Author Description

This Work Offers A Reinterpretation Of The German Peasants' Revolts Of 1525, Understanding The Peasants' Movement In Religious Rather Than Primarily Political Terms. The Study Examines The Peasants' Religious Lives, Revealing Commitments To Peace, Social Harmony And The Environment That Come Into Conflict With Spiritual Priorities Of The Protestant Reformation, Notably With Those Of Martin Luther. The Work Draws On The Peasants' Own Documents, Such As The Famous Manifesto The Twelve Articles; Examines Their Actions, Including Their Negotiations With Lords And Their Organization Into Bands And Christian Brotherhoods; And Analyzes Their Behavior In Battle, Offering Insights Into The Movement's Underlying Motives And Goals. By Reconstructing Key Elements Of The Rural People's Ritual Life, Such As Their Worship In The Mass, Their Harvest Festivals And Their Rituals For Warding Off Inclement Weather, The Work Uncovers Deeply Held Religious Values About Peace, Community And The Environment. These Make The Peasants' Statements And Behaviors More Legible And Give Voice To Illiterate Rural People. The Study Shows How They Acquired And Communicated Religious Knowledge Bodily Rather Than Conceptually. Importantly, Both Those Religious Commitments And Epistemologies Contrast With Main Currents Of The Protestant Reformation, In Particular With The Thought Of Martin Luther, And Give Rise To Competing Notions Of Gospel And Christian Liberty. The Reformer's 1525 Writings On The Peasants, Such As The Admonition To Peace And Against The Robbing And Murdering Hordes Of Peasants, Are Among His Most Challenging Works. The Study Reads Luther's Texts In A New Light, Taking Seriously The Reformer's Claim That This Was A Theological Conflict And Drawing Out His Primary Theological Concerns. Close Attention To Luther's Emotionality And His Violent Rhetoric Reveals Seldom-seen Sides To The Reformer's Thought As He Struggles With Limits To His Interiorized Understanding Of Faith And Gospel, Battles With Rival Theologians Such As Thomas Müntzer, And Calls On God For A Cosmic Day Of Reckoning. Often Viewed As A Turning Point In Reformation History, The Conflict Between Luther And The Peasants Comes To Light As A Collision Of Two Different Religious Worlds, Each Incomprehensible To The Other. In These Ways, The Study Reveals The Important Role Played By Religion In This Defining Moment Of Early Modern European History-- Provided By Publisher.