Christ's churches purely reformed a social history of Calvinism / [electronic resource] :
Philip Benedict.
- Yale University Press, 2002.
- 1 online resource (xxvi, 670 p.) : ill., maps.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Zurich contra Wittenberg -- The second generation : Switzerland and Germany -- The second generation : Calvin and Geneva -- France : the construction and defense of a minority church -- Scotland : a revolutionary reformation -- The Netherlands : another revolutionary reformation -- The empire : further reformation by princely fiat -- England : the unstable settlement of a church "but halfly reformed" -- Eastern Europe : local reformations under noble protection -- Theological disputes in the age of orthodoxy -- Changing political circumstances on the continent -- British schisms -- The reformation of the ministry -- The exercise of discipline -- The practice of piety.
A synthetic history of Calvinism. It tells the story of the Reformed tradition from its birth in the cities of Switzerland to the unravelling of orthodoxy amid the new intellectual currents of the 17th century. As befits a pan-European movement, Philip Benedict's canvas stretches from the British Isles to Eastern Europe. The course and causes of Calvinism's remarkable expansion, the inner workings of the diverse national churches, and the theological debates that shaped Reformed doctrine all receive attention. The English Reformation is situated within the history of continental Protestantism in a way that is designed to reveal the international significance of English developments. An examination of Calvinist worship, piety and discipline permits an assessment of the classic theories linking Calvinism to capitalism and democracy. Benedict aims to paint a vivid picture of the greatest early spokesmen of the cause, Huldrych Zwingli and John Calvin, and to restore many lesser-known figures to their rightful place. His work offers a model of how to think about the history and significance of religious change across the long Reformation era.