How did the Reformation in Zurich begin?
The Reformation in Zurich was established through gradual and peaceful means. Under the influence of Zwingli, the influential city of Bern, along with other cities, were also won over to Protestant thought and practice soon after Zurich looked favorably upon Zwingli.
Why was the Swiss Reformation part of the Magisterial Reformation?
Like the reformation begun under Luther, the Swiss Reformation was part of the Magisterial Reformation because it attempted to work with the magistrates of the states of which they were a part . The following pages describe the rise of the Protestant Reformation in Switzerland and its influence beyond.
What were the two Protestant movements that were born in Switzerland?
Those two traditions were birthed by Huldreich or Ulrich Zwingli (1484-1531) and John Calvin (1509-1564). In northern Switzerland, the German-speaking cantons followed the theology of Zwingli. In the French-speaking cantons of the south, Calvin held sway at Geneva. A third, and more radical form of thought, emerged in Anabaptism, the leaders of which initially worked with Zwingli in the northern cantons. The following is a brief discussion of the reformation, which occurred under Zwingli and Calvin, the latter being discussed under “ The Radical Reformation .”
What did Zwingli believe about the sacraments?
By 1523, Zwingli ’s teaching on the sacraments was near Luther’s. He believed the sacraments were signs or pledges of God’s promises and faithfulness to his people : “God has instituted, commanded and ordained with his word, which is as firm and sure as if he had sworn an oath to this effect.” [7]
What was the pressure of the Roman Catholic Church against the reforms at Zurich?
The pressure of the Roman Catholic Church against the reforms at Zurich intensified in 1524, being mediated through the Swiss Union. At a diet in Lucerne, January 26, 1524, the united canton decided upon sending an embassy to Zurich warning the city not to deviate from time-honored traditions. On March 21, Zurich answered saying it would not allow outsiders to interfere in matters of spiritual care. That same year a new embassy, July 12, threatened Zurich with exclusion from the union, and she began immediately to prepare for war. An invitation was extended to Zurich and Zwingli to attend the great disputation at Baden, but Zwingli’s safety could not be ensured, so the invitation to confront Eck and Faber at Baden was rejected. The diet placed Zwingli under the ban.
Why was the catechism important to Calvin?
The catechism was very important to Calvin, along with discipline in the church. Calvin’s 1542 Catechism drew inspiration from Bucer’s Catechism of 1534. Children were to recite the contents of the Catechism before being admitted to Communion. Following Bucer, he wrote the catechism in the form of a dialog. The catechism of 1542 was to a large degree responsible for the spread of Calvin’s thought. Also, it became the basis of the Heidelberg Catechism [16] that became the typical catechism of the Reformed Churches.
Why did Calvin travel to France?
From the summer of 1534 to the spring of 1536, Calvin traveled in France and Italy (and to Basle), in part because he had become associated with reform efforts. On October 18, 1534, placards placed in prominent places throughout France that denounced the Catholic mass and extolled evangelical interests.
What was the Reformation?
In England, the Reformation began with Henry VIII’s quest for a male heir. When Pope Clement VII refused to annul Henry’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon so he could remarry, the English king declared in 1534 that he alone should be the final authority in matters relating to the English church. Henry dissolved England’s monasteries to confiscate their wealth and worked to place the Bible in the hands of the people. Beginning in 1536, every parish was required to have a copy.
What was the Protestant Reformation?
The Protestant Reformation was the 16th-century religious, political, intellectual and cultural upheaval that splintered Catholic Europe, setting in place the structures and beliefs that would define the continent in the modern era. In northern and central Europe, reformers like Martin Luther, John Calvin and Henry VIII challenged papal ...
What was the Catholic Church slow to respond to?
The Catholic Church was slow to respond systematically to the theological and publicity innovations of Luther and the other reformers. The Council of Trent, which met off and on from 1545 through 1563, articulated the Church’s answer to the problems that triggered the Reformation and to the reformers themselves.
What were the key ideas of the Reformation?
The key ideas of the Reformation—a call to purify the church and a belief that the Bible, not tradition, should be the sole source of spiritual authority —were not themselves novel. However, Luther and the other reformers became the first to skillfully use the power of the printing press to give their ideas a wide audience.
