The Reformation as Renewal: Retrieving the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church

“For a long time, the Reformation has been misrepresented by polemical scholarship. More sadly, modern Protestantism often supports the caricatures. Finally, we have a weighty, passionate, and well-informed riposte. This is a "must-read" for friend and foe alike.”

“Matthew Barrett argues that the Reformers did not aim to start a new church but to renew the true 'catholic' church—that is, the universal church that Christ is building in all ages and among all nations through His Word. Barrett's thesis is stimulating and his arguments robust. His evidence ranges from medieval scholasticism to the teachings of the Reformers. Though readers may differ in their approaches to medieval theologians, Barrett demonstrates that the Reformers confessed with sincerity their faith in the one, holy, catholic (universal), and apostolic church. Thus, he reminds us that the Reformers were examples of not neglecting the doctrinal heritage of the church but embracing sola Scriptura in a manner that is not radically sectarian but well-informed by historical theology.”

“This historical study of how to understand the Reformation is not for the faint of heart, or should I say, faint of mind. It is a deep dive into the self-understanding of those whom we denominate the Reformers of the sixteenth century. Its goal is to re-affirm the Reformation as a recovery of that rich tradition of biblical and patristic teaching that rightly merits the name Catholic and it admirably succeeds in doing so. Along the way, Barrett tackles not only some of the major theological issues of the world of the late Middle Ages and the era of the Reformation, but also ably corrects some common misreadings of the Reformation from secular, Roman Catholic, and evangelical Protestant scholars. It is a splendid work and must reading for anyone interested in the most important event in the last millennium of church history.”

“Modern pundits and Roman Catholic apologists have long asserted that the Protestant reformers were theological innovators who destroyed the unity of the one holy, catholic and apostolic church and unleashed toxins that contributed to our secular age. In this provocative and well-argued book, Matthew Barrett counters this misrepresentation by demonstrating that central theological contributions of reformers such as Martin Luther and John Calvin were in broad continuity with Augustine and the Augustinian tradition as it was refracted through the writings of various scholastic theologians, including Thomas Aquinas. The reformers were concerned to renew, not overturn, the one true Church. Barrett's study is a tour de force, lending persuasive weight to Luther's brash statement: "We are the true ancient church ... you have fallen away from us."”

“The Reformation as Renewal is a tour de force in the history and theology of the Protestantism Reformation. Detailed and yet clearly written, covering both familiar and neglected territory, this massive text will serve for years to come as a rallying point for those seeking to cultivate (or rediscover) a classical Protestant identity. Barrett successfully demonstrates that the Reformation was a catholic enterprise, over and against both the claims of the Church of Rome as well as the shallow, dehistoricized tendencies of many contemporary Protestant circles.”

“Far too long Protestants have imbibed from the fountain of the pop-history of the Reformation, namely, that the reformers rejected the "dark ages" and all things medieval. The truth of the matter is: history is more complex than this caricature. Barrett makes a compelling case that the Reformation has more in common with the early church and Middle Ages than most realize. The Reformation has genuinely unique attributes but is also rooted in the catholic, or universal, church. Barrett dispels the darkness of distortion, myth, and legend and shines the light of history, truth, and nuance to create a clear picture of where the continuities and discontinuities lie. This book is must-reading for all serious Protestants.”

“This is an impressively comprehensive and compelling account of the Reformation as a movement for renewal and retrieval rather than wholesale revolution, which gives far more than the usual passing attention to important medieval precursors as well as the Roman counter-reformation. A splendid tour-de-force of historical and theological writing.”

“The Reformation had elements of continuity and discontinuity with the medieval Latin tradition out of which it emerged. In many popular accounts, the elements of discontinuity are emphasized, while the continuities are perhaps ignored. Matthew Barrett has addressed this issue with great skill, showing that in a real sense, the Reformation had profound roots in medieval soil. It was not a movement of sheer novelty, but the Catholic faith drawing on its own best resources, reforming its own abuses, and thereby offering a self-corrected and revitalized Catholic faith to the Church. Anyone concerned to dig deeper into this story will find many fascinating riches to ponder in this significant work.”

