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Why the Reformation Still Matters.

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499 years after Martin Luther nailed his 95 Thesis to the church doors at Wittenburg, Germany, we live in a day where many Protestants and Roman Catholics (RC) alike question what all the fuss was/is about. In both camps, there is a move toward an ecumenical understanding and practice of the Christian faith. Anyone who suggests that our differences might make a difference both in the present outworking of our faith and the eternal implications of our faith is looked down upon as being unnecessarily divisive. Others might assume that the issues and misguided theology confronted by the reformers in medieval Roman Catholicism are no longer issues present in RC today. Therefore, we’re left with the question, “Does the Reformation still matter?”

Authors Michael Reeves and Tim Chester address this question thoroughly, with grace and truth, in their book Why the Reformation Still Matters. Each of the eleven chapters takes on a central theological question in which the reformers confronted RC theology and practice. The chapters first examine the historical setting/teaching of the RC church, followed by the response of the reformers, then the contemporary teaching of the RC church, and finally how and why the theological chasm between the two faith traditions still exists today. In themselves, each chapter alone presents a sufficient reason why the Reformation still matters, but taken together the force of the whole book makes a compelling case for us to study, understand, celebrate, and apply the reformation in our lives and our churches today.

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