Out of the Storm: The Life of Martin Luther (edit title)

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Liked It Rated 4 stars “This was a very good book. It told me more about the life and times of Martin Luther than I ever expected to know. It was written on a high level, and took me a long time to read, but it was time well spent.” see full review » see other reviews »

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  • Rated 4 stars

  “This was a very good book. It told me more about the life and times of Martin Luther than I ever expected to know. It was written on a high level, and took me a long time to read, but it was time well spent.”

  Eric M wrote this review Tuesday, April 7 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No

  
  
  • Rated 5 stars

  “This is a great book. Not only is it a wonderful biography of Martin Luther's life, it is an invaluable description of the early reformation. I was amazed at the volume of literature Martin Luther produced in his lifetime. His era was the era of the newly created printing press and Martin Luther was the most sought after author of that period in Germany.
  
  The book also has some interesting observations of what was right and wrong about the reformation as well as the impact of it. Wilson says that a reformation of some sort would have taken place even without Luther. The time and conditions were right. It was a time of the Catholic church ruling with an iron fist. The Inquisition was at it's peak. The church was actively trying to prevent the common person from reading the bible for him/herself. The church was also trying to finance massive construction projects in Rome and thus the issue of indulgences pricked the conscience of this Augustinian monk.
  
  Wilson also devotes a whole chapter to the issue of Luther's apparent anti-semitism and how it contributed to Germany's collective conscience and attitudes in subsequent centuries.
  
  If you are interested in learning about one of the great cataclysmic events in the history of thought and theology, this is a good book to read.”

  Brad Rice wrote this review Saturday, December 20 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No