Teaching the Reformation

Though the Reformation was sparked by the actions of Martin Luther, it was not a decisive break from the Church in Rome but rather a gradual process of religious and social change. As the men were responsible for religious instruction and moral oversight at the village level, parish pastors played a key role in the implementation of the Reformation and the gradual development of a Protestant religious culture, but their ministry has seldom been examined in the light of how they were prepared for the pastorate. Teaching the Reformation examines the four generations of Reformed pastors who served the Church of Basel in the century after the Reformation, focusing on the evolution of pastoral training and Reformed theology, the theory and practice of preaaching, and the performance of pastoral care in both urban and rural parishes.