Documents from the History of Lutheranism - 1517-1750

This unique collection of excerpts from Lutheran historical and theological documents—many translated here for the first time—presents readers with a full picture of how the Lutheran movement developed in its thought and practice. The volume proceeds chronologically from Luther’s lifetime to the beginnings of the Enlightenment. Each chapter begins with a summary essay and proceeds thematically.

Covering not only theology but also church life, popular piety, and influential historical events, the more than 200 primary documents excerpted here show not only the evolution and development of Lutheran doctrine but also its devotional writings, hymns, liturgical texts, letters and diaries, satire, political documents, woodcuts, and pamphlet literature. Lund’s judicious selection, careful translation, and helpful introductions acquaint readers with the turbulence and fervor of this revolutionary Christian movement, its struggles for survival and consolidation, its flowering in the age of orthodoxy and pietism, always with an eye to how it affected and was experienced by ordinary people.