The new review of the new book by Prof. Dr Andreas Merkt, Die religiöse Verwandlung der Welt. Die Anfänge "moderner" Religion in der Spätantike (Freiburg: Herder 2024), has now been published online.
Reviewer Prof. Dr Christoph Auffarth praises the work as "a very great book" that "takes knowledge of this much-discussed epoch a big step forward". The review was published on 1 October 2025 on the blog RPI virtuell and can be accessed via the following link:
Read review (external link, opens in a new window)
Further comments on the book:
"This is what was desperately missing... The book can be read with great profit both as a historically interested person and as a believer or non-believer."
Christoph Auffarth (rpi-virtuell 1 October 2025)
"A truly great narrative... [with] literary flair... offers a wealth of theses that get readers thinking in the best sense of the word"
Peter Gemeinhardt (MJTh 36, 2025, 158-173)
"a journey of discovery through late antiquity... Education at the highest level... an academic-literary masterpiece"
Dorian Winter (Communio 54, 2024, 687-692)
"impressive... highly scholarly, interdisciplinary book"
Hartmut Leppin (FAZ 11 October 2024)
"A fascinating book... An indispensable guide for anyone who wants to better understand the religious developments of our time."
Jan N. Bremmer
"Captivating reading pleasure! ... a diverse and interesting, in many ways new picture of religions..
Heiko Wulfert (Quatember 88, 2024, 330-332)
