Atwood's Historical Theology of the Bohemian Brethren and Other Hussite-Related Resources

Amid the many excellent and helpful books on the Unitas Fratrum and the later Moravians, Craig Atwood's 2009 - The Theology of the Czech Brethren from Hus to Comenius, stands out. At a little over 400 pages, many will find it a heavy read. My frustration was that it was too short. I often wished for more contextualisation and greater detail.

A PCA Take on Paedocommunion

https://gospelreformation.net/dear-pastor-may-my-child-take-the-lords-supper/

Spinnenweber is to be commended as he covers all the bases and his treatment of the subject is fair. Unfortunately his conclusions are completely wrong.

The Heretic King of Bohemia

I recently finished Frederick Heymann's George of Bohemia: King of Heretics (1965, Princeton University Press). It's a weighty and laborious read but necessary for anyone seeking to understand the history of Hussitism.

The Unity of the Brethren before The Thirty Years War

Through the efforts of my son I was able to read Peter Brock's The Political and Social Doctrines of the Unity of Czech Brethren in the Fifteenth and Early Sixteenth Centuries (The Hague, Mouton & Co., 1957).

Copies can be found but it's a somewhat rare and expensive book. This is one of Brock's early works and probably not his best known. Recognized as an authority on pacifism, he specialised by focusing on many of the groups in Eastern Europe such as the Unity of the Brethren or Unitas Fratrum.

The Legacy of First Reformation Separatism versus Magisterial Protestantism's Establishment Ethos (1517-1914)

Recovering the First Reformation - Toward a Proto-Protestant Narrative of Church History (X)

There is value in a further elaboration of this contrast between the First and Magisterial Reformations and thus as an exercise it's worth briefly surveying the latter's historical and ethical legacy as it transitioned from the Renaissance era into modernity.

The Hussite Spectrum

Recovering the First Reformation - Toward a Proto-Protestant Narrative of Church History (VII)

The Great Schism which erupted in 1378 generated a new wave of dissent which while not unrelated to the earlier movements and impulses, nevertheless generated more radical factions which for a season took up the sword. These movements failed and yet in most cases the core ideas and commitments endured and the survivors would eventually merge back into the non-violent sword and coin rejecting, non-Sacralist and separatist posture of the movement's first wave. They would not be challenged or tempted again with regard to Sacralism until the time of the Magisterial Reformation.

The First Reformation

Recovering the First Reformation - Toward a Proto-Protestant Narrative of Church History (VI)

Some would date the First Reformation to the era of The Great Schism (1378-1417) when the papacy was split between the Avignon and Rome factions. Lollardy proper (it is argued) arose in England during this period and Czech Hussitism arose immediately after it. The already established Waldensians also flourished during this era and some believe the period represents a first wave of doctrinal protest movements – a case of all of these groups (to varying degrees) appealing to the Scriptures to argue against the developments within Catholicism.

Petr Chelčický: A Medieval Biblicist and Rustic Philosopher (Part 2)

Chelčický finds himself occupying an almost unique place in pre-Reformation Church History, representing views that would all but disappear by the 17^th century swallowed up by the profound political and cultural changes which reshaped the European map. And while we know that many works of reformers and critics of the Catholic social order were doomed to perish and be lost to time, Chelčický's works survived though many were not translated from Czech until modern times.

Christian Nonviolence and Pacifism: Some Badly Needed Clarifications (Part 4/Conclusion)

Apart from the Scriptural evidence that supports the nonviolent and pacifist position, there is a significant testimony to be found in Church History.

Inbox: Can We Speak of Christian Anarchism? Was Petr Chelcicky a Christian Anarchist?

Can Christians embrace a form of Anarchism? Jacques Ellul thought so, and he's by no means alone. There's a spectrum to Anarchism. Historically it would be placed on the Left emphasizing the freedom of the individual and a principle of voluntarism as the basis for society. But there's also a manifestation that is usually placed on the Right due to its commitment to laissez faire capitalism. This type of Anarchism, or Anarcho-Capitalism is usually labeled Libertarianism and it is experiencing a massive upsurge in Christian circles. In fact it has created a schism within conservative politics.

Proto-Protestantism: Narratives and Nomenclature (Part IV/Final)

Today, with the Culture Wars the emphasis is on continuity with the Middle Ages and the whole of Christendom. But even a generation ago this was not the case. Some claimed the proto-Protestant groups because of their anti-Catholicism. Some exploited them for nationalistic purposes and created narratives concerning the true faith being present in this or that land...a sort of 'God has always been with us' badge. Those that use them in this way show a lack of understanding, a failure to grasp what these groups were actually about. The Hussites of course would be something of an exception. There are always exceptions. This is the nature of history and exposes the problems of those who wish to use it for their own ends. Both the Taborites and Utraquists were nationalistic. And yet other Hussites weren't and the groups which formed after the dissolution of the Taborites were not. As always it's complicated.