“The Reformation has been caricatured as carrier of three viruses, nominalism, secularism, and individualism, which many blame for the downfall of the West. In this volume Matthew Barrett does a fine job of undermining those pernicious narratives and calling attention to the self-consciousness of Reformation (and post-Reformation) churches as heirs of the best of the patristic and medieval church, i.e., as catholic. This volume is a welcome contribution.”

“In this excellent book, Matthew Barrett has argued for the catholicity of the Reformation. Professor Barrett eloquently articulates the important truth that the Reformation did not break wholly with the Christian church of previous ages but was rather in direct continuity with it. Catholicity is integral and essential to the project of reformation. Well-argued and meticulously researched, this volume comes at a vital time for the church and the academy. This book is a must-read for all who are interested in the relationship between the Reformation and catholicity.”

“This book has the potential to change your understanding of the nature of the Reformation. Instead of seeing it as a repudiation of the mainstream of medieval Christianity and the beginning of something new, this book helps us see it as the rejection of late medieval scholasticism, the via moderna, and the recovery of an older Augustinian-Thomist tradition. Radical philosophical ideas central to the via moderna such as univocity, voluntarism, and nominalism were advocated by thinkers such as Scotus, Ockham and Biel in the thirteenth to fifteenth centuries. What Barrett's painstakingly precise analysis shows is that elements of the via moderna found expression both in Roman Catholic and Protestant thinkers but were more formative in the post-Tridentine Roman Church. What dominated Protestant scholasticism was the older Augustinian-Thomist ideas that had come under attack from advocates of the via moderna. On this basis, Barrett argues not only that the reformers intended to be more catholic than Rome but also that they largely succeeded in doing so. The Reformation, therefore, is not the founding of a new religion or a deviation from the mainstream of tradition but rather the retrieval of the catholic roots of Christianity.”

“Highlighting the continuity of the Reformation with the classical orthodoxy of the patristic and medieval eras, Matthew Barrett invites the contemporary church to find renewal by traversing the "old, ancient paths." He beckons us to walk alongside Luther, Calvin, Zwingli, and many other Reformers on pilgrimage on these paths with medieval theologians who, in turn, follow after the early church fathers. With his clear, engaging prose, Barrett provides us with both a splendid textbook for Reformation courses and a strong call to creedal catholicity.”

“In this panoramic achievement, Matthew Barrett proposes and defends the thesis that to be Protestant is to be catholic, but not Roman. Busting the myths that Protestantism is inherently anti-traditional and pro-modern, a precursor of secularism, this book leaves no stone unturned, and shows us that the Magisterial Reformers had no intention of departing from the Great Tradition bequeathed by the ancient church and transmitted by the best of the medieval thinkers. The Reformers sought to purge the church of unevangelical accretions precisely so that it would reflect catholic truth. This book is must reading for all conservative Protestants.”

“With verve and erudition, writing from the perspective of the vibrant movement of Reformed catholicity, Matthew Barrett has written a stimulating introduction to the figures and controversies of Reformation era. He defends the Augustinian-Thomistic theology that was advocated by a number of first- and second-generation Reformers. Historically sensitive and theologically sophisticated, Barrett's argument is that the Reformers carried forward a church that was catholic but not Roman. So long as it doesn't entail the notion Roman Catholics are Roman but not catholic, his argument may offer promising ecumenical potential.”

“That we are not the first ones who think about the church is evident. That we can learn from the Reformation how to be church of Christ is made evident in this rich book. Barrett describes the Reformation as the Reformation of the church but does this through offering us a fascinating overview of the theological and intellectual history from Late Middle Ages up until the Council of Trent. Matthew Barrett writes directly from the sources and in conversation with the latest in early modern research and does this in an accessible style that stimulates to see how today we can make use all the wealth of insights of the Reformation era. A fine academic work for the classroom and far beyond.”

“For centuries Protestants have had a clear sense of what it means to be "catholic." Surely, it was the church against which they defined themselves. What has been lost is the creedal language of "one, holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church" that the reformers of the sixteenth century sought to recover, not upend. Matthew Barrett offers a rich theological and historical account of catholicity as the lifeblood of Protestantism. That is, not a movement of innovation, but a church in continuity with the historic faith. Barrett removes the layers of varnish of misunderstanding that have obscured what the Reformation was truly about. If the Protestant churches were not catholic, they were merely the sects denounced by their opponents. This book is a crucial corrective to a historical tradition that has lost its sense of self.”