Medieval Heretics as Protestant Martyrs

1993 ◽  
Vol 30 ◽  
pp. 185-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Euan Cameron
Keyword(s):  
Sixteenth Century ◽  
Middle Ages ◽  
Martin Luther ◽  
Church History ◽  
Medieval Church ◽  
Church Polity ◽  
The Reformation ◽  
History Of ◽  
Articles Of Faith ◽  
The Church

Two themes which figure repeatedly in the history of the Western Church are the contrasting ones of tradition and renewal. To emphasize tradition, or continuity, is to stress the divine element in the continuous collective teaching and witness of the Church. To call periodically for renewal and reform is to acknowledge that any institution composed of people will, with time, lose its pristine vigour or deviate from its original purpose. At certain periods in church history the tension between these two themes has broken out into open conflict, as happened with such dramatic results in the Reformation of the sixteenth century. The Protestant Reformers seem to present one of the most extreme cases where the desire for renewal triumphed over the instinct to preserve continuity of witness. A fundamentally novel analysis of the process by which human souls were saved was formulated by Martin Luther in the course of debate, and soon adopted or reinvented by others. This analysis was then used as a touchstone against which to test and to attack the most prominent features of contemporary teaching, worship, and church polity. In so far as any appeal was made to Christian antiquity, it was to the scriptural texts and to the early Fathers; though even the latter could be selected and criticized if they deviated from the primary articles of faith. There was, then, no reason why any of the Reformers should have sought to justify their actions by reference to any forbears or ‘forerunners’ in the Middle Ages, whether real or spurious. On the contrary, Martin Luther’s instinctive response towards those condemned by the medieval Church as heretics was to echo the conventional and prejudiced hostility felt by the religious intelligentsia towards those outside their pale.

scholarly journals Historiese teologie in ʼn veranderende konteks

2016 ◽  
Vol 72 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wim A. Dreyer
Keyword(s):  
Biblical Interpretation ◽  
Church History ◽  
Church Polity ◽  
History Of ◽  
Missions History ◽  
History Of Theology ◽  
Historical Theology ◽  
History Of Biblical Interpretation ◽  
The Church ◽  
Precarious Situation

In this contribution, the author reflects on historical theology as theological discipline. After a short introduction to the precarious situation of church history as a theological discipline in South Africa and the question of faith and history, the contribution presents an analysis of Gerhard Ebeling’s 1947 publication on church history in which he proposed that church history should be understood as a history of Biblical interpretation. Based on some of the principles Ebeling delineated, the author proposes that historical theology could be applied to five areas of research: prolegomena, history of the church, history of missions, history of theology and church polity. The point is made that historical theology, when properly structured and presented, could play a major role in enriching the theological and ecclesial conversation and in assisting the church in the process of reformation and transformation.Keywords: Gerhard Ebeling; Hermeneutics; Church History

The medieval church

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Luscombe
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Middle Ages ◽  
Medieval Church ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Middle Ages

This chapter discusses the contributions that were made by former Fellows of the Academy to the study of the medieval church. It states that the history of the medieval church is inseparable from the general history of the Middle Ages, since the church shaped society and society shaped the church. The chapter determines that no hard and fast distinction can always be made between the works by ecclesiastical historians during the twentieth century, and the contributions made to general history by other historians.

Recent Literature in Church HistoryKleine Texte für theologische Vorlesungen und Uebungen. Hans LietzmannHistory of Sacerdotal Celibacy in the Christian Church. Henry Charles LeaRegesta Pontificum Romanorum. P. F. KehrDas Mönchtum, seine Ideale und seine Geschichte. Adolf HarnackThe Censorship of the Church of Rome and Its Influence upon the Production and Distribution of Literature: A Study of the History of the Prohibitory and Expurgatory Indexes, Together with Some Consideration of the Effects of Protestant Censorship and of Censorship by the State. George Haven PutnamChristliche Antike. Ludwig von SybelPersecution in the Early Church. Herbert B. WorkmanLo Gnosticismo storica di antiche Lotte Religiose. E. BuonaiutaThe Stoic Creed. William L. DavidsonLa théologie de saint Hippolyte. Adhémar d'AlèsDer Traktat des Laurentius de Somercote, Kanonikers von Chichester, über die Vornahme von Bischofswahlen; Entstanden im Jahre 1254. Alfred von WretschkoLes réordinations. Louis SaltetLes martyrologes historiques du moyen âge. Dom Henri QuentinHistory of the Christian Church. Vol. V, Part I: The Middle Ages from Gregory VII, 1049, to Boniface VIII, 1294. Philip Schaff , David S. SchaffLehrbuch der Kirchengeschichte. Wilhelm Moeller , Gustav KawerauW. Capito im Dienste Erzbischof Albrechts von Mainz. Paul KalkoffAhasver, "der ewige Jude," nach seiner ursprünglichen Idee und seiner literarischen Verwertung betrachtet. Eduard KönigLes leçons de la défaite; Ou la fin d'un catholicisme. Jehan de BonnefoyDer Solinger Kirchenstreit und seine Nachwirkung auf die rheinisch-westfälische Kirche bis zum Fall César. Friedrich NippoldA Short History of the Baptists. Henry C. VedderJames Harris Fairchild; Or Sixty-Eight Years with a Christian College. Albert Temple SwingDisestablishment in France. Paul SabatierA History of the Inquisition in Spain. Henry Charles LeaThe Inquisition in the Spanish Dependencies. Charles Henry LeaKirchliches Jahrbuch. Kirchliches Jahrbuch. Auf das Jahr 1907, J. SchneiderNachwirkungen des Kulturkampfes. Georg GrauePaul Gerhardt. Artur BurdachDie russischen Sekten. Karl Konrad GrassHistory of the Christian Church since the Reformation. S. CheethamThe English Reformation and Puritanism, with Other Lectures and Addresses. Eri B. Hulbert , A. R. E. Wyant

