Brief Catechism of Johann Brenz: History of Creation and Translation

Zinaida Andreevna Lurie, Mariya Aleksandrovna Polyakova PhD in History, assistant lecturer, Institute of foreign modern languages, St. Petersburg State University (Universitetskaia nab., 7/9, Saint-Petersburg, Russia, 199034) PhD in Pedagogy, assistant professor, Leading Analyst, Russian Academy of Education, Education Development Center (Pogodinskaya st., 8, Moscow, Russia, 119121)
z.lurie@spbu.ru, marussia71@yandex.ru

Mariya Aleksandrovna Polyakova PhD in Pedagogy, assistant professor, Leading Analyst, Russian Academy of Education, Education Development Center (Pogodinskaya st., 8, Moscow, Russia, 119121)
marussia71@yandex.ru

Lurie Z. A., Polyakova M. A. Brief Catechism of Johann Brenz: History of Creation and Translation, Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2022, vol. 10, pp. 318–335.

doi: 10.24412/2308-0698-2022-10-318-335

Language: Russian

This publication examines the Brief Catechism of Johann Brenz, a prominent figure in the Lutheran Reformation. His Questions on the Christian Faith was the second most common after Luther’s catechism, although its having a number of significant differences. The translation of the most famous edition of 1535 is presented with to the Russian reader, with the introductory article also introducing a short biography of Brenz and the history of the creation of the catechism. The relationship between the school reform carried out by the reformer and the content of the catechetical instruction is shown within the city space of Gall. In the content of Brenz’ Catechism, the starting point of instruction is the sacrament of baptism, while the Eucharist is the goal of Christian teaching.

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Key words: Reformation, schools, urban Reformation, education, educational texts and practices, Gall, Heidelberg, Swabia, charter

URL: http://rcs-almanac.ru/en/lurie-polyakova-2022-en/

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Preface to the Latin Edition of the Collected Works of Martin Luther (1545): Introduction, Translation, Сomment

Rodion Valentinovich Savinov PhD in Philosophy, associate professor, Saint-Petersburg State Academy of Veterinary Medicine (ulitsa Chernigovskaya, 5, Saint-Petersburg, Russia, 196084)
savrodion@yandex.ru

Savinov R. V. Preface to the Latin Edition of the Collected Works of Martin Luther (1545): Introduction, Translation, Сomment, Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2022, vol. 10, pp. 336–356.

doi: 10.24412/2308-0698-2022-10-336-356

Language: Russian

The material is devoted to the problem of interpreting a number of sources on the history of the Reformation, in particular, Martin Luther’s autobiographical texts. These sources have recently become into researchers’ scopus, because they contain unique information about the personality of the author and his worldview, which allows reconstructing the author’s personality. Martin Luther’s personality is inseparable from his theology, and an attempt is made to show that those texts that are traditionally historical are in fact precisely such ego-documents, and they are significant in their subjective definiteness, which makes it difficult for historical comment on these materials. At the same time, the reconstruction of the context, which is possible on the basis of the historical method, makes it possible to identify the fundamental features of ego-documents, which, on the one hand, differ in the specific ranking of events, but vary by linking them to certain concepts that are significant for the author of this text. One of the most famous ego-documents is Martin Luther’s «Preface» to his own collected works of 1545, where he describes the events preceded the beginning of the Reformation and took place at its first stage (1517–1520). It is shown that the text combines a number of key ideas that determine the nature of material grouping and its assessment. It is concluded that this text, although not an artifact for historiography, is an important source of both theological and historical order.

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Key words: Reformation, Theology, Early Modern, Luther, History, Eschatology, Biography

URL: http://rcs-almanac.ru/en/savinov-2022-en/

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Littera scripta manet: a new view on well-known texts

Mariya Aleksandrovna Polyakova PhD in Pedagogy, assistant professor, Leading Analyst, Russian Academy of Education, Education Development Center (Pogodinskaya st., 8, Moscow, Russia, 119121)
marussia71@yandex.ru

Polyakova M. A. Littera scripta manet: a new view on well-known texts, Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2022, vol. 10, pp. 358–367.

doi: 10.24412/2308-0698-2022-10-358-368

Language: Russian

he review provides a critical brief of the monograph Nova schola. Temi e problemi di pedagogia protestante nei primi testi della Riforma (2018) by the Italian researcher of education Luana Salvarani, which, as the tiltle implies, gives an analysis of the first Reformation texts on education and school organization. The author notes, in general, the traditional set of sources involved, but the original interpretation of tje historical material, as well as the rich and metaphorical style of the book.

