Search results for ""Vandenhoeck Ruprecht""

This is the first work to examine Calvin's understanding of the relationship between Jews and Christians at such a fundamental level. After an overview of the status of Jews in Europe during the late Middle Ages and the interest at that time in the knowledge of Hebrew and Judaism, the author turns specifically to Calvin and his interpretation of the Bible. Several important questions are addressed: How did Calvin understand the relationship between Jews and Christians? Have Christians taken the place of the Jews, or do they belong to the Jews because they are included in the relationship between God and Israel? What does Calvin have to say about the future of the Jews? The author concludes that Calvin's view of the relationship between Jews and Christians is closely tied to his view of the unity of the Old and New Testaments.

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Johanna Eleonora Petersen (1644-1724) is one of the most important women in the early history of Pietism. Her published theological works are for the most part devoted to eschatological subjects such as Chiliasm and Apokatastasis.

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This volume contains 11 reports with the minutes of the Protestant Church Council of Germany from the years 1954/1955. The texts are thoroughly annotated. The themes taken up in the meetings held during this period were discussed in part with great controversy, ranging from atom-bomb tests to the many problems connected with church work abroad to the revising of Bible texts for new versions; from church finances and the situation of the East German church to the disciplinary rules of the church; from the future role of church pastoral care in the military to the question of whether pastors should serve at all in the military; from church opinions on legal matters of marriage to family law. The extensive indices made the volume easy to access.

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The work of the EKD Council in 1952 was overshadowed by the General Treaty between the Federal Republic and the Western occupying powers. The sharp debate about this agreement presented the EKD with a crucial test, although without the widely feared split between opponents and supporters of the western orientation. After the conclusion of the General Treaty in May 1952 and the associated increasing repression of the GDR against church officials and private individuals, the debates about the foreign policy orientation of the Federal Republic receded into the background. The pragmatic handling of the Council with the new political situation in Germany is documented in the seven minutes of the Council meetings, which are extensively commented on and supplemented by documents.

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The annual reports by the church leadership to the synod of the Evangelical Church in the church province of Saxony regularly commented on current socio-political issues in the SBZ/GDR. The state apparatus of the GDR has always critically evaluated these reports, in which positions were taken responsibly and government measures repeatedly contradicted, and tried to influence the design of the text and the synodal debate. For the first time, the socio-politically relevant sections of the church leadership reports of an East German regional church from the years 1946 to 1989 are published in full. They show the position of the church in the atheistic state and thus open up a piece of GDR history in a general overview.

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In den Jahren 1961 bis 1989 geriet die Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland (EKD) in ein doppeltes Spannungsverhältnis: Einerseits kam ihr die Rolle als letzte gesamtdeutsche Klammer zu. Andererseits entwickelten sich die deutschen Staaten durch die Einbindung in antagonistische Machtblöcke zÃ"gig auseinander und waren gänzlich verschiedenen Rahmenbedingungen ausgesetzt, die sich auch auf die Kirchen auswirkten. Es kam zur organisatorischen Teilung der EKD, wobei an der Vorstellung einer geistlichen "besonderen Gemeinschaft" festgehalten wurde. Anke Silomon untersucht die getrennte Entwicklung des Kirchenbundes in der DDR und der EKD in der Bundesrepublik, die partnerschaftlichen Beziehungen und gemeinsamen Aktivitäten und fragt nach Anspruch und Wirklichkeit dieser "besonderen Gemeinschaft".

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Der Geist der 68er Bewegung hat zahlreiche gesellschaftliche Veränderungen angestoÃ

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Using the example of the Evangelical Church in Leipzig, the author examines and compares the politics towards the church and the reaction of the pastors in the time of the Third Reich and the GDR up to 1958. The focus is on the one hand on questions of the implementation of church policy guidelines from official bodies and the secret services, on the other hand, the behavior of the Leipzig pastors before and after 1945. Using sources from Saxon archives evaluated here for the first time and concrete examples, the author shows the differences and similarities between the two dictatorships in their relationship to the Protestant Church.