1908 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 291-319
Author(s):  
Franklin Johnson ◽  
Edward B. Krehbiel ◽  
Albert Henry Newman ◽  
J. W. Moncrief ◽  
David S. Muzzey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Christian College ◽  
Early Church ◽  
English Reformation ◽  
Short History ◽  
Christian Church ◽  
The Reformation ◽  
Production And Distribution ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Church

The Writings of Fr. Henry Garnet, S.J. (1555–1606)

1951 ◽  
Vol 1 (01) ◽  
pp. 7-21
Author(s):  
A. F. Allison
Keyword(s):  
Sixteenth Century ◽  
Church History ◽  
Documentary Evidence ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Church

Father Garnet's works were written in England during the last decade of the sixteenth century when the persecution of priests was at its most intense and Catholic literature was systematically suppressed. They were written anonymously and those that were printed were printed secretly, without indication of place or date. The result has been that his bibliography has remained in a state of confusion to this day. The earliest printed list of his writings, in Alegambe’s Bibliotheca Scriptorum Societatis Iesu (1643), is inaccurate and incomplete, and little attempt has since been made to supplement it. Southwell’s revised edition of Alegambe (1676) reproduces the original list without alteration. Dodd, in The Church History of England (1737–42), also follows Alegambe. The first and only attempt to check Alegambe’s list in the light of original documents is to be found in Oliver’s Collections…S.J. (1845) which gives some corrections and fresh information based on the Stonyhurst MSS. Gillow combines the findings of Dodd and Oliver, adding some speculations of his own which do not stand the test of investigation. Sommervogel and D.N.B. follow Gillow. The extent to which bibliographers blindly copy one another is not always fully realized. Before any satisfactory study of Father Garnet’s life and work can be begun it is essential that his bibliography should be re-established, if possible, from documentary evidence.

The Classical Sources of Evangelical Devotion

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Bruce Hindmarsh
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Reception History ◽  
Church History ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Imitation Of Christ ◽  
The Reformation ◽  
History Of ◽  
Catholic Tradition ◽  
Devotional Reading

For all its seeming newness, evangelicalism revived ancient ideals. Evangelical use of Scripture was especially similar to ancient patterns of devotional reading. Moreover, evangelicals routinely appealed to confessional formularies (Anglican and Reformed) and creedal standards, and to precedents in church history from the Puritans, the Reformation, and beyond, stretching back to the early church. Evangelicals’ concern for true religion meant that they were also able to assimilate spiritually edifying sources from the Catholic tradition and from the Middle Ages. The reception history of Henry Scougal’s Life of God in the Soul of Man and Thomas à‎ Kempis’s Imitation of Christ illustrate a process of simplification, naturalization, and democratization of mystical and ascetical ideals. The libraries, book lists, and church histories of evangelicals further illustrate a wide range of sources, critical to evangelical spiritual life and identity.

Sola Scriptura in Africa: Missions and the Reformation Literacy Tradition

2019 ◽  
Vol 90 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-87
Author(s):  
Steven van Dyck
Keyword(s):  
Print Culture ◽  
Church History ◽  
First Century ◽  
Word Of God ◽  
The Reformation ◽  
History Of ◽  
Print Communication ◽  
Mission Movement ◽  
The Church

This theoretical reflection addresses issues arising in the history of world Christianity, in particular regarding mission churches in Africa since the nineteenth century. The article first evaluates the development of oral, manuscript and print communication cultures in western culture, and their influence since the first century in the Church. Modernity could only develop in a print culture, creating the cultural environment for the Reformation. Sola Scriptura theology, as in Calvin and Luther, considered the written Word of God essential for the Church’s life. The role of literacy throughout Church history is reviewed, in particular in the modern mission movement in Africa and the growing African church, to show the importance of literacy in developing a strong church. In conclusion, spiritual growth of churches in the Reformation tradition requires recognition of the primacy of print culture over orality, and the importance of a culture of reading and study.

scholarly journals The Coming Of Paper

2011 ◽  
pp. 232-255
Author(s):  
Harold Adams Innis
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Manufacturing Process ◽  
Muslim World ◽  
Modern State ◽  
Cultural Contexts ◽  
Paper Making ◽  
Paper Manufacturing ◽  
The Reformation ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Church

