Felix Manz
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Felix Manz | |
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Born | Felix Mantz 1498 |
Died | 1527 Zürich |
Known for | Co-founder of the original Swiss Brethren congregation |
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Felix Manz (also Felix Mantz) (c. 1498 – 5 January 1527) was an
Birth and life
Manz was born and died in
Grebel, Manz and others made several attempts to plead their position. Several parents refused to have their children baptized. A public disputation was held with Zwingli on 17 January 1525. The council declared Zwingli the victor.
After the final rebuff by the city council on 18 January, in which they were ordered to desist from arguing and submit to the decision of the council, and have their children baptized within eight days, the brethren gathered at the home of Felix Manz and his mother on 21 January. Conrad Grebel baptized George Blaurock, and Blaurock in turn baptized the others.[2] This made complete the break with Zwingli and the council, and formed the first church of the Radical Reformation. The movement spread rapidly, and Manz was very active in it. He used his language skills to translate his texts into the language of the people, and worked enthusiastically as an evangelist. Manz was arrested on a number of occasions between 1525 and 1527. While he was preaching with George Blaurock in the Grüningen region, they were taken by surprise, arrested and imprisoned in Zürich at the Wellenburg prison.
Execution
On 7 March 1526, the Zürich council had passed an edict that made adult
Manz left written testimony of his faith, an eighteen-stanza hymn, and was apparently the author of Protestation und Schutzschrift (a defense of Anabaptism presented to the Zürich council).[3]
Legacy
The witness of Felix Manz' life and the other radical
Hymn
An 18-stanza hymn by Manz has been preserved and is found in the Ausbund, a 16th-century hymn book still used by the Amish. It is a hymn of praise to God for his great salvation. The seven lines of the first stanza are found below.
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Notes
- ^ The first disputation occurred in January 1523 between Zwingli and Johann Faber.
- ^ These are considered the first adult baptisms of the Reformation era.
- ^ According to the Mennonite Encyclopedia, research by W. Schmid has shown this to have been written by Manz rather than Grebel, as earlier thought.
- ^ "Foundations". Bruderhof. Retrieved 17 January 2018.
- ^ "Bruderhof - Fellowship for Intentional Community". Fellowship for Intentional Community. Retrieved 17 January 2018.
References
- A History of the Baptists, by Thomas Armitage ISBN 1-57978-353-8
- Leben und Sterben des Zürcher Täuferführers, Felix Mantz, by Ekkehard Trajewski (Estep and others call this the "definitive work" on Felix Manz.)
- Mennonite Encyclopedia, Harold S. Bender, Cornelius J. Dyck, Dennis D. Martin, Henry C. Smith, et al., editors ISBN 0-8361-1018-8
- The Anabaptist Story, by William R. Estep ISBN 0-8028-1594-4
- The Anabaptist Vision, by Harold S. Bender ISBN 0-8361-1305-5
- ISBN 0-8361-1390-X
- The Reformers and their Stepchildren, by Leonard Verduin ISBN 1-57978-934-X