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In her study Chaoluan Kao offers a comprehensive investigation of popular piety at the time of the European Reformations through the study of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Protestant prayerbooks. It pursues a historical-contextual approach to spirituality by integrating social and religious history in order to yield a deeper understanding of both the history of Christian piety and of church history in general. The study explores seven prayerbooks by German authors and seventeen English prayerbooks from the Reformation and post-Reformation as well as from Lutheran, Anglican, and Puritan traditions, examining them as spiritual texts with social and theological significance that helped disseminate popular understandings of Protestant piety. Early Protestant piety required intellectual engagement, emphasized a faithful and heartfelt attitude in approaching God, and urged regular exercise in prayer and reading. Early Protestant prayerbooks modeled for their readers a Protestant piety that was a fervent spiritual practice solidly grounded in the social context and connections of its practitioners. Through those books, Reformation could be understood as redefining the meanings of people's spiritual lives and re-discovering of a pious life. In a broader sense, they functioned as a channel of historical and spiritual transition, which not only tells us the transformation and transmission of Reformation historically but also signifies the development of Christian spirituality. The social-historical study of the prayerbooks furthers our understanding of continuity, change, and inter-confessional influence in the Christian piety of early modern Europe.

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In this study Charles Raith II fills a gap in Reformation-era scholarship by analysing Calvins teaching on works and reward in light of medieval theological developments surrounding the doctrine of merit. While significant analysis has been given to Calvins doctrine of justification, its relation to sanctification, the notion of union with Christ, and the role of participation, there is as yet no sustained analysis of how these teachings are shaped by the most hostile and pervasive of his polemics, namely, his confrontation with a merit-based framework for understanding Christian salvation. This volume, however, interprets Calvins own theological constructions as contextually determined by the reigning polemics of his day. In addition, previous scholarship on these topics has largely failed to properly contextualise Calvins own thought against the background of scholastic theological developments -- developments that Calvin both accepts and rejects in the formulation of his own theology. After Merit addresses these gaps by (1) analysing Calvins tracts, scriptural commentaries and Institutes to demonstrate Calvins unique distain for the doctrine of merit among the early Reformers and the pervasiveness of this polemic within his theological program; (2) reviewing the scholastic developments surrounding the doctrine of merit from the High to Late Middle Ages as background to Calvins thought; (3) highlighting Calvins principle problems with the doctrine of merit: the competitive-causal schema between divine and human causality, merit as a basis for justification, and good works as deserving of reward; and (4) unpacking Calvins theology of justification, sanctification, the worth of works, and the role of works in salvation as an alternative to the opponents doctrine of merit. The volume concludes by reflecting on the reception of Calvins theology of works and reward in later Reformed thought.

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In der Reformationszeit gab es neben der Auseinandersetzung zwischen Protestanten und Altgläubigen auch Initiativen, eine Trennung zu verhindern und die Einheit der Kirche zu wahren. Philipp Melanchthon (1497-1560) kam bei den Verständigungsversuchen eine zentrale Rolle zu. Wibke Janssen beleuchtet seinen Beitrag zu den Religionsverhandlungen vom Augsburger bis zum Regensburger Reichstag (1530-1541). Den Schwerpunkt bildet dabei die Sichtung des Quellenmaterials zu Melanchthons Wirken bei den "Reichsreligionsgesprächen" in Worms und Regensburg 1540/41. Seine theologischen Aussagen zu den Streitthemen (Erbsënde, Rechtfertigung, Kirche, Abendmahl u.a.) werden im Zusammenhang mit seiner Verhandlungsstrategie und dem Ausloten von Möglichkeiten und Grenzen der Verständigung betrachtet.