Proto-Protestantism: Narratives and Nomenclature (Part III)

When did groups like the Waldensians emerge? Conventional histories point to Peter Waldo in the late 12^th century but older historians and the Waldensians themselves always argued this was not the case. Waldo was not greatly appreciated by the Lombard group and they certainly did not view him as their founder. There's confusion over whether or not there were more than one 'Peter' and some have argued he was not Peter Waldo but 'Peter the Waldensian'. In France they were known as the Vaudois, and Waldo is a corruption of this term in a local Italian or German patois.

Proto-Protestantism: Narratives and Nomenclature (Part II)

It must be remembered that strictly speaking before the Enlightenment Protestantism on a social level was quite Liberal and Progressive. It was rejecting the conservative norms. It wasn't looking back, it was looking ahead. Only after the Enlightenment shift was underway and decimating the church and society did Protestants start to look back with longing.

Proto-Protestantism: Narratives and Nomenclature

The Bible itself provides us with an example of a meta-narrative. There's an overarching storyline from Genesis to Revelation regarding the Person of God Himself and the story of a fallen creation. It's a story of alienation and redemption and from beginning to end it's the story of Jesus Christ.

While Higher Critics and other Biblical sceptics chafe at the suggestion that sixty-six books composed over a period of 1500 years could somehow supernaturally be bound together in a common theme, Christians recognize this as reality. It is indeed miraculous and the fact that God has spoken to us and we have His Words is a profound and essential truth theologically liberal 'Christians' and other unbelievers fail to grasp. And thus, they entirely miss the narrative of Scripture and cannot comprehend its message or themes.

Ecclesiology #4- A Theology of Means part 4

With regard to this whole concept of Means.....

What about the Proto-Protestants? What about the Church Fathers?

For me all of this came together at the same time. I remember reading the Church Fathers early on and being very frustrated.

For those unfamiliar with the Church Fathers, I'm talking about the Didache, the Epistle to Diognetus, Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus and others.

Answering Questions #5- Sola Scriptura, Literacy, and the Middle Ages

Getting some great questions...keep them coming.


Isn't Sola Scriptura anachronistic when placed in a medieval context? The people were illiterate and thus out of necessity they would be dependent on a Magisterium, a clerical ruling class. Whether or not it is the Biblical ideal, is it not unrealistic and historically inaccurate to ascribe this to the pre-Reform bodies?

Answering Questions #4- Protoprotestants and Sacralism

Who were the Protoprotestants?

Could you explain Sacralism a bit more?

Is there a difference between Sacralism and Constantinianism?

The Reformation: Romanticism and Reality

A few reflections concerning the Reformation.




Historians have long debated the reasons for the success of Martin Luther, Zwingli, and the other Reformers versus the failures of other per-Reform movements. Why did Luther succeed in 1517, but Hus fail in 1415?

Friedrich Reiser, bishop of the faithful in the Roman Church who scorn the Donation of Constantine

After 1420 German Waldensians began to emigrate to the newly freed lands of Hussite Bohemia. Some sympathized with the violent methods of the Taborites while others simply wanted to escape their feudal situations and Inquisitorial pressures in Germany. Some would later join with the Unitas Fratrum.

Friedrich Reiser, a multi-generational Waldensian from Donauworth, became a master in the sect and was trying to bring some of the different Waldensian groups together, particularly the Italian and German branches. He was backed by Hans von Plauen of Nurnberg who insisted he focus on the German Waldensians. They had been decimated a generation earlier by a team of inquisitors. Reiser wandered the German lands and eventually ended up in Hussite Tabor where a kind of Hussite-Waldensian hybrid group was growing. Reiser joined with them and was ordained a "bishop of the faithful in the Roman Church who scorn the Donation of Constantine.'

Petr Chelcicky

Often the Waldensians are only remembered for their valleys in the Cottian Alps on the French-Italian frontier. Actually they were scattered all over Europe in many locales and certain regions were also known for having large populations. They weren't dominant, but these large populations kept the Inquisitors busy.
Another one of their centers was located in the region stretching from Passau to Vienna all along the Danube valley. They were numerous here but there are reports of even much larger numbers located just to the north in The Forest. The Waldensians supposedly settled here in the 13th century.

When we say the 13th century, this would indicate when they were discovered and began to be persecuted. When they originally came into being in that region, we cannot say. Critics often peg the dates of origin to the dates of discovery, but this argument from silence is defeated by the facts. Time and time again, Inquisitors moving through different parts of Germany, Austria and other lands were surprised not only to discover the groups but then through interrogation learn they were already multi-generational…with parents and grandparents participating in these underground cells. We too can argue from silence, but it would seem we could do
better.

Around the year 1380, a man named Petr Chelcicky was born in the region known as South Bohemia.