This book has stressed institutional and theological developments within Christianity and has noted the important role of political and cultural elements in various theological debates. Ernest Troeltsch, Max Weber, and H. Richard Niebuhr and others have demonstrated that sociological factors influence theology and the religious structures that emerge.
For instance, Niebuhr believes that social structure profoundly affects the emergence of denominations. Denominations are a product of social class, racial/ethnic groupings, regional divisions within nations, and nationalism itself. Often these characteristics interact to create religious divisions. A look at a few of his ideas about the churches of the disinherited (the have-nots of society) should illustrate his argument.
Niebuhr holds that over time denominations become established and comfortable in society. That even happened to Christianity as the church gained acceptance in the Roman Empire. When a denomination becomes established, its membership tends to be drawn from people who are relatively well-off As that happens religion becomes "comfortable." It departs from any radical interpretation of the Gospel. Ethics become very tolerant of the world. Morality becomes little more than doing what is respectable by the standards of the prevailing society. Life in the hereafter lessens in importance, living a good life in this world becomes more important. The religion becomes very accepting of the existing society. It seldom criticizes injustices or attacks the powerful. Educated clergy concentrate on the fine points of theology and liturgy Much of the zeal leaves the faith.
Henry did little to produce real reform during his reign. In fact, he tried to keep the church closely aligned with Catholic practices except in its submission to the pope Reform ideas did spread throughout the land. Some were supported by the Crown Cranmer commissioned a new English translation of the Bible Henry ordered the English Bible to be placed in every church so people could read it Henry was fairly brutal in enforcing his religious policies. Hundreds were arrested and some died
Henry's death in 1547 left his nine-year-old son Edward VI (1547-1553) on the throne Edward was a sickly child who ruled for six years. He was directed
As faith becomes more comfortable, the denominations religion loses its appeal to the disinherited. Life for them is difficult. They receive few benefits from the existing social system. The disinherited rebel against the religion of the affluent. They establish a faith that better meets their ethical, sociological, and psychological needs. To the disinherited, this world is evil. Stress is placed on the world that is to come where there will be plenty of material goods. Suffering will cease. The world to come will be inherited by the weak, meek, and poor. Those with wealth and position in the present world will have a lowly place in the hereafter, if they are not cast into eternal damnation. The disinherited of the present world will be elevated and rewarded for their faithfulness.
The faith of the disinheriteds emphasizes spiritual experience over orthodox beliefs. Its clergy are not formally educated. Worship services are emotional and spontaneous. Few set forms are followed. Ethics are rigid and stress being different from the world. Yet Niebuhr believes that hard work and avoidance of pleasure, which are part of these ethics, produces economic prosperity. As members become more established economically, the character of their religion changes. It becomes another comfortable faith of the middle class. New churches of the disinherited must arise to aid the needy and to present faithfully the radical demands of the Gospel
Source: H. Richard Niebuhr, The Social Sources of Denominationalism (Hamden,
Conn.: Shoe String, 1954).
by a sixteen-member council of regents composed of eight Catholics and eight Reformers. In reality, the young king and the policies of England were dominated by Cranmer and Edward Seymour, the duke of Somerset Both were inclined to the Reformers' position. Cranmer and Somerset sponsored several bills that put reform principles in law. English instead of Latin was used in worship. Priests were permitted to marry. The laity received the cup during the Eucharist. Relics and images were removed The Lutheran view on justification by faith was accepted.
Cranmer produced the Book of Common Prayer , which was the first comprehensive liturgy in English In 1549, the first Act of Uniformity imposed the Book of Common Prayer as the worship book in all Anglican (English) churches. This book maintained a number of Catholic doctrines and practices. Protestant
THE REFORMATION
ideas incorporated in it followed Lutheran lines. However, Cranmer also invited a number of Continental scholars to England. Many were from the Reformed tradition Soon these ideas began to have an impact. In 1552, a revised edition of the Book of Common Prayer came out that was more Zwinglian in its emphasis. It looked as if the Reformers would dominate
The situation in England changed when Mary Tudor (1553—1558) came to the throne after Edward's death Mary always had been a Catholic—partly because of religious commitment and partly because her claim to the throne depended upon it. The Catholics had always recognized the marriage of Catherine and Henry as legitimate. That made Mary the rightful heir to the Crown. Many English regarded her as the legitimate heir and supported her claim. Mary saw this support as a desire for a return of the country to Catholicism. She obtained additional assistance for returning to Catholicism from bishops who had been deposed under earlier regimes, from her cousin Charles V, and from her marriage to Philip of Spain, who later was king of Spain.
