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The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions
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The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions

A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2024) | Viewed by 10317

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Bruce Gordon

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Yale Divinity School, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
Interests: European religious cultures of the late-medieval and early modern periods, with a particular interest in the reformation and its reception

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In April 1525 the people of Zurich gathered in the Grossmünster for the first Reformed celebration of the Lord’s Supper. The simple liturgy marked the beginning of a revolution. The Catholic rituals had been banished and the break with Rome was complete. Huldrych Zwingli and his colleagues had created a new form of church and society. The movement quickly spread across Switzerland and exercised a profound influence on the wider European Reformation. Scholarship on the Swiss Reformation continues to be fragmented and rather cantonal. The five hundredth anniversary of the foundation of the first Reformation polity in Europe offers a unique opportunity to present fresh and challenging approaches to the protean character of a revolutionary movement. Avoiding old distinctions between theology and social history and embracing new approaches, this volume seeks work that is interdisciplinary and addresses current discussions of communications, networks, textuality, gender, theology, and anthropology. It will focus on questions of “lived religion”, patterns of religious change, broader social implications, and the transmission of religious ideas and their contextualized reception. It is crucial that the Swiss Reformation, which we take to include the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries (with Geneva), not be treated in isolation, but as part of a wider matrix of religious upheaval in the early modern period. Contributions from early career scholars are particularly welcome.

We request that, before submitting a manuscript, interested authors initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 150–200 words summarizing their intended contribution. Please send it to the Guest Editor, Prof. Dr. Bruce Gordon ([email protected]), and CC the Assistant Editor, Ms. Joyce Xi ([email protected]). Abstracts will be reviewed by the Guest Editor to ensure proper fit within the scope of this Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review.

Prof. Dr. Bruce Gordon
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Swiss reformation
  • reformed theology
  • lived religion
  • church history
  • communication networks
  • early modern religious cultures
  • social history
  • religious politics