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Key words: Luther, Melanchthon, Bugenhagen, school regulations, education reform, Reformati

URL: http://rcs-almanac.ru/en/polyakova-2022-en/

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Сriticism of Рossibility of Natural Theology in William Ames’ «Disputatio theologica adversus ethicam» (Preface to the publication)

Rodion Valentinovich Savinov PhD in Philosophy, associate professor, Saint-Petersburg State Academy of Veterinary Medicine (ulitsa Chernigovskaya, 5, Saint-Petersburg, Russia, 196084)
savrodion@yandex.ru

Savinov R.V. Сriticism of Рossibility of Natural Theology in William Ames’ «Disputatio theologica adversus ethicam» (Preface to the publication), Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2019, vol. 8, pp. 394–424.

doi: 10.24411/2308-0698-2020-00020

Language: Russian

The article analyses English Puritan theologian William Ames’«Disputatio theologica adversus ethicam» which contains criticismof Early Modern theology, in particular, the possibility of building ethicsindependent of both biblical Revelation and religious sources. RabbinicalJudaism and Catholicism are considered by William Ames as representativesof the concept of «traditions», socially established forms of religiosity. Amesseeks to show that these forms of worship are untrue, for they supplementthe biblical command with historically emerged customs, thereby violatingthe principle of sola Scriptura. The second mode of non-religious piety isrepresented by philosophical ethics, in particular, the Aristotle’s moraldoctrine, which was the basis of the ethical teachings of the Early ModernTimes, both Catholic and Protestant. The rationalism of Aristotelian ethicsand its immanent point of view to human morality are considered by Ames asa violation of the principle of sola fide, because ethics is based on the independentnature of man, which makes the principles of Revelation unnecessary. Amesconsiders biblical moral theology (the so-called Ethica Christiana) an alternativefor Scholasticism, which, on the one hand, integrates the basic principlesof philosophical ethics (the concept and varieties of virtues), and, on the otherhand, is based on the theological principle of holiness as the goal of human lifein the eyes of God (coram Deo). Thus, the theology of William Ames became analternative to the scholastic understanding of ethics and theology, and served asthe basis for new forms of describing religious experience in Puritanism of the17th century

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Key words: Reformation, Ethics, Theology, Puritanism, William Ames, Early Modern

URL: http://rcs-almanac.ru/savinov-2020-en/

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English Church design in its liturgical practice and belief through the centuries

Jerrald Lawson Master of Divinity, Theological Educator, TheologicalInstitute of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ingria (der. Kolbino, d. 25a, Leningrad region, Vsevolozhsk district, Russia, 188680)
jerrald.lawson@lcms.org

Lawson J. English Church design in its liturgical practice and belief through the centuries, Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2019, vol. 8, pp. 294–307.

doi: 10.24411/2308-0698-2020-00012

Language: Russian

The article shares some reflections on the liturgical traditionsof the English Church. For more than a thousand years the English parish church had been the center of the Christian’s worship life. Its art andarchitecture reflected their beliefs, the Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi. Thebrief history of the development of the English ecclesiastical tradition isgiven from the early Middle ages till the Reformation. The author havingspent some years in England gives his view and estimations of the longChurch culture that is rooted in the medieval tradition despite the changesmade in the Reformation era.

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Key words: altar, Christ, green man, Rood cross, the Reformation

URL: http://rcs-almanac.ru/ru/loursen-2020-en/

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On the peculiarities of Martin Luther’s exegesis

Alekaey Vital’evich Kargaltsev PhD in History, senior lecturer, Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia (naberezhnaya reki Moiki, 48/20a, Saint-Petersburg, Russia, 191186)
akargaltsev@herzen.spb.ru

Kargaltsev A.V. On the peculiarities of Martin Luther’s exegesis, Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2019, vol. 8, pp. 32–55.

doi: 10.24411/2308-0698-2020-00004

Language: Russian

The article is devoted to the exegetical approaches of Martin Lutherand his contemporaries in the context of Latin patristics and its reception by humanists of the 15–16th centuries. The Latin patristic heritageplayed a huge role in theological debate and reflection in the early 16th century. It was a truly new life-giving stream, which, thanks to the publishing and research work of humanists, gave food to the theological thoughtof the era. The new level of accessibility and relevance of patristic theology was associated with the controversy unfolding between humanistsand scholastics, the general idea of a return to the origins of the earlyChurch. At the same time, the wide availability of new editions of the worksof early Christian writers, the emergence of critical retellings and comments, primarily made by Erasmus, real, and not nominal, acquaintancewith the patristic tradition led to a completely different assessment of it.Luther’s Christ-centered exegesis, in general, much more traditional thanhumanistic exegesis, had its own characteristics: the question arose aboutthe value of the Law, the value of the letter and moralistic edification assuch, declared in the well-known antinomian dispute with Johann Agricola. Augustine and other Latin fathers often make mistakes in their assessment of Luther, too freely handling allegory and abusing it or, on the contrary, deviating into literalism. Luther’s exegesis is based, as he himselfwrote, not some kind of exegetical authority, but Holy Scripture, whichinterprets itself.