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Frances Luttikhuizen chronicles the arrival, reception, and suppression of Protestant thought in sixteenth century Spain-referred to at that time as 'Lutheranism'. It opens with several chapters describing the socio-political-religious context that prevailed in Spain at the beginning of the sixteenth century and the growing trend to use the vernacular for parts of the Mass, as well as for catechizing the populace. Special attention is given to the forerunners, that is, the early alumbrado-deixados, the role of Cardinal Cisneros, and the impact of Erasmus and Juan de Valdes, etc. The use of archival material provides new details regarding the historical framework and the spread of evangelical thought in sixteenth century Spain. These dispatches and trial records greatly enrich the main body of the work, which deals with the arrival and confiscation of evangelical literature, the attitude of Charles V and Philip II towards religious dissidents, and the severe persecution of the underground evangelical circles at Seville and Valladolid. Special attention is given to the many women involved in the movement. The recurrent mention of the discovery and confiscation of prohibited literature shows how books played an important role in the development of the movements. The final chapters focus on the exiles and their contributions, the persecution of foreigners, and the years up to the abolition of the Inquisition. The work concludes with the efforts made in the nineteenth century to rediscover the history of the persecuted sixteenth century Spanish Protestants and their writings.

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This is a study in the Christology of Jerome Zanchi (1516-90), a leading 16th century reformed scholastic theologian. The study as a whole is bound together by doctrinal topics, themes and trajectories important to the 16th century Christological debates as well as by philosophical issues and arguments. In the first chapter, Stefan Lindholm situates Zanchi in the contemporary research into reformed scholasticism. Lindholm gives an account of what he calls analytic Christology and why it is relevant to the present study. In the second chapter, he contextualizes Zanchis Christology, historically and theologically. He discusses the sources and context of Zanchis Christology and characterize it as catholic, scholastic and reformed.In the second part, on the hypostatic union, Lindholm evaluates Zanchis view of the virgin birth The process of hominization in the third chapter. In the fourth chapter, he analyses Zanchis uses of the part-whole and soul-body similes for the hypostatic union. What emerges is a rather ambiguous view of the hypostatic union. At the end of this chapter, Lindholm offers further correctives to Zanchis assumed metaphysical framework in order to better accommodate the sort of claims Zanchi wants to make about the hypostatic union. The central theme in the debate between the Lutherans and the reformed theologians, the communication of properties, is treated in the third part. Chapter five deals with Zanchis controversy with Martin Chemnitz notion of the majestic genus (genus maiestaticum). In the sixth chapter Lindholm discusses the most heated issue in the debate about the communication of properties: ubiquity. He shows that Zanchi tends to argue against a sort of generalized version of ubiquity but it is not clear that Chemnitz actually ascribed to that position which weakens the force of Zanchis arguments. Finally, Lindholm looks at two scholastic arguments found in Chemnitz for multi-location and reconstruct a possible Zanchian response to them. In a postscript, Lindholm suggests some trajectories for future research.

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Death and dying were not in the main focus of the denominational conflicts of the 16th century. However, pious literature covered these topics again and again, not only before the Reformation, but after it as well. Here, certain denominational differences are clearly visible. Partly, these differences consist in the use of genres: For example, funeral sermons are an often used genre among Lutherans, while they are much rarer in the Reformed tradition. Similar differences can be observed concerning epitaphs. In Roman Catholic areas, funeral sermons and epitaphs are common in the 16th century, too; but their religious function is often a different from the one in Lutheranism. Beyond such interdenominational differences, there are also interesting continuities and connections which the contributors of the volume analyze. For example, there is a certain continuity between 16th century Lutheran funeral sermons and the late medieval tradition of ars moriendi.The volume contains papers presented at the Second RefoRC Conference in Oslo in 2012, and is characterized by a multiconfessional and multidisciplinary approach, with contributions from Church History, Art History, Archaeology, History of Literature and Cultural History. Within a field of research dominated by specialized contributions (e.g. on ars moriendi traditions or on specific traditions of funeral monuments and funeral sermons), the broad approach of this volume may further stimulate to comparative and cross-confessional reflection.