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Published Papers (11 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 292 KiB  
Article
In the Clergy’s Sights: Making Anabaptists Visible in Reformed Zurich
by David Y. Neufeld
Religions 2024, 15(12), 1495; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15121495 - 8 Dec 2024
Viewed by 423
Abstract
This article examines how Reformed pastors’ understanding and exercise of their office shaped their response to Anabaptists living in rural parishes of the Swiss Confederation in the seventeenth century. In the wake of Swiss reformations, illicit Anabaptist communities continued to represent a threat [...] Read more.
This article examines how Reformed pastors’ understanding and exercise of their office shaped their response to Anabaptists living in rural parishes of the Swiss Confederation in the seventeenth century. In the wake of Swiss reformations, illicit Anabaptist communities continued to represent a threat to territorial religious unity and the Reformed clergy’s spiritual leadership, but the precise contours of their activity and social influence at a village level remained obscure. In the absence of a clear picture of dissent, Reformed churchmen endeavored to make Anabaptism visible, employing tools of information management, into which their training had initiated them. A series of cases from rural jurisdictions (the counties (Landvogteien) of Kyburg and Grüningen) and a seat of ecclesiastical power (Zurich) illustrate how documentary production, organization, and activation consistently drove this project forward. These means rendered Anabaptist life perceptible, facilitating and justifying its elimination by Reformed governments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions)
22 pages, 247 KiB  
Article
Interpreting the Sabbath Among the Swiss Reformed
by Jeff Fisher
Religions 2024, 15(11), 1331; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15111331 - 30 Oct 2024
Viewed by 802
Abstract
Among the many changing practices during the Reformation, Sabbath observance gained increasing importance as interpretations and practices evolved, leading to divisions among different traditions and disagreements within those traditions. Sabbath theology helped distinguish confessional identity. This study aims to delve deeper into Swiss [...] Read more.
Among the many changing practices during the Reformation, Sabbath observance gained increasing importance as interpretations and practices evolved, leading to divisions among different traditions and disagreements within those traditions. Sabbath theology helped distinguish confessional identity. This study aims to delve deeper into Swiss Reformed interpretations of specific Scriptures that provide the basis for theological conclusions and practical applications regarding Sabbath. It focuses on four key passages in Isaiah (1:13–15, 56:2–8, 58:13–14, and 66:22–24) that contributed to the biblical basis for interpretations of Sabbath among the reformers. By comparing interpretations, we gain a more complete picture of the Swiss Reformed perspectives on Sabbath and observe a pattern of religious change as these religious ideas spread across different regions of the Swiss Confederation from the 1520s to the 1580s. The Swiss Reformed interpreters include Johannes Oecolampadius (1482–1531) in Basel, Ulrich Zwingli (1484–1531) and Konrad Pellikan (1478–1556) in Zurich, Wolfgang Musculus (1497–1563) in Bern, and Heinrich Bullinger (1504–1575) and Rudolf Gwalther (1519–1586) in Zurich again. The questions addressed in working through their interpretations include which meanings of Sabbath they emphasize, distinctions they make regarding the Sabbath commandment, aspects of Sabbath they think are perpetual, and the day of the week they argue Christians should observe Sabbath. This portrait of Sabbath interpretations among the Swiss Reformed depicts the gradual development toward stricter and more comprehensive views on Sabbath practice among Reformed Christians and gives voice to the unique understandings of these individual Swiss Reformed theologians in the sixteenth century. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions)
12 pages, 230 KiB  
Article
Mediating Change: Pamphilus Gengenbach, Print Culture, and the Vernacular in Early Reformation Basel
by Andreas Berger
Religions 2024, 15(11), 1329; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15111329 - 30 Oct 2024
Viewed by 569
Abstract
The relationship between the Reformation movement and print media has long fascinated scholars, yet much of the focus has centered on renowned figures, often overlooking local lay protagonists. This article shifts the spotlight onto one such unsung figure: Pamphilus Gengenbach, a Basel writer, [...] Read more.
The relationship between the Reformation movement and print media has long fascinated scholars, yet much of the focus has centered on renowned figures, often overlooking local lay protagonists. This article shifts the spotlight onto one such unsung figure: Pamphilus Gengenbach, a Basel writer, printer, and publisher. Gengenbach, a fervent supporter of political and religious reform, emerged as a leading advocate of Protestant thought in Basel. His aggressive promotion of the vernacular and his adept use of intertextual references to contemporary debates and events reveal a sophisticated grasp of print media’s potential beyond mere dissemination. Leveraging his experience as an author, printer, and publisher, Gengenbach engaged his audience effectively, translating and transmitting Protestant teachings with remarkable impact. This article asserts that Gengenbach’s strategic communication and local influence were instrumental in paving the way for the Basel Reformation, underscoring the vital role of grassroots actors in the Reformation’s success. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions)
13 pages, 249 KiB  
Article
Defending a Legacy: Heinrich Bullinger’s Preface to Zwingli’s Opus articulorum (1535)
by Pierrick Hildebrand
Religions 2024, 15(11), 1302; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15111302 - 24 Oct 2024
Viewed by 1719
Abstract
This article presents the first English translation of Heinrich Bullinger’s preface to Huldrych Zwingli’s Opus articulorum of 1535. This source, which has received little attention in previous scholarship; is placed in the context of efforts to bring Luther and the Swiss Reformed closer [...] Read more.
This article presents the first English translation of Heinrich Bullinger’s preface to Huldrych Zwingli’s Opus articulorum of 1535. This source, which has received little attention in previous scholarship; is placed in the context of efforts to bring Luther and the Swiss Reformed closer together after the death of the Zurich Reformed on the question of the Lord’s Supper. Bullinger’s preface is an apologetic manifesto in favor of Zwingli’s orthodoxy and continuity with the Church Fathers. It is argued that Bullinger’s strong commitment should be interpreted as a signal sent to Wittenberg that a rapprochement with Luther was not to be achieved at the expense of Zwingli’s theological legacy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions)
