Renewal and fortitude in a time of turmoil

HUNTINGTON, Indiana, August 21, 2017 — In Heroes of the Catholic Reformation (Our Sunday Visitor, 2017), author Joseph Pearce, senior editor at the Augustine Institute and editor of the St. Austin Review, delves into the courageous actions of those who stood up for Church teaching despite the tumult of the Protestant Reformation five hundred years ago, and ignited a deep and genuine Catholic Reformation.

In this scholarly look at a critical time in history, Pearce highlights heroes and saints who valiantly sacrificed everything during “a time in which the Bride of Christ was being assailed by the dragons of secularism, Islam and heresy. It was for this most holy and venerable damsel in distress that [these] heroes gave their lives” — and became models of fortitude in a world battling many of the same issues we face today.

Heroes of the Catholic Reformation recounts the stories of those who bravely instituted deep reforms within the Church, even while protecting her unity. Following a prologue and discussion of three distinct “reformations,” each chapter focuses on a different hero and saint, detailing his or her lasting contributions in this critical time in Church history. Pearce gives a cultured look at these men and woman — martyrs, like Sir Thomas More; leaders, such as Pope Pius V; and theologians and mystics like Ignatius of Loyola and Teresa of Ávila — who sacrificed for the sake of the renewal of the Church during the dark and tumultuous times of their age.

But Pearce’s book does not simply offer a glimpse at these historical figures; it provides a manual for today. As Pearce states, “We live in dark and doom-laden days. So did the heroes of the Catholic Reformation. So do all men in all ages in this Fallen and broken world. We cannot choose the time in which we live but we can choose the way that we live in the time that is given us.”