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The thirteen essays in this volume were all originally presented at international conferences or in public lectures.They address three main areas of inquiry, all of which, in one way or another, are of key importance in early modern historical discourse and theological thinking: (1) the theological diversity and debates within the Reformed tradition in the sixteenth century and beyond; (2) Peter Martyr Vermiglis noteworthy contribution to Reformed ecclesiology and biblical exegesis; and (3) the later development and enrichment of Reformed thought on both sides of the Atlantic. They show that the Reformed tradition was neither monolithic, nor monochrome, nor immutable, but evolved in different, if interrelated, patterns and directions. The thirteen essays in this volume were all originally presented at international conferences or in public lectures.They address three main areas of inquiry, all of which, in one way or another, are of key importance in early modern historical discourse and theological thinking: (1) the theological diversity and debates within the Reformed tradition in the sixteenth century and beyond; (2) Peter Martyr Vermiglis noteworthy contribution to Reformed ecclesiology and biblical exegesis; and (3) the later development and enrichment of Reformed thought on both sides of the Atlantic. They show that the Reformed tradition was neither monolithic, nor monochrome, nor immutable, but evolved in different, if interrelated, patterns and directions.

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The aim of the volume is to engage in an interdisciplinary discussion about the establishment and debates on anthropological concepts and their changes in the age of Reformation: How do anthropological concepts touch theological questions such as the freedom of will or the human likeness to God? In which ways is there a reflection on emotions? How is scientific knowledge received by theologians? How is contemporary thought on the conditio humana presented in literature and poetry? The volume combines selected papers of relevant experts with the research work of young graduate or postgraduate scholars. It tries to encourage a transdisciplinary, international discussion focused on exemplary case studies as well as systematic points of view. Thanks to the outstanding commitment of all participants of the conference we are able to present the results of this discussion, a rich and comprehensive spectrum of research work, which will encourage further research.

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Zacharias Ursinus is widely known as the main author of the Heidelberg Catechism (1563). In this thesis Wagner-Peterson analyses for the first time the late period of Zacharias Ursinus' theology on the basis of his lecture on Isaiah. The author focusses on the methodology, the hermeneutics and theology implicated in this lecture. The results are compared to 16th century commentaries and theological concepts. A comparative study of Ursinus' earlier writings illustrates a development of his theological concept. Wagner-Peterson thus offers important new insights into exegesis and theology in the period of confessionalism. The older Ursinus appears as a reformed theological teacher, whose intention was to school his students in a life of continuous study of scriptural doctrine. The study of and the obedience to biblical doctrine was essential for Ursinus as a school for living and dying according to God's providential will.

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Das Kreuz ist das Zeichen des Christentums. Es verweist auf Leiden, Sterben und Auferstehung Jesu Christi. Aber es ist nicht nur Zeichen, das auf etwas anderes verweist, sondern es hat auch eine eigene Gestalt und Formgebung. In Interviews und Erfahrungsberichten sucht Hans-GÃ"nter Heimbrock nach den alltäglichen, persönlichen Begegnungen mit Kreuzesdarstellungen. Ãberlegungen zur Hermeneutik des Kreuzes vervollständigen den praktisch-theologischen Blick auf das zentrale Symbol des christlichen Glaubens. So entsteht ein völlig neuer Zugang zur Gestalt des Kreuzes.

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Melanchthon and Calvin were late medieval people, stemming from a world of order and unity, and at the same time they fully lived in the early modern world, in which everything was changing. In this new world they committedly, enthusiastically, and restlessly sought to introduce some order, in theory as well as practice. The sixteenth-century church was governed by multiple coercive constructions and systems. Did the two Reformers really succeed in disconnecting themselves from them, and to what extent did they connect to, for example, the existing forms of eucharistic piety? The established church had come under serious criticism, and people were massively turning their backs on the less than attractive ecclesiastical practices -- something connecting that era to ours. In these highly turbulent and suspenseful 1520s, when it was not yet clear whether the ten-year-old evangelical movement in Germany was still viable, Melanchthon tried to introduce at least some order into the chaos by means of a confession accompanied by a church order. As it turned out, the new doctrine on Christian freedom and justification by faith alone was easily interpreted in a one-sided manner. Through a careful analysis of the sources, Herman A. Speelman examines Melanchthons church visitations in 1527 and Calvins five attempts to shape the modernisation of ecclesiastical life. In addition to the gospel, also penance and the preaching of the law received a place in the Protestant liturgy and spirituality .Melanchthons and Calvins contributions were not only to have an enormous impact on the theological evolutions in the evangelical movement in Europe, but they also proved to be of eminent importance for the way in which the new doctrine was given meaning in practice. Their instructions continue to be highly influential in large parts of Europe today.