When did Lutheranism become the state religion?
When German peasants, inspired in part by Luther’s empowering “priesthood of all believers,” revolted in 1524 , Luther sided with Germany’s princes. By the Reformation’s end, Lutheranism had become the state religion throughout much of Germany, Scandinavia and the Baltics.
Where did Calvinism spread?
Calvin’s Geneva became a hotbed for Protestant exiles, and his doctrines quickly spread to Scotland, France, Transylvania and the Low Countries , where Dutch Calvinism became a religious and economic force for the next 400 years.
Who challenged the authority of the Catholic Church?
In northern and central Europe, reformers like Martin Luther, John Calvin and Henry VIII challenged papal authority and questioned the Catholic Church’s ability to define Christian practice. They argued for a religious and political redistribution of power into the hands of Bible- and pamphlet-reading pastors and princes.
What was the driving force behind the Swiss Reformation?
Although much of the book deals with the period after Zwingli’s death, Gordon emphasizes throughout the book that Ulrich Zwingli was the driving force behind the Swiss Reformation. Zwingli’s charismatic personality and his distinctive theology shaped the course of the Reformation in Zurich, and Zurich’s commitment to evangelical doctrine enabled other Swiss territories to embrace the Reformation as well. Even after his premature death Zwingli continued to influence the Swiss Reformation, as his successors struggled to give institutional form to a theology that exalted the spiritual to the detriment of anything material or institutional. This, combined with the peculiar political and social structures of the Swiss Confederation, led to a type of Reformation distinctively different from the Lutheran Reformation in Germany.
What are the two groups that challenged the Zwinglian Reformation?
Gordon discusses the two main groups who challenged the Zwinglian Reformation throughout the Swiss Confederation: the Anabaptists, who faced heavy persecution in the 1520s and 1530s ; and the spiritualists and non-conformists who emerged in the 1540s and were largely tolerated – especially in Basel – as long as they did nothing to draw the attention of the leaders of the Reformed church.
What did Zwingli do after his death?
Even after his premature death Zwingli continued to influence the Swiss Reformation, as his successors struggled to give institutional form to a theology that exalted the spiritual to the detriment of anything material or institutional.
What is the significance of Chapter 5 of Zwingli?
Gordon emphasizes the ambivalent legacy left by Zwingli’s death in battle and Bullinger’s key role in preserving Zwingli’s reformation. In Chapter Five, Gordon summarizes religious and political developments throughout Switzerland from the adoption of the First Helvetic Confession in 1534 through the publication of the Second Helvetic Confession in ...
What does Gordon emphasize in Zwingli's theology?
When Gordon finally does give a brief outline of Zwingli’s theology, he emphasizes the reformer’s strong dualism that contrasted the spirit with the flesh and that led to a drive for both personal and corporate obedience to God’s law as expressed in scripture.
Why is Geneva excluded from the Swiss Confederation?
The French-speaking Pays de Vaud appears, because it was subject to Bern, but Geneva is specifically excluded on the grounds that it was not a member of the Swiss Confederation (a status it did not achieve until the early nineteenth century).
When did Zwingli's birth occur?
A chronology in the front of the book outlines the major political and religious developments in Switzerland between Zwingli’s birth in 1484 and Bullinger’s death in 1575.
What was the Swiss Reformation?
Swiss Reformation. Corruption had deprived the Roman Catholic church of its credibility during the last centuries of the middle ages. The reformation of the church in Switzerland by Huldrych Zwingli , John Calvin and Guillaume Farel came a little later than the reformation in Germany by Martin Luther, but it did have a certain independence ...
Where did the Reformation begin?
As in Germany, the Reformation began in Switzerland as a religious renewal movement and ended in a deep political division between the progressive cities of northern and western Switzerland and the conservative rural areas of central Switzerland.
Why was John Calvin banished from Paris?
John Calvin and Calvinism. French jurist John Calvin (1509 - 1564) was banished from Paris because of its open partisanship for the Reformation in 1533. When Calvin traveled through Geneva in 1536 he had no intention to stay, but Farel convinced him to do so.
Which was more radical, Luther or Zwingli?
