Radicals and Reformers

""Radicals and Reformers is a gift to undergraduate classrooms--pedagogically flexible with expansive possibilities for drilling down or connecting to other areas of study. Inclusive of a wide range of Anabaptisms, Troy Osborne's focus on the ways that Anabaptist-Mennonites have responded to the realities of their contexts across time and space makes this text particularly relevant to today's academic challenges, as well as those that face the church."" --ELIZABETH MILLER, assistant professor of history and director of the Institute for the Study of Global Anabaptism at Goshen College ""Radicals and Reformers is the first text that truly integrates the history and evolution of Anabaptists and Mennonites across the globe from their origins to present-day realities. Troy Osborne is to be commended for outlining a complex story that balances a people's feats and foibles in equal measure and introduces little-known actors and events to offer new perspectives on familiar tales."" --MARLENE EPP, professor emeritus of history and peace and conflict studies at Conrad Grebel University College ""Radicals and Reformers tells the challenging story of Christ-following communities captivated more by the enactment of faithful practices than by the affirmation of key doctrines or the maintenance of enduring institutions. Such a story of concrete discipleship is difficult to tell because it involves a constantly shifting cast of characters and contexts, with persistent disagreements that disrupt as well as energize spiritual renewal. Troy Osborne gives us an expansive and inclusive Anabaptist story, full of both faith and failure, whose coherence arises from radical Christian hope harbored amidst contested communal convictions."" --GERALD MAST, professor of communication at Bluffton University ""A tightly written and original work that brilliantly weaves together global Anabaptist history from Europe to Africa to Asia and across the Americas. Radicals and Reformers adds great depth to our collective understanding of Anabaptism across geographies, languages, and cultures."" --FELIPE HINOJOSA, John and Nancy Jackson Endowed Chair in Latin America and professor of history at Baylor University ""I have been waiting for this book for my entire teaching career. Troy Osborne has synthesized research from the past forty years into an engaging new global narrative that is concise enough for use as an undergraduate college textbook. Employing a transnational approach, Osborne brings the long and complicated sweep of Mennonite history into the twenty-first century. Through explicit discussion of how faith has interacted with culture, modernization, colonialism, indigeneity, and globalization, the book provides rich fodder for discussion of Mennonite reality today."" --MARY SPRUNGER, professor of history and program director of history and political science at Eastern Mennonite University ""The analysis made by the author of this wonderful book takes the reader on a journey through the history, origins, and preservation of the religion and cultural identity of the Anabaptists since late medieval times. At the same time, it invites readers to reflect on the movement's principles and how they endure even in new generations around the world, since they have resisted the influence of other groups or religions and adapted their way of living nowadays."" --PATRICIA ISLAS SALINAS, researcher at the Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez ""This welcome new study lays out the five hundred-year story of Anabaptism in compelling and sometimes provocative ways. It is the fruit of extensive research and well-balanced analysis. Both scholarly and accessible, the volume brilliantly captures the multivalent tapestry of an evolving tradition that began in Europe and grew to become a global reality."" --KARL KOOP, professor of history and theology at Canadian Mennonite University ""Troy Osborne has presented a remarkable work that delves into the Anabaptist movement's history, spanning over five centuries and five continents. It is an excellent resource for anyone seeking a comprehensive understanding of the Anabaptist tradition's past and present. It is highly recommended!"" --CÉSAR GARCÍA, general secretary of Mennonite World Conference ""Troy Osborne links Anabaptist themes of radical faithfulness and reconciliation with God and humans across five centuries and five continents in one sweeping and accessible narrative. Vivid personal stories illustrate how everyday encounters with a living God embodied in this specific tradition of biblical interpretation and discipleship redirect lives whether in twentieth-century Africa, sixteenth-century Europe, or other places and times this movement has appeared."" --MARK JANTZEN, professor of history at Bethel College