In 1554 Mary officially returned England's obedience to the pope Most reforms undertaken by Henry and Edward were destroyed She persecuted the Protestants and three hundred Protestant leaders were burned Many others were imprisoned or went into exile. These persecutions earned her the title "Bloody Mary."
One well-known martyr was Thomas Cranmer. Mary was determined to break him because of his central role in the previous reform efforts. She forced him to sign a document recanting his earlier views and planned to have him killed as an example to those who might follow in his steps. He was taken to a wooden platform to be burned and was given an opportunity to speak. He was expected to ask forgiveness for his errors. Instead, he denied his recantation and condemned the pope as the Antichrist. As flames blazed around him, the aging bishop held his hand that had signed the recantation in the fire until the flesh fell away. He became a great hero in the Protestant cause
Mary died in 1558 She was succeeded by her half sister, Elizabeth I (1558- 1603), who was the daughter of Henry and Anne Boleyn. Elizabeth reversed most of the policies of Mary She was a Protestant in part because her claim to the throne depended on the Reformers' position Elizabeth chose a moderate position Her middle way (via media ) condemned Catholic teachings and practices, but it also forbade extreme Protestantism This middle way came to be called the Elizabethan Settlement She compiled a new Book of Common Prayer , which included as wide a range of positions as possible For example, the teaching on the Eucharist was so broadly written that almost all Protestant
FURTHER REFORM AND REACTION (1500 - 1 6 00 c.E )
groups could accept it. This "inclusiveness" has been an attribute of the Anglican church ever since.
Catholicism continued under Elizabeth, and the Catholics were the source of several plots against Elizabeth and the Protestants. Many of these plots centered around Mary Stuart (the queen of Scotland) whom they wanted to place on the English throne Elizabeth persecuted those who opposed her politically. Because religion was so involved in the political situation, she was guilty of persecuting religious dissidents in the name of protecting her throne The total number who died under her is close to the number who died under Bloody Mary.
Toward the end of Elizabeth's feign, the Puritans began to emerge. The Puritans were a group who felt that the middle way of Elizabeth did not go far enough. They wanted to reject the Elizabethan Settlement and purify the church of all popish elements. They wanted to impose strict Calvinistic doctrines on the Church of England. The Puritans would play a major role in the seventeenth century. 1
THE ANABAPTISTS
The Anabaptists were the fourth main branch of the Reformation Anabaptist means rebaptize. It was a name given in the sixteenth century to Reformers who insisted on baptizing only those who were old enough to make a conscious decision to accept Christ. That was known as "believer's baptism." They rejected infant baptism and "rebaptized" those professing salvation by Christ. Later scholars would also call this branch the Radical Reformation and the left wing of the Reformation
The Anabaptists belonged to a very diverse, widespread movement and may have had many sources. Some argue that the Anabaptists date back to the Waldenses and the Cathari, heretical groups discussed in Chapter 7. Still others see the origins of the movement in the work of Bodenstein von Karlstadt, who left Luther to participate in radical reforms among the peasants. Other scholars believe Anabaptists began as a peasants' movement headed by Thomas Muntzer (ca. 1490-1525).
The main body of the movement probably originated as a reaction against Zwingli's reforms in Zurich by Conrad Grebel (1498-1526) and Felix Manz (1498—1527). Grebel and Manz were at first attracted to Zwingli's work They became convinced that the Scripture alone was the basis for the true church
They began study of the Greek and Hebrew testaments in private homes Soon they decided the church must be purified of all popish trappings. Zwingli did not go far enough in his reforms. For instance, he taught that baptism was symbolic but continued to practice infant baptism. Zwingli was bothered by their criticisms and faced several of the dissenters in debate before the town council in 1525 The council ordered Grebel and Manz to cease their meetings and demanded that all adults have their infants baptized or leave town.
