"This expansive tome is for researchers, indispensable for those (especially historians) working in the field of Luther studies and of the early Reformation."
John A. Maxfield in Lutheran Quarterly 28 (2014), pp. 233-235

The historiographical significance of the Reformation is debatable. Against the backdrop of the discussion surrounding continuities and upheavals between the Late Middle Ages and the Reformation, Thomas Kaufmann analyzes the extent to which the Reformation marked a "beginning." In doing so, he focuses on the contexts and forms which were used to establish earlier Christian traditions. At the same time he deals with the communication dynamics, especially the key media of pamphlets which, starting with Luther, set the Reformation process in motion. The creation of the doctrine and the construction of identity show the internal coherence and the dissociation procedure which influenced the evangelical movement.

"This expansive tome is for researchers, indispensable for those (especially historians) working in the field of Luther studies and of the early Reformation. [] This contextual analysis of Luther's reception is precisely what is needed as scholars reassess the formative period of the Reformation as a whole and not solely through micro-historical analyses of various actors and movements focusing on their local impact."
John A. Maxfield in Lutheran Quarterly 28 (2014), pp. 233-235

Autorentext
Born 1962; studied Protestant Theology and History; 1990 doctorate; 1994 habilitation; 1996-2000 Chair of Church History at the LMU Munich; Professor of Church History at the Faculty of Theology of the University of Göttingen; Abbot of Bursfelde; Academic Director of the State and University Library of Göttingen.

Klappentext

Die historiographische Bedeutung der Reformation ist umstritten. Thomas Kaufmann analysiert vor dem Hintergrund der Diskussionen um Kontinuitäten und Umbrüche zwischen dem Spätmittelalter und der Reformation, inwiefern die Reformation einen "Anfang" darstellte. Dabei rücken die Kontexte und Formen, unter denen die vorangegangenen Traditionen der Christenheit konstruiert werden, ins Zentrum.
"Ein unglaublich gelehrtes, in viele Einzelheiten der frühen Neuzeit einführendes Buch, weit über theologische Fragen hinausgehend und doch immer nach der Relevanz für die Theologie fragend. [...] Der Stand der Forschung, die Fülle der Quellen, spannende Ergebnisse. Spitzenforschung."Christoph Auffarth auf http://buchempfehlungen.blogs.rip-virtuell.net (02/2013)
"Ein großes Werk des Göttinger Kirchenhistorikers Thomas Kaufmann."Karl-Friedrich Wiggermann in PV-aktuell Nr. 3 (2012), S. 9