Reformation Observances: 1517–2017
Ebook
Overview
The year 2017 marks the five-hundredth anniversary of the Reformation, if that event is dated from the posting of Martin Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses. Admittedly, 2017 is an arbitrary and somewhat artificial milestone. Nevertheless, anniversaries can be special occasions that allow for an appreciation and evaluation of memorable persons and events. As a number of Reformation anniversaries approach, the historical significance of the Reformation merits increased attention. Employing a variety of historiographical methods from intellectual history to postcolonial theory, this volume demonstrates how four major traditions observed the Reformation: Lutheran, Anglican, Reformed, and Roman Catholic. The foreword and preface place the essays into the contemporary and broader historical contexts in the history of reform. Commemorations of the Reformation varied in different periods, often influenced by immediate historical contexts. How are those sixteenth-century events, which caused both renewal and conflict in church and society as well as divisions between those expressions, to be viewed in the twenty-first century in a setting broader than Europe?
“All Christians must salute the editor and
contributors to this volume, which could not have been written on
the 500th anniversary of the traditional birth of the Reformation.
Only a century of serious ecumenical discussion (and coordinated
action for the good) has made the production of this book
possible. Here we have four substantial essays, each
historically and theologically well-informed, that address, in
order, the evolving image of Luther, the developing relationship of
the Anglican to the Lutheran communions, the fascinating influence
of the Reformed tradition on Christian India, and maturing Roman
Catholic views of central Lutheran doctrines revolving around
justification. An exemplary conversation in print, this is an
intellectual feast. Into it, not only historians and the
ordained but all the baptized are invited, and from it all will be
richly nourished.”
—Kevin Madigan, Harvard Divinity School
“Reformation Observances
goes beyond simple commemoration of Martin
Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses. Its contributors examine past
centennials in historical context, while looking at ecumenical
dialogue concerning the theological issues dividing Christian
denominations. Most intriguing, one contributor reaches beyond the
West to Christianity in India. In relatively few pages,
Reformation Observances challenges us to see the dawn of the Reformation in an
ecumenical, multicultural light.”
—Thomas Izbicki, Rutgers University
“Much attention is being given to 2017 as the 500th anniversary of
the Reformation and especially to the present ecumenical setting.
Yet 2017 can only be appreciated and understood by giving attention
to how the Reformation has been observed in the past. How did the
Lutheran, Anglican, Reformed, and Roman Catholic traditions in the
course of 500 years note or not note the Reformation? The answer to
this question can only enrich consideration of the Reformation in
this century. This volume of collected essays seeks to supply an
answer. Anyone interested in the significance of this anniversary
of the Reformation will gain insights by means of this collection
of reflections.”
—William G. Rusch, The Divinity School, Yale University
- Title: Reformation Observances: 1517–2017
- Authors: Philip D. W. Krey, Christopher M. Bellitto, John A. Radano
- Publisher: Cascade Books
- Print Publication Date: 2017
- Logos Release Date: 2020
- Pages: 140
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Ebook
- ISBNs: 9781498240406, 9781532616563, 1532616562, 9781498240413, 1498240410, 1498240402
- Resource ID: LLS:9781498240406
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2026-02-22T00:41:56Z
Philip D. W. Krey, Ministerium of New York Professor Emeritus at the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia and president there from 1999 to 2014, is Senior Pastor at St. Andrews Lutheran Church in Perkasie, Pennsylvania. He has coedited Romans 9–16 (2016) and The Catholic Luther (2016), both with his brother, Peter D. S. Krey.