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Key words: humanism, reformation, exegesis, Erasmus von Rotterdam, Lefevre D’Etaples

URL: http://rcs-almanac.ru/kargaltsev-2020-en/(откроется в новой вкладке)

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Philosophy and Theology in early Puritanism: William Ames’ Criticism of Metaphysic

Rodion Valentinovich Savinov PhD in Philosophy, senior lecturer, Saint-Petersburg State Academy of Veterinary Medicine (Ulitsa Chernigovskaya, 5, St. Petersburg, Russia, 196084)
savrodion@yandex.ru

Savinov R. V. Philosophy and Theology in early Puritanism: William Ames’ Criticism of Metaphysic, Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2019, vol. 8, pp. 380–404.

doi: 10.24411/2308-0698-2019-00018

Language: Russian

The article discusses the content of the «Theological Disputation against Metaphysics» by William Ames, one of the creators of Puritan theology. It is shown that Ames’ disputation against metaphysics and the line of his argumentation, firstly, goes back to  the scholastic discussions about the content of Corpus Aristotelicum, and secondly, is rooted in the criticism of secular knowledge that was given by the Reformers (Martin Luther, Philipp Melanchthon and others). Besides, it was a moment in the confessional debate with the project of the Catholic «natural theology», presented by Suarez’s treatises. At last, it substantiates a new understanding of human activity, associated primarily with the practical, rather than contemplating meaning of human life that reflects the characteristic of the Post-Reformation culture.

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Key words: Reformation, Metaphysics, Theology, Puritanism, Discussions, Early Modern

URL: http://rcs-almanac.ru/en/savinov-2019-en/

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Review on collect of Luther’s works «On the Babylonian Captivity of the Church» edited by Ivan Fokin (Saint-Petersburg, 2017)

Rodion Valentinovich Savinov PhD in Philosophy, senior lecturer Saint-Petersburg State Academy of Veterinary Medicine (Chernigovskaya ulitsa, 5, Saint-Petersburg, 196084)
savrodion@yandex.ru

Savinov R. V. Review on collect of Luther’s works «On the Babylonian Captivity of the Church» edited by Ivan Fokin (Saint-Petersburg, 2017), Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2018, vol. 7, pp. 296–317.

doi: 10.24411/2308-0698-2018-00015

Language: Russian

The author considers the collection of Martin Luther’s works, edited by Ivan Fokin, timed to the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. The review included description of the collection, and analysis of key texts from each section. An evaluation of this edition is suggested in the context of Russian research literature devoted to the Reformation and the early Modern.

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Key words: Luther, Reformation, Protestantism, Lutheranism, Anniversary of the Reformation, review

URL: http://rcs-almanac.ru/savinov-2018-en/

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Review on the book «The Oxford History of Anglicanism» (Oxford, 2017)

Anastasia Andreyevna Palamarchuk Doctor in History, senior lecturer, Department of Medieval History, Institute of History, Saint-Petersburg State University (Universitetskaya naberezhnaya, 7, Saint-Petersburg, Russia, 199034)
a.palamarchuk@spbu.ru

Palamarchuk A. A. Review on the book «The Oxford History of Anglicanism» (Oxford, 2017), Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2018, vol. 7, pp. 284–295.

doi: 10.24411/2308-0698-2018-00014

Language: Russian

The reviewed volume «The Oxford History of Anglicanism. Vol. 1. Reformation and Identity, с. 1520–1662 » (Ed. by A. Milton. Oxford, 2017) definitely is a seminal work on English ecclesiastical history. The concept of the Church of England as a «contested identity» and Anglicanism as a global cultural-historical phenomenon open a new perspective for the historians of the Church of England.

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Key words: Anglicanism, Church of England, Protestantism, Reformation, the Tudors, the Stuarts

URL: http://rcs-almanac.ru/palamarchuk-2018-en/

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Letters from Sixt Birck to Oswald Miconius of 1532-1536s: introductory article, Russian translation AND commentary

Zinaida Andreevna Lurie, assistant lecturer, Faculty of foreign languages, St. Petersburg State University (Universitetskaia nab., 7/9, Saint-Petersburg, Russia, 199034)
z.lurie@spbu.ru

Lure Z. A. Letters from Sixt Birck to Oswald Miconius of 1532-1536s: introductory article, Russian translation AND commentary // Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2013, vol. 2, pp. 273–294.

DOI: 10.24411/2308-0698-2013-00006

Language: Russian

The author cites the original text and Russian translation of the letters of the German playwright Sixt Birk to the Basel humanist Oswald Miconius written from the collection of the Zurich library. The introductory article introduces the reader to the biography of Birka, which is not well studied. The publication represents three of the four letters of the collection, which date from 1532–1536 (unpublished refers to 1548.). The material of the letters provides an opportunity for extensive generalizations related to the relationship of the intellectual with the urban elite during the confessionalization period. The published correspondence with Oswald Miconius reflects Birk’s attempt to acquire a patron in an intellectual environment. This was especially important for Birk at the beginning of his career, and it became especially relevant due to a personal conflict with one of his students. In 1536, apparently, having failed to completely overcome the conflict, Birk returned to Augsburg, where he probably hoped for a more benevolent attitude.

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Key words: Sixt Birck, Oswald Miconius, confessionalisation, Basel, Reformation, theater

Permanent link: http://rcs-almanac.ru/lurie-2013-en-2/

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