Book Review: Christianity’s Dangerous Idea
The Protestant Revolution-A History from the Sixteenth Century to the Twenty-First. By Dominic L. Pawlowski
Christianity’s Dangerous Idea: The Protestant Revolution-A History from the Sixteenth Century to the Twenty-First is written by Alister E. McGrath and offers readers a new explanation of Protestantism and the effect that it has had upon Christianity throughout the world. Alister McGrath, once an atheist, is now a theologian, priest, and apologist and has written over fifty books on theology. He received his higher education from Methodist College Belfast, Wadham College, Linacre College, and Merton College. According to the Alister McGrath website, he is Andreas Idreos, a Professor of Science and Religion at the University of Oxford, England.
In this book, Alister McGrath explores the effects of the Protestant Revolution on Christianity, the Catholic Church, and the world. Though the Roman Catholic Church had made progress in increasing its standing in a religious movement, the Protestant Revolution pushed Christianity to adapt and overcome various obstacles and ideas posed by political leaders, educators, clergy, and the general populace. McGrath illustrates how Protestantism pushed boundaries that eventually led to individual interpretations of the Bible. McGrath writes in the introduction of his book, “the dangerous new idea, firmly embodied at the heart of the Protestant revolution, was that all Christians have the right to interpret the Bible for themselves” (p. 2).
This book is presented in three sections: Origination, Manifestation, and Transformation. In section 1, Origination, McGrath begins by covering the decade before the Roman Catholic Church reformation, Martin Luther, the diversification of reformation, John Calvin and Geneva, England, America, and global expansion. This first section begins by exploring Protestantism's birth and the significant aspects of how it advanced toward revolutionizing Christianity. McGrath gives his readers an explanatory look at the history and the most significant events that pushed Protestantism's advancement, development, and evolution.
In the second section, Manifestation, McGrath covers the Bible, distinctive Protestant beliefs, structures of faith, western culture, arts, and natural sciences. In this portion, McGrath identifies basic Protestant idealism and how it has influenced many ways of life. This portion builds on the history presented in the first section to fuse Protestant concepts with Protestant culture to describe how Protestant attitudes and values have molded the world. He also goes further in this section to identify Protestant influences on the economies of the West.
In the final section, Transformation, McGrath examines the changing of American Protestantism, the revolution in Protestantism, new frontiers, and the next generation. In this last portion, McGrath explores twentieth-century Protestantism progress and changes, especially the development of Protestantism in South America, Asia, and Africa. The Protestant presence is solid in these areas of the world, and its existence is now global. The final chapter “considers how Protestantism is likely to mature in the future, as well as how these patterns of mutation illuminate recent developments in Islam” (p. 12).
Alister McGrath identified Christianity’s dangerous idea in his thesis “All Christians have the right to interpret the Bible for themselves” (p. 2). He strongly supports this idea throughout his book, beginning with the time and details he puts into the book. McGrath took many years to write this book, which shows in the research and his ability to pose and answer questions about the dangerous idea. His ability to provide facts on the history of Protestantism lends credence to the second two sections of the book. McGrath also writes the first section of the book as a historian would, not showing favoritism toward any of the entities involved in the history of Protestantism.
One weakness of McGrath’s book is the abundance of information in the first section of the history of Protestantism. It is essential to get the information correct and provide details to give readers a mental picture of the time. The issue is that McGrath provides so much information on the transformation of Protestantism that it becomes overwhelming in some chapters. This is especially true for readers who want to retain the information or are keeping notes. One suggestion would be to break the book into two volumes, allowing the readers to digest the information.
Another strength for Alister McGrath was his ability to build off the origination to the manifestation of the transformation of Protestantism. McGrath transitions between sections with an intro that gives the reader insight into what is coming in the following chapters. This allows the reader to reflect on everything that builds up to this point and how it will tie into this next section. It was as if McGrath used this as an intermission for readers to gather their thoughts and prepare for the next presented period.
One final weakness of Alister McGrath’s book is that he does not answer who should interpret the Bible. He illustrates how the Reformation shattered the Catholic Church into countless diversified denominations. Unfortunately, all denominations believe their beliefs are the only correct way to be a Christian. Attempting to answer this question would only provide more division, but why pose this idea without a response?
Alister McGrath wrote this book to exemplify that the past forms the present, but it also foresees the future. The spark that seemingly ignited the reformation, especially for Germany, was the acts of Martin Luther. His actions, beliefs, and writings about an individual’s relationship with God, being of a direct one-on-one relationship, were considered radical during his time. Luther’s Fundamental Themes included many of the features that would be representative of the beginning of Protestantism. Through all of these trials and tribulations, Protestantism carried on with the fundamentals of their faith: the Bible is the foundation of Christian practice and belief; the Bible text and preaching based on it should be vernacular; salvation is a free gift from God established through faith; and there is no distinction between clergy and laity (p. 56-57).
Dominic L. Pawlowski is a twenty-year Army Veteran and a leader in the Comanche Indian Veterans Association, and he is currently working on his Masters's Degree at John W. Rawlings School of Divinity.