Caspar Schwenckfeld
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Caspar (or Kaspar) Schwen(c)kfeld von Ossig (
Schwenckfeld came to Reformation principles through
Many of his followers were persecuted in Europe and thus forced to either convert or flee. Because of this, there are Schwenkfelder Church congregations in the United States, which was then the Thirteen Colonies of British America until American independence was achieved following the American Revolutionary War.
Early life and education
Schwenckfeld was born in
Career
In 1518 or 1519, Schwenckfeld experienced an awakening that he called a "visitation of God".
Schwenckfeld began to teach that the true believer ate the spiritual body of Christ. He pushed for reformation wherever he went, but also criticized reformers that he thought went to extremes. He emphasized that for one to be a true Christian, one must not change only outwardly but inwardly. Because of the communion and other controversies, Schwenckfeld broke with Luther and followed what some describe as a "middle way". Because of his break from Luther and the Magisterial Reformation, scholars typically categorize Schwenckfeld as a member of the Radical Reformation. He voluntarily exiled himself from Silesia in 1529 in order to relieve pressure on and embarrassment of his duke. He lived in Strassburg from 1529 to 1534 and then in Swabia.
Teachings
Some of the teachings of Schwenckfeld included opposition to war, secret societies, and oath-taking, that the government had no right to command one's conscience, that regeneration is by grace through inner work of the Spirit, that believers feed on Christ spiritually, and that believers must give evidence of regeneration. He rejected infant baptism, outward church forms, and "denominations". His views on the Eucharist prompted Luther to publish several sermons on the subject in his 1526 The Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ—Against the Fanatics.
Publications
In 1540 Luther expelled Schwenckfeld from Silesia. In 1541, Schwenckfeld published the Great Confession on the Glory of Christ. Many considered the writing to be heretical. He taught that Christ had two natures, divine and human, but that he became progressively more divine. He also published a number of works about interpreting the scriptures during the 1550s, often responding to the rebuttals of the Lutheran Reformer Matthias Flacius Illyricus.[2]
Schwenckfeld's Theriotropheum Silesiae is considered the world's oldest published local faunal list, containing a list of the animals of Silesia, including 150 bird species.[3][4]
Death
In 1561, Schwenckfeld became sick with dysentery, and gradually grew weaker until he died in Ulm on the morning of December 10, 1561. Because of his enemies, the fact of his death and the place of his burial were kept secret.
Schwenkfelder Church
Schwenckfeld did not organize a separate church during his lifetime, but followers seemed to gather around his writings and sermons. In 1700, there were about 1,500 of