All Things Made New: The Reformation and Its Legacy

Diarmaid MacCulloch's latest is as good as his three previous books. He writes exceedingly well, and his scholarship is excellent, as always. MacCulloch's occasional wit and irony in the essays makes for enjoyable reading.

Published September 2016, this is a collection of essays and reviews that have been published separately. Here is MacCulloch at his best: erudition softened by wit and an appreciation of the theological enterprise as necessary, yet always inadequate, frequently corrupt, and sometimes deadly.

I have become a fan of Diarmaid MacCulloch's books over the years. Although I am not an expert in the field, I find them engaging and digestable without being so watered down as to be condescending (a problem with some academic writers who want to reach a wider audience). Don't get me wrong, the book is demanding, not a page-turner, and I struggle with more than a chapter at a time--so much information. However, the density is worth the knowledge that is gained from reading this book.

This book is actually a collection of articles written by Prof. MacCulloch over the years, all dealing with the English Reformation, which is his specialty. It contains many useful insights and, for those of us in the field of Reformation studies generally, a number of very helpful references. The thesis that emerges from many of the articles is that the Church of England was part of the wider community of Reformed (although not necessarily Calvinist) churches until after the Civil War, when what we today we call Anglicanism was, for lack of a better term, invented. In several essays, he points out the rewriting of English church history by the nineteenth-century Tractarians, who wanted to argue that Anglicanism was always a "middle way." Prof MacCulloch is himself a liberal Anglican, and he does not keep his views hidden. In part, this is helpful, because he has no personal attachment to either the Puritans or the Tractarians, and is therefore able to discuss the theological vagaries of the Church of England in the Reformation period without animus. On the other hand, his comments about contemporary religion--he wishes that Pope Francis might bring the Roman Catholic Church into conformity with modern ideas about sexuality--can be a bit annoying. Because they are largely irrelevant to the history he is discussing, the reader can ignore them with impunity.

The foremost British scholar of the Reformation has done it again in this series of reflections on the English Reformation. Anyone who enjoys Reformation history will love this book, even if one does not always agree with the author's viewpoints. The book makes an easy introduction to Reformation history, laying out clearly the issues at stake and the personalities involved.

Excellent book on the Reformation. It helps me understand the English Civil War, the last religious war of Europe.

If at times a little tedious, the book never failed to be rewarding with insight and wit. If you have enjoyed MacCulloch's writing you will enjoy these essays.

Excellent series of articles on the Reformation.

well written. It's a good read.

Very interesting book