Andreas Bodenstein of Carlstadt Prodigal Reformer
In the fall of 1524 the Strassburg reformer Wolfgang Capito published a typically irenic work entitled Was man halten und antworten soil von der Spaitung zwischen Martin Luther und Andres Caroistadt, in which he showed, at least to his own satisfaction, that the disagreement between Martin Luther an...
| Published in: | Church history |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Cambridge Univ. Press
1966
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| In: |
Church history
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| Online Access: |
Volltext (JSTOR) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Electronic
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| Summary: | In the fall of 1524 the Strassburg reformer Wolfgang Capito published a typically irenic work entitled Was man halten und antworten soil von der Spaitung zwischen Martin Luther und Andres Caroistadt, in which he showed, at least to his own satisfaction, that the disagreement between Martin Luther and Andreas Carlstadt, the two former colleagues on the Wittenberg faculty, was peripheral and of no significance. Luther himself begged to differ, called Carlstadt “incarnatus diabolus” and remarked with characteristic flair, “ibi non homo sed spiritus Satanae ornat se sua sapientia.” Historically Luther's assessment, rather than Capito's, has set the precedent. In the first decade of this century Hermann Barge sought to raise and answer Capito's question once more Barge published an impressive two-volume biography of Carlstadt with the express intent of modifying the traditionally negative view of his hero. At the same time he offered a broad reinterpretation of the early Reformation. Barge chided scholarship for its preoccupation with the leading Reformation figures and demanded that greater attention be paid to the sentiment of the common people. According to Barge, a ground swell of popular enthusiasm for ecclesiastical change came to the fore at Wittenberg during Luther's stay in the Wartburg, exerting its influence upon the theologians, notably Carlstadt, who became the main spokesman for this new perspective and helped in the attempt at actual transformation at Wittenberg, making some incisive theological and ecclesiastical contributions. Elector Frederick, perturbed by the mandate of the Reichsregiment of January 20, 1522, intervened and crushed this budding “lay puritanism.” Luther had originally sided with those who demanded definite ecclesiastical change, but switched his orientation under the Elector's influence and returned to Wittenberg as a determined proponent of conservative reform. The scholarly opposition to Barge was virtually unanimous and his volumes, while adding substantial information, particularly for the time after 1523, made no positive contribution to Reformation scholarship. |
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| ISSN: | 1755-2613 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Church history
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.2307/3163432 |