During the last dozen years of his life, Harold A. Innis assembled a massive set of writings entitled A History of Communications. The excerpt published here is from the first section of Chapter IV, “The Coming of Paper,” which begins with the production of paper in China “as early as 105 A.D.” and concludes with the westward diffusion of paper-making during the Middle Ages. While the manufacture of paper and its spread is at the centre of Innis’s discussion, he gives considerable attention to the related technologies of ink production, block printing, and the introduction of movable type. He also traces the onset of paper and printing within a number of different socio-cultural contexts, including China, India, Korea, the Muslim world, and Europe. After detailing how the paper-manufacturing process gained a foothold in Europe—becoming a formidable rival to parchment—Innis examines how paper was linked to the broader process of key developments such as the extension of credit, the revival of antiquity, the reformation of the Church, and the rise of the modern state.

Resistance to Tithes in the Middle Ages

1962 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 172-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giles Constable
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Income Tax ◽  
Modern Times ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Medieval Church ◽  
The Reformation ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Rich ◽  
The Middle Ages

The system of compulsory tithes in the Middle Ages has long been used by protestant and liberal historians as a stick with which to beat the medieval Church. ‘This most harassing and oppressive form of taxation’, wrote H. C. Lea in his well-known History of the Inquisition, ‘had long been the cause of incurable trouble, aggravated by the rapacity with which it was enforced, even to the pitiful collections of the gleaner’. Von Inama-Sternegg remarked on the growing hatred of tithes in the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth centuries, especially among the small free landholders, ‘upon whom the burden of tithes must have fallen most heavily’. Gioacchino Volpe said that tithes were ‘the more hated because they oppressed the rich less than the poor, the dependents on seigneurial estates less than the small free proprietors to whose ruin they contributed…. At that time tithes were both an ecclesiastical and secular oppression, a double offence against religious sentiment and popular misery’. G. G. Coulton, writing before the introduction in England of an income tax at a rate of over ten per cent., proclaimed that before the Reformation tithes ‘constituted a land tax, income tax and death duty far more onerous than any known to modern times, and proportionately unpopular’.

Hurrell Froude and the Reformers

1970 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 243-259 ◽  
Author(s):  
William J. Baker
Keyword(s):  
Sixteenth Century ◽  
Church And State ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Church Of Christ ◽  
Protestant Reformation ◽  
The Reformation ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Subject ◽  
William Cobbett ◽  
The Church

‘No portion of our annals’, Macaulay wrote in 1828, ‘has been more perplexed and misrepresented by writers of different parties than the history of the Reformation’. In the early years of the nineteenth century, when polemicists turned to history more often than to philosophy or theology, the Reformation was the subject most littered with the pamphlets of partisan debate. Macaulay could have cited numerous examples. Joseph Milner's popular History of the Church of Christ (1794–1809) set the Reformation in sharp contrast to the ‘Dark Ages’ when only occasional gleams of evangelical light could be detected, thus providing the Evangelical party with a historic lineage; Robert Sou they, in his Book of the Church (1824), presented a lightly-veiled argument for the retention of the existing order of Church and State as established in the sixteenth century; and in 1824 William Cobbett began the first of his sixteen weekly instalments on a history of the Protestant Reformation in England and Ireland, in order to call attention to the plight of labourers in the British Isles. In the history of the Reformation, duly manipulated (‘rightly interpreted’), men found precedents for their own positions and refutation of their opponents' arguments.

Inquiry and Inquisition: Academic Freedom in Medieval Universities

1989 ◽  
Vol 58 (2) ◽  
pp. 168-181 ◽  
Author(s):  
William J. Courtenay
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Church History ◽  
Religious Toleration ◽  
Medieval Church ◽  
Proper Training ◽  
History Of ◽  
Theological Study ◽  
American Society ◽  
Medieval Universities

The year 1988 marks not only the centennial of the American Society of Church History, it is also the anniversary of two important works dealing with the theme of religious toleration and freedom of ideas. One is the fiftieth anniversary of G. G. Coulton's Inquisition and Liberty. The other is Henry Charles Lea's History of the Inquisition of the Middle Ages, published in three volumes early in 1888. Coulton's work became a model for many that followed: a highly readable, consciously engaging narrative outlining the main features of one of the darker chapters of medieval church history. It covered the development of religious nonconformity, the church's response, especially through the creation and operation of the Inquistion, and the principal victims of the Inquisition: the Albigensians, Waldensians, Spiritual Franciscans, and those accused of witchcraft. Lea's earlier treatment covered those themes in a far more extensive way, and he also included, unlike Coulton, a final chapter on the problem of religious orthodoxy in the schools as viewed from the standpoint of the Inquisition. Lea, in fact, is one of the few authors writing on heresy and inquisition who attempted to place the cases of questioned orthodoxy and freedom of thought in medieval schools and universities in this larger context. Although he did not pursue the topic in any depth, Lea was aware that the character of theological study and the proper training of an educated priesthood were linked to the issue of religious orthodoxy in the schools and the threat of heresy among those charged with the preservation and dissemination of truth.

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