German

World War II

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Peace treaties signed at the end of World War I did little to pacify the German people over various nationalistic issues and their concern about the spread of Communism. This dissatisfaction gave impetus to Adolph Hitler’s fascist movement. While, sadly, most Protestant and Catholic groups chose not to defy Hitler, those that did were quickly eliminated or repressed. When Germany invaded Poland in 1939 World War II was officially launched. This was also the initiation of one of the greatest horrors in the history of humankind, the Jewish Holocaust. Hitler’s rabid hatred of the Jews extended to Christians who he called “inventions” of Judaism.

Impact: After the war, with churches lying in ruin and many Christian leaders killed, Germany became very secular. In fact, Europe, the cradle of the Reformation, is today the least religious continent in the world.

Anabaptists

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The Anabaptists were the heirs of the evangelical spirit of the German brethren. Stirred by the Lutheran movement, they were more disposed to follow Luther’s example of independent action, though they were not ready to join his movement. With a literal interpretation of the Bible, they reached certain conclusions that were quite unconventional. They were dubbed Anabaptists because they rebaptized those who joined their company, and they refused baptism to infants on the ground that they were not old enough to have conscious faith. They chose their own religious leaders and organized tentatively on a presbyterian basis, rejecting the authority of the Catholic Church. Two men represented divergent types of Anabaptism. Balthasar Hiibmaier was their leader in theological disputation. John Denck represented the prevalence of their mysticism and is related in his spiritual attitude to the later Quakers of England, as Hübmaier anticipated the English Baptists. Lutherans and Catholics alike opposed them. But Anabaptists persisted in the Netherlands, where they took the name of Mennonites from their leader Menno Simons.

Impact: In general the Anabaptists were peaceful and drew disaffected persons of various sorts. Yet, while it was primarily a religious movement, it included some who were fanatical in their anticipation of the second coming of Christ and who were eager to hurry it along.

Melanchthon, Philip

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Philip Melanchthon (1497-1560) was a German Reformer. He studied Greek at the University of Heidelberg before taking a teaching position in Greek studies at the University of Wittenberg. Here he met Martin Luther and the two became close allies and like-minded associates. Melancthon is often called the organizational genius behind the German Reformation. He wrote the Augsburg Confession and assumed Luther’s mantle of leadership after the great Reformer’s death. Melancthon’s personality was quite different from Luther’s, however, and his tendency to seek compromise rather than stand firm on certain key issues resulted in an early schism in the Lutheran church. His great intellect produced many of the early, official writings of the Lutheran church and he was the developer of the German system of education that continues to influence the schooling of children in that nation.

Bucer, Martin

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Martin Bucer (1491-1551) was a German Protestant reformer. Bucer entered the Dominican order in 1506. He was sent to Heidelberg for further study where he became acquainted with the works of Erasmus and was present at a debate between Luther and a group of Catholic theologians. His friendship via correspondence with Luther and his study of the Bible led to his conversion to the Protestant faith. He abandoned his order in 1521 and soon afterward married a former nun. In 1523 he accepted a pastoral position in Strasbourg where he remained for 25 years. He was a brilliant organizer and set up charitable organizations, established a school and seminary, wrote liturgies and hymns, and served as a mediator between Lutheran and Calvinist groups. His opposition to an effort to unite Catholics and Protestants placed his life in danger and he fled to England at the invitation of Thomas Cranmer. Here, in 1549, he was appointed professor of divinity at Cambridge where he wrote and taught until his death. His fervor in maintaining that an insurmountable gulf exists between Protestant and Roman Catholic theology reinforced the convictions of many other Reformers.