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29 - Spirituality in the Reformation Era (1500–1675)

from Part Three - Topics and Disciplines of Theology

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 September 2023

By
Bernard McGinn
Edited by
Kenneth G Appold  and
Nelson Minnich
Kenneth G Appold
Affiliation:
Princeton Theological Seminary, New Jersey
Nelson Minnich
Affiliation:
Catholic University of America, Washington DC
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Summary

I have chosen “spirituality” to characterize this chapter, because in recent decades the word has become the designation for the investigation of the lived experience of Christian faith. Spirituality is rooted in the New Testament texts that speak about living in “the Spirit of Jesus.” The noun occurs in roughly the modern sense as early as around 400 CE,1 and was widely used in the Middle Ages.2 Spiritualitas was employed by Catholic authors in the Reformation era. Protestants knew the term, but shied away from it, preferring to speak of piety and active faith.

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Chapter
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The Cambridge History of Reformation Era Theology , pp. 604 - 622
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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References

Bremond, Henri. Histoire littéraire du sentiment religieux en France depuis la fin des guerres de religion jusqu’à nos jours, 11 vols. Paris, 1915–1933.Google Scholar
de Certeau, Michel. The Mystic Fable, volume I: The Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries. Chicago, 1992; volume II: The Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries. Chicago, 2015.Google Scholar
Cognet, Louis. La spiritualité moderne, volume I: L’essor: 1500–1650. Paris, 1966.Google Scholar
Dupré, Louis and Saliers, Don E., eds. Christian Spirituality: Post-Reformation and Modern. New York, 1989.Google Scholar
McGinn, Bernard. The Presence of God: A History of Western Christian Mysticism, 7 vols. New York, 1991–2021.Google Scholar
Raitt, Jill, et al., eds. Christian Spirituality: High Middle Ages and Reformation. New York, 1987.Google Scholar
Rother, John D. and Stayer, James M., eds. A Companion to Anabaptism and Spiritualism, 1521–1700. Leiden, 2007.Google Scholar

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