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Der Bonner Reformationshistoriker Karl-Heinz zur Mëhlen widmet sich in den hier versammelten Beiträgen Martin Luther und der Reformation. Behandelt werden z.B. die Stellung Luthers zu den Kirchenvätern, Themen der Theologie Luthers und der Reformationszeit, die Christologie, Anthropologie und Eschatologie sowie semiotische Fragen der Sakramentslehre. Zudem widmet sich der Band dem kontroverstheologischen Dialog in der Mitte des 16. Jahrhunderts. Im Zusammenhang der vom Autor und dem katholischen Theologen Klaus Ganzer edierten Akten der deutschen Reichsreligionsgespräche von Hagenau, Worms und Regensburg 1540/41 werden neueste Forschungsergebnisse u.a. zu deren Chancen und Grenzen vor dem Konzil von Trient (1545-1563) präsentiert. Ein Beitrag zur Lutherdekade 2017 beschließt den Band.

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Feature film has done more than any other medium to shape the image of Martin Luther held by the common public in the 20th century. Luther films have always - apart from the very earliest - been ambitious undertakings, staffed by personnel that includes leading representatives of theology and expert consultants in ecclesiastical history. Nonetheless the Luther film has been largely bypassed by traditional Luther scholarship. The status of the historic figure as a national myth in Germany and a Church founder in America required a cinematic concept that was closely linked with theological issues as well as the self-image of the Lutheran Church. The present study is chiefly concerned with working out the interests brought to bear on each film project by their initiators and the impact each has made on the image of Luther in film in its historical context.In no other medium can the history of the change in the Lutheran mindset during the past century be as clearly read as in film. This mass medium does show how scholarship, whether in respect to psychology or the interpretation of the Reformation as a media reformation, was popularized. Moreover, the film fairly consistently sticks to the positive image of the hero. Whereas the view of Luther in German films increasingly emphasized the nationalist element until 1927, since 1953 the Anglo-American tradition has placed the emphasis on the element of liberation from conventional thinking, and from the authorities of the Middle Ages as well as on new beginnings. That was the image that became the basis for all later filmic representation. Therefore it is legitimate to speak of an Americanization of Luther in film. Some main aspects of Luther's image can be seen in both the European and the American traditions. Moreover, viewer response to the Luther film has shown itself to be an indicator of the degree of secularisation in a society. It also shows whether and if so, how strongly, links to a particular religious affiliation are perceived at a given time.

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There is a longstanding scholarly debate on the nature of prophecy in ancient Israel. Until now, no study has based itself on the semantics of the Hebrew lexeme for "prophet". This investigation by William L. Kelly discusses the nature and function of prophecy in the corpus of the Hebrew book of Jeremiah. It analyses all occurrences of the lexeme in Jeremiah and performs a close reading of three primary texts, Jeremiah 1.4-19, 23.9-40 and 27.1-28.17. The result is a detailed explanation of how prophecy works, and what it meant to call someone by that name in ancient Israel. Combining the results of the semantic analysis and close readings, the study reaches conclusions for six main areas of study: (1) the function and nature of prophecy; (2) dreams and visions; (3) being sent; (4) prophets, priests and cult; (5) salvation and doom; and (6) legitimacy and authority. I then situate these findings in two current debates, one on the definition of the lexeme; and one on cultic prophecy. This study contributes to critical scholarship on prophecy in the ancient world, on the book of Jeremiah, and on prophets in ancient Israel. It is the first major study to analyse the lexeme; based on its semantic associations. It adds to a growing consensus which understands prophecy as a form of divination. Contrary to some trends in Jeremiah scholarship, this work demonstrates the importance of a close reading of the Masoretic (Hebrew) text. This study uses a method of a general nature which can be applied to other texts. Thus there are significant implications for further research on prophecy and prophetic literature.