This action did not stop the efforts of the brethren. (Several of these Anabaptist groups chose to call themselves brethren to distinguish themselves from people who became Christians by being born in Christian lands.) George Blaurock, an early convert and leader, asked Grebel to baptize him at the fountain in the square at Zurich. He in turn baptized several others. Initially this believer's baptism was done by sprinkling or pouring water over the head. Later Anabaptists would insist on baptism by immersion in water, as was done in the Scriptures.
Anabaptist ideas became widespread. Soon there were followers throughout Switzerland and southern Germany. Severe persecution was carried out against the early Anabaptists. Most of their early leaders suffered martyrdom. Manz became the first of many Anabaptist martyrs when he was drowned by the order of the Zurich town council in 1527. Ordinary men, women, and children also met similar fates at the hands of Lutherans, Calvinists, and Catholics Many were burned at the stake while others were drowned Drowning was considered especially appropriate given the radicals' tendency to baptize by immersion. As many as fifty thousand Anabaptists had died for their faith by 1535. The total number of martyrs was probably greater than all of the Christians who died in the first three centuries of Roman persecution. In spite of persecution, the movement continued to grow.
On the whole, the early Anabaptists were a peaceful group They practiced pacifism (refused to go to war or take up arms). They wanted to return to the simplicity of the early church, practiced a direct personal spirituality, and were content to live and let live as long as they were left alone to practice their faith Some even withdrew from society into communes Given these characteristics, it is difficult to understand why religious and secular leaders reacted so strongly against them The leaders, however, saw the Anabaptists as undermining both religious and secular authority. Anabaptists refused to recognize the authority of the state. They were citizens of the kingdom of God They would not serve in the army or swear oaths. They refused to accept the idea that society could be really Christian They rejected the union of church and state that had existed since Constantine Many of the groups practiced a radical egalitarianism in which all were equal Women were equal to men The poor and uneducated were equal to the rich and well educated
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FURTHER REFORM AND REACTION (1500 - 1600 c.e.)
Many of these ideas contradicted the "Christian societies" that Catholics, Lutherans, and Calvinists sought to build.
As many 01 the early Anabaptist leaders were killed, the movement became more radical. Many became convinced that the Day of the Lord—when the second coming of Christ would occur—was near. Melchior Hoffman (1495- 1543) was one of these believers. Hoffman was a former Lutheran pastor who drifted into the Anabaptist movement. He preached extensively in southern Germany and Holland. In Holland his followers came to be called Melchior- ites. He became convinced that the Day of the Lord would happen in 1534 A German prophet had a vision that Hoffman would go to Strassburg, be arrested, and the second coming would happen. Hoffman hastened to Strassburg, was arrested, and placed in prison. However, Christ did not return and Hoffman probably died in prison.
One of his followers, Jan Matthys, broke with Hoffman to establish his own violent attempt to bring about the Day of the Lord He was convinced that the kingdom of God would be established with its capital, the New Jerusalem, in Munster. There he established a dictatorial regime known as the kingdom of Saints. He had daily "revelations" by which he directed the city. Among other activities, he drove out the sick and old and killed his critics.
Soon the city was surrounded by an army raised by the local bishop and Matthys was killed. Jan Bockelson (also known as John of Leiden) took over leadership of the city. He too ruled by "revelations" from God. Many men were killed fighting against the bishops army. This left an excess of women so Bockelson decreed that polygyny (the marriage of one man to several women) would be the rule as in parts of the Old Testament. He took fifteen wives and declared himself the new King David of the new Jerusalem.
In June of 1535, the city was betrayed and fell to the besieging army. Women and children were driven from the city, but all the men were massacred Bockelson and two other leaders were captured and imprisoned. A year and a half later they were tortured to death. Their bodies were placed in iron cages to hang from the front of Saint Lamberts Church until they rotted. These cages still hang from the church
The violent commune at Munster was short-lived, but it left Anabaptists labeled as dangerous revolutionaries in the minds of many Fortunately, a group of more moderate Anabaptists were emerging who would restore the
THE REFORMATION