Zwingli was more radical than Luther in many points. Though both agreed that the catholic church had emphasized too much the administration of the seven sacraments [ritual celebrations thought to be showing and effecting the grace of God in a person] and that only two could be found in the Gospel. But while Luther accepted everything in church tradition that was not explicitly contrary to the scriptures, Zwingli interpreted Luther's principle sola scriptura: [only the biblical writings (not the tradition of the church)] strictly: Zwingli said that every ritual not explicitly mentioned in the Bible should be abolished, and so he did with five of the seven sacraments - only Baptism and the Lord's Supper were kept up in Switzerland's Reformed Churches. While Luther wrote himself dozens of hymns to transport the protestant convictions into the hearts of believers, the Swiss churches regarded hymns as unscriptural and provided metrical translations of the Psalms instead.
What was the corruption of the Church in the Middle Ages?
Corruption of the Church in the Middle Ages. Since the middle of the 15th century discontent with the state of the church was widespread north of the Alps: The wealth of the church had lead to spiritual shallowness and demoralization of the clergy. In Germany every 9 th inhabitant was a member of the clergy.
Why did high clerics delegate their pastoral duties to uneducated vicars?
High clerics (bishops, abbots, canons), often delegated their pastoral duties to uneducated vicars to have more time for a luxurious life or at best for studies.
What was Calvin's doctrine of predestination?
As we have seen, Calvin's doctrine of predestination had anything but a fatalist effect on the discipline of his followers - and this remained true for centuries. In the 19 th century, sociologists found, that calvinist believers all over Europe were not only more inclined to an ascetic way of life than lutherans and catholics but would as well be more eager for higher education, more inclined to choose professions closely related to the capitalist / industrialized way of economy (compared to catholics preferring conventional professions) - and all to a statistically significant degree. German economist and sociologist Max Weber (1864 - 1920) tried to find the missing link in his famous treatise Die protestantische Ethik und der Geist des Kapitalismus [protestant ethics and the spirit of capitalism]. Max Weber's thesis remains disputed among scholars, however, until today.
What is the Reformation in Switzerland?
The Reformation in Switzerland bears the name “Reformed” in its historic sense tracing its roots to the labors and writings of Zwingli and Calvin. The term “Reformed” has assumed a restricted sense in connection with other terms as Reformed Dutch, Reformed German, Reformed Presbyterian and Reformed Episcopalian. [2] The Lutherans agreed with the Reformed churches in Switzerland in opposition to Romanism, but the Reformed churches departed from Rome by greater theological distance than the Lutherans. The Reformed Church, unlike Lutheranism, does not bear Zwingli’s or Calvin’s name, and is not controlled by a single personality (although Calvin certainly had an immense impact on the systemization of theology which bears his name.)
What did the Reformation of Zurich do?
He opened a school to teach theology , and gave Zurich its sense of theology and literary reputation. [4] The Reformation of Zurich was relatively complete in 1525, however, the relationship between church and state melded together since Zwingli desired to reform the religious and social aspects of the people by the Scriptures.
What were the differences between Luther and Zwingli?
The sacramental controversies would not be isolated to the Anabaptists and baptism, but also with the German Reformers and the Lord’s Supper. Zwingli and Luther disagreed about the bodily presence in the Eucharist. Great lengths were made to resolve the issue where Zwingli denied the bodily presence and Luther believed it to be present around the Eucharist (consubstantiation). They both denied transubstantiation but could not come to mutual agreement. Even at Marburg Luther believed Zwingli was a good man, but of a different spirit than the Germans, and they could not call the Swiss brothers based on this error of a fundamental doctrine.
What was the Zwingli controversy?
Zwingli entered into controversy with the Anabaptist Radicals (the dispute running from 1523-1532), lead by Conrad Grebel and Felix Manz. The state of their Radicalism did not evolve out of the question of baptism, but out of a desire of revolution against the Church and social order. The baptism issue grew out of their sense of revolution and dissention later. They denounced the Reformers as “semi-popes” and dissented against the state-church that they deemed corrupt. As a result, they were imprisoned, exiled, tortured, put to fire and the sword, and almost totally suppressed by Protestantism, as well as by Roman Catholicism. Zwingli took the same view as Luther towards this faction: he opposed them, and urged that they would not separate from the church, believing that would solve nothing.