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Text in German. Philo of Alexandria was the first Middle Platonic thinker whose writings have largely survived. Otto Kaiser introduces the reader to his life, work and writings based on the extant manuscripts. Philo of Alexandria is one of the most important figures in the history of Hellenic culture. His writings are an essential source of information on Hellenic and Stoic philosophy, much of which was subsequently lost. His importance to the history of theology rests on the fact that he was the first author to write about the Pentateuch based on the writings of the Greek philosophers available to him. His works also reflect his knowledge of the thoughts of the empirical scientists of his time. Otto Kaiser introduces the reader to the life, work and writings of Philo based on the extant works of Philo as well as of many other ancient writers.

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The authors of this volume follow the tracks of the darker side of the Reformation and study the relationship with Judaism based on Lutheran theology and on a sense of "dignity of difference" (Jonathan Sacks).To the present day Luther's antisemitic polemics have proved to be a burden to the Lutheran Churches. In the media his writings have not been repelled but rather taken up. That is reason enough for members of the Protestant-Lutheran Churches to break with some of the basics of their own church and seek solutions for facing this problem. The authors of this collection point out the positive consideration given modern Judaism in Protestant teachings as a near cousin to its own foundations, particularly at the point at which it would appear to be most difficult to sustain: in dogmatics.

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Die Geschichts- und Bibelwissenschaft verzeichnet in den letzten Jahren ein verstärktes Interesse an biographischen Studien. Sie machen deutlich, dass Gesellschaft, Kultur und Religion nur dann zu verstehen sind, wenn man die sie tragenden Persönlichkeiten kennt mitsamt ihren konkreten Geschichten, Erfahrungen und Lebensprofilen. Die Geschichtsschreibung erwähnt bevorzugt die fÃ"hrenden Persönlichkeiten, denen als Prominente eine erhöhte Aufmerksamkeit zukommt, denn sie verkörpern etwas Besonderes. Auch das Neue Testament kennt eine Reihe solcher Persönlichkeiten der Zeitgeschichte. Ihren Namen, ihren Geschichten und den Spuren, die sie in der Welt der ersten Christen hinterlassen haben, ist Rainer Metzner nachgegangen und hat auch auf auÃerbiblische Quellen zurÃ"ckgegriffen.In seiner Prosopographie begegnen Kaiser, Senatoren, Ritter und städtische Ratsherren, fÃ"hrende Persönlichkeiten der römischen Reichsaristokratie, wie auch Könige, LandesfÃ"rsten und Hohepriester. Bei Metzner begegnen dem Leser aber auch Sozialbanditen, Zeichenpropheten und Magier, die sich in den GeschichtsbÃ"chern einen Namen gemacht haben.

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Die Umwelt des Paulus verwendet die Begriffe "sarx" und "soma" beinahe synonym, um dadurch den Menschen in seiner Materialität in Gegensatz zur immateriellen Seele zu beschreiben.Der Begriff "soma" beschreibt bei Paulus hingegen den Menschen als sterblich und inaktiv, wie etwa aus seinem Gebrauch fÃ"r "Leiche" oder "Sklave" ersichtlich ist. Die negative Semantik von "soma" bei Paulus entspricht der Kultur seiner Zeit. Nur die Dynamik der Erlösung, in deren Mittelpunkt der Tod und die Auferstehung Christi stehen, ermöglicht ein neues Verständnis von "soma", das zur Konstruktivität bestimmt wird."Sarx" dagegen ist bei Paulus aktiv. Im Griechischen wird der Begriff wenig verwendet und bezeichnet nur den muskulösen Teil des Körpers oder den Leib als Ganzes. Als Bezeichnung fÃ"r den aktiven Menschen wird "sarx" als Sitz der Affekte verstanden. MaÃgebend ist hier Gal 5, wo "sarx" dem Geist Gottes gegenÃ"bersteht und verantwortlich fÃ"r Affekte, Aggression, Konflikte ist.Die Kernfrage des ethischen Diskurses der Antike lautet, wie sich das destruktive Potential im Menschen Ã"berwinden lieÃe. Die Destruktivität kann nach Paulus nicht durch das Gesetz Ã"berwunden werden. Konstruktivität zeigt sich in der Wirkung des Geistes auf das sterbliche und inaktive "soma" in der Eschatologie, der Ekklesiologie und der Ethik.

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