19 pages, 366 KiB  
Article
Consistory and Youth Surveillance in the Republic of Geneva: The Case of Games (16th–18th Centuries)
by Baptiste Werly
Religions 2024, 15(11), 1289; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15111289 - 22 Oct 2024
Viewed by 736
Abstract
This article explores the theme of youth gaming in the Calvinist Republic of Geneva. This investigation is largely based on disciplinary cases found in the registers of the Consistory of Geneva. Legislative sources, and the registers of the Pastor’s Company and the Small [...] Read more.
This article explores the theme of youth gaming in the Calvinist Republic of Geneva. This investigation is largely based on disciplinary cases found in the registers of the Consistory of Geneva. Legislative sources, and the registers of the Pastor’s Company and the Small Council, are also used herein. This study, deliberately placed at the crossroads of the history of games, childhood, and Calvinist-style ecclesiastical discipline, aims to shed light on the Consistory’s policy of controlling play activities, and to understand what was at stake. The author defends the idea that the surveillance and control of games played by children was intended to prevent them from straying from their religious education, but also to protect them from the excesses and dangers of abusive play and immoderate behavior (violence, lost money, insults, etc.). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions)
12 pages, 317 KiB  
Article
Confessional Cross-Pollination: Basel Humanists as Suppliers of Lutheran and Catholic Exempla
by Serena Strecker
Religions 2024, 15(10), 1247; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15101247 - 15 Oct 2024
Viewed by 1109
Abstract
Basel humanists shaped religious discourse beyond the Reformed sphere through their collections of exempla, short narratives designed to illustrate a moral or doctrinal message. Because scholars of early modern exempla typically focus on either Lutheran or Catholic exempla collections, the role of [...] Read more.
Basel humanists shaped religious discourse beyond the Reformed sphere through their collections of exempla, short narratives designed to illustrate a moral or doctrinal message. Because scholars of early modern exempla typically focus on either Lutheran or Catholic exempla collections, the role of Reformed compilers as mediators between confessions has been obscured. This article uses methods from the field of digital humanities and corpus linguistics to examine the lasting influence of Theodor Zwinger (1533–1588), Conrad Lycosthenes (1518–1561), and Johannes Herold (1514–1567) on Lutheran and Catholic exempla collections in a newly quantitative way. Using the concordance software AntConc, this study identifies numerous citations that demonstrate that Zwinger and Lycosthenes facilitated confessional cross-pollination of exemplary narratives from the mid-sixteenth through the early eighteenth century. Although citations of Zwinger, Lycosthenes, and Herold are more frequent in Lutheran exempla collections, the existence of several Catholic editions of Zwinger’s Theatrum vitae humanae indicates that Catholic readers also valued Zwinger’s work. This examination showcases the vital role of Swiss humanists in cross-confessional networks of information exchange and religious discourse in early modern Europe. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions)
23 pages, 459 KiB  
Article
François Hotman and the Critique of Gratian’s Decree: From the Investigation of Early Councils (De statu primitivae Ecclesiae, 1553) to the Rewriting of Europe’s Legal History (Antitribonian, 1567)
by Christian Martens
Religions 2024, 15(10), 1187; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15101187 - 29 Sep 2024
Viewed by 938
Abstract
François Hotman (1524–1590) was one of the leading Reformed jurisconsults of his time. Past research has stressed his innovative interpretations and practices in the study of Roman, feudal, and French constitutional law. Little has yet been said about his views on canon law, [...] Read more.
François Hotman (1524–1590) was one of the leading Reformed jurisconsults of his time. Past research has stressed his innovative interpretations and practices in the study of Roman, feudal, and French constitutional law. Little has yet been said about his views on canon law, another fundamental legal body in Western history that experienced renewed intellectual scrutiny during the sixteenth century. This paper investigates some of Hotman’s early work on canon law, focusing on his legal–historical reconstruction of the early Church in De statu primitivae Ecclesiae (1553) and his contribution to a budding historical field in Catholic circles: conciliar history. Despite the general lack of interest in the history of councils on the part of some leading Protestant theologians (Luther, Calvin, Bullinger), Hotman clearly believed that the textual tradition of councils provided a prime example of sustained popish efforts to control and deform the historical narrative and the legal structure of the Church. Yet, although he seems to have worked on demonstrating just that over more than forty years, he never again voiced his views on the matter in a dedicated work. Comparing in its conclusion De statu primitivae Ecclesiae with Antitribonian, this paper suggests that, in parallel to his better known ‘complex of Tribonian’ (Pierre Mesnard), Hotman seems to have suffered from a ‘complex of Gratian’: the doctrinal unity and institutional accomplishments of the early Church, as represented by the first councils, may well have dazzled Hotman and kept him from writing some definitive work against Gratian. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions)
18 pages, 296 KiB  
Article
A Reformation in Progress: The Path toward the Reform of Johannes Oecolampadius
by Matteo Colombo, Benjamin Manig and Noemi Schürmann
Religions 2024, 15(9), 1147; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15091147 - 23 Sep 2024
Viewed by 733
Abstract
This article examines the life, theological career, exegetical development, and posthumous biographies of Johannes Oecolampadius as illustrative examples of the fact that the Swiss Reformation, with all its religious movements, was far from a uniform concept in terms of its origins, purposes, and [...] Read more.