What did the radicals believe about baptism?
The Baptism controversy grew, and the Radicals decided that a new church needed a new baptism into it. They contested that Infant Baptism could not be found in the Bible, and denounced it as an invention of the devil and the Pope. From this denial came their “rebaptisms” of converts who wished to unite with the new church. Here they earned the name Anabaptists, or “rebaptizers” which originated with the Paedo-baptist community. The Anabaptists rejected this title seeing no other baptism but the baptism they had in entering their church. They believed that baptism was not tied to any form or time-frame, and allowed anyone to baptize converts. They utilized sprinkling, pouring, and some instances of immersion (mode was not a point of dispute at this time).
Which city was the next to reform?
Berne was the next city to reform, though it did with hesitancy. A disputation was to take place in Berne (which lasted nineteen days) against the Romish influences on the city. The Reformers won this disputation and Haller drew up the Ten Theses or Conclusions that were to take place theologically in Berne. The Catholic bishops were dethroned and necessary changes were made in church worship.
Who was Ulrich Zwingli?
Ulrich Zwingli (1484-1531) was born in Wildhaus, Switzerland, and at age ten excelled in his learning in Latin, music and dialectics. He entered college at Berne and then moved onto the University of Vienna. In 1502 he returned to Basle, taught Latin and pursued classical studies to attain his Masters in 1506. (He never attained the Doctor of Divinity.) He was ordained to the priesthood and appointed pastor of Glarus where he labored for ten years, and personally studied Greek and Hebrew. During this time he corresponded with Erasmus, and took an interest in politics. He became an influential public man in Switzerland before he left Glarus, but was not known at this time as a theologian. His conversion was gradual, and it completed when he settled in Zurich, two-years after his stay in Einsiedeln where he studied and preached.
When did the French Wars of Religion start?
The French Wars of Religion, which started in the mid 1500s, where French Protestants, called Huguenots, were persecuted. Switzerland not only has a long history of watchmaking, but it also has a reputation for remaining neutral during times of conflict throughout the rest of the European continent.
What was the Swiss watch industry like in the late 1700s?
During the late 1700s, Switzerland could mass-produce watches that helped them secure the top position in the industry over the French and the British. While the French refused to implement mass production techniques, the Swiss embraced them. Swiss watchmakers were able to produce watches faster than any of their competitors. The French and British couldn’t compete with their speed and volume of production. Switzerland’s innovation in watchmaking almost destroyed the industry in France, and the British watchmaking industry almost collapsed toward the end of the Victorian era.
How much of the modern Swiss economy is based on watchmaking?
Today, the Swiss watchmaking industry is the third-largest exporter in the country, employing roughly 59,000 people and comprising 1.5% of the nation’s gross domestic product. When it comes to value, Switzerland is the world’s largest exporter of watches, with Geneva and Jura Arc home to the majority of the country’s 700 watch manufacturers. Watchmaking in Switzerland has a long and colorful history and is an integral part of the nation’s culture and heritage.
What was Swiss watchmaking known for?
Before the change in the statutes, watchmaking in Switzerland had a reputation for being refined, skilled, and high-quality. Afterward, Swiss watches also became known for their exquisite beauty along with their craftsmanship. Since then, Swiss watchmakers have been at the forefront of many significant inventions and innovations in clock and watchmaking.
What was Great Britain's contribution to watchmaking?
Great Britain’s Contributions to Watchmaking and Influence on Switzerland. At the end of the 1600s, significant changes were happening within the Swiss watchmaking industry. The foundations for these craftsmen to become the world leaders in watchmaking were being laid.
Where were Swiss watchmakers made?
At the same time, Britain was making progress with their watch designs, the Swiss watchmakers were also hard at work. In the Jura Mountains of Switzerland, watchmaking and innovations in the way the timepieces were produced, flourished. Robert Hooke.
What was the Renaissance?
The Renaissance gave us the first-ever “watches” that could be carried around to tell time. Before that, the art of timekeeping was far more cumbersome. Before the Renaissance German watchmakers invented portable watches, people had to make do with things like sundials, candle clocks, and water clocks.
