based solely on this work, a highly skilled writer....His ability to convey the atmosphere of the time so palpably and to bring various personae to life so vividly is certainly the book's major strength and advantage. After bringing us to 1521, Reston recounts Luther's entry into Worms and his actions at the Diet in a detailed, lively, and gripping "you-are-there" style that captures the tension and the suspense of this event far better than the typical academic book....Such lively writing will surely make this book appealing to many readers. The book is extremely well written, in an engaging and passionate style, and it will undoubtedly serve as a useful and captivating introduction for many to Luther and the early years of the Reformation, and as an inspiration to others.
--Jay Goodale, Professor of the Reformation, Bucknell University, HNet "An engaging study of a short but explosive period in the life of the great reformer....a swift moving narrative....an intensive journey inside Luther's thinking as it was forming in opposition to the Roman Catholic Church." --Kirkus Reviews "Reston's superb juxtaposition of Luther's solitude in the Wartburg Castle and the instability in both Rome and Wittenberg demonstrates how truly perilous a moment this was in the history of the burgeoning Reformation." --Publisher's Weekly "A crisply written narrative.....the author details in exemplary fashion what was so important and influential about his subject's life and works. A fine, scholarly but accessible treatment of a key period in the life of one of the most influential persons in the history of Christianity." ---Library Journal The book can be found on Amazon. Audible edition: Here. |
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