This article examines the life, theological career, exegetical development, and posthumous biographies of Johannes Oecolampadius as illustrative examples of the fact that the Swiss Reformation, with all its religious movements, was far from a uniform concept in terms of its origins, purposes, and methodologies. The article explains through Oecolampadius’s example an approach to reform that was ‘in progress’, traversing the nexuses of disparate methods and exegetical priorities. Oecolampadius’s experience occupied a position at the intersection between the authority of Patristics and the principle of sola scriptura, exemplifying a balance between the past and the present of Christian tradition. The path that led Oecolampadius to become a Protestant Reformer is characterised by a gradual transition, not abrupt, not radical. His example demonstrates the methodological and ideological diversity of the Reformation, which can be observed through the prism of a single life and its intellectual periods. His conversion offers insight into how these varied approaches shaped personal engagements with Scripture, and challenges the notion of an immediate or singular evangelical ‘calling’ or ‘conviction’. This article examines a specific phase within the broader and varied trajectory of the Swiss Reformation by analysing the transformation of Oecolampadius from a biblical scholar to a preacher, and eventually to a Reformer. This case study illustrates how disparate methodologies, whether rooted in humanism or Patristics, contributed to gradual and personal evolution, ultimately giving rise to distinctive individual stances on reform. This article presents a synthesis of three distinct perspectives on the question. The first part approaches the question through the lens of church history and intellectual history; the second one utilises the history of exegesis and New Testament scholarship; and the third draws upon the perspectives of Protestant historiography, from the standpoint of social history and the history of biographies in Early Modern times. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions)
16 pages, 329 KiB  
Article
Stone Altars, Wooden Tables, Silver Chalices, Unleavened Hosts, and Plain Bread: The Long Reformation of the Eucharist’s Materiality in the Pays de Vaud (1400–1600)
by Caleb Abraham
Religions 2024, 15(9), 1140; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15091140 - 22 Sep 2024
Viewed by 798
Abstract
Recent scholarship on the late medieval Pays de Vaud has allowed for a better understanding of the Reformation (1536) in this region, revealing it as a period marked not only by ruptures but also by significant adaptations and continuities. This article employs a [...] Read more.
Recent scholarship on the late medieval Pays de Vaud has allowed for a better understanding of the Reformation (1536) in this region, revealing it as a period marked not only by ruptures but also by significant adaptations and continuities. This article employs a trans-periodic approach to explore the material culture of the Eucharist, tracing its developments across the late medieval and Reformation periods. Key findings include the transition from stone altars to wooden communion tables, the contested continuity in the substance and shape of chalices, and the gradual shift from unleavened hosts to plain bread. These changes highlight a complex interplay of theological and practical concerns. The study provides a nuanced perspective on the Reformation in the Pays de Vaud, emphasizing the ongoing influence of medieval ecclesiastical reforms and the gradual nature of liturgical transformations. This analysis underscores the importance of material culture in understanding religious and cultural shifts during this pivotal period. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions)
17 pages, 343 KiB  
Article
The Unintended Outcomes of Spreading the Gospel: Community Split, False Unanimity, Secular Blaming
by Marc Aberle
Religions 2024, 15(8), 1020; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15081020 - 21 Aug 2024
Viewed by 713
Abstract
Zwingli never considered it likely for the old Confederacy to endure being split between two confessional camps. Therefore, his sermons were a powerful impetus for mobilizing the cantonal governments in favor of a conversion of the entire alliance to the reformed Gospel. However, [...] Read more.
Zwingli never considered it likely for the old Confederacy to endure being split between two confessional camps. Therefore, his sermons were a powerful impetus for mobilizing the cantonal governments in favor of a conversion of the entire alliance to the reformed Gospel. However, facing fierce reluctance, he tried to bypass the Diet by rallying local support among parishioners, thus bringing the whole Confederacy on his side. This purpose, allegedly uttered with the intent of securing peace, underpinned the use of symbolic violence and coercion. With the Christian Civic Union between Bern and Zurich, the local parishes found themselves at the core of these efforts, relying on majority votes. Preachers would certainly try to explain how the community would temporarily be divided before achieving a superficial unanimity by voting to abolish the Mass. While Zwingli’s death marked an end to these ventures, French-speaking preachers translated these views and beliefs into Western and then French communities and the accusations of sedition and political disruption the protestants faced since years suddenly bloomed again. The transposition of those concepts to less republican contexts than those of Ancient Switzerland created one of the first manifestations of a link between Calvinism and Democracy, although in a controversial way. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions)
15 pages, 306 KiB  
Article
Religious Publishing in 17th-Century Geneva
by Hadrien Dami
Religions 2024, 15(8), 1016; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15081016 - 20 Aug 2024
Viewed by 818
Abstract
The objective of this article is to shed light on the history of the Reformation in 17th-century Geneva. The lens through which this study is conducted is that of religious publishing activity, which was significantly managed by the Company of Pastors and Professors. [...] Read more.
The objective of this article is to shed light on the history of the Reformation in 17th-century Geneva. The lens through which this study is conducted is that of religious publishing activity, which was significantly managed by the Company of Pastors and Professors. The role of the Company in religious publishing is inextricably linked to the unique status of the Church of Geneva within the broader context of the Reformation. The Company’s institutional archives offer insight into the issues at stake in the printed book matters. This article focuses on the role of the Company in local censorship, which diminished over the period under study. The Company’s censorship function enabled it to exert concrete influence on the global scale of Reformed publishing. This influence was the consequence of the Company’s ecclesiastical and theological authority. This authority derived from the status of the Church of Geneva as the principal church and birthplace of the Reformation in the 16th century. An analysis of the metaphors signifying and symbolizing this role in the printed books themselves underlines the pre-eminence of the Church of Geneva in 17th-century Reformation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Swiss Reformation 1525–2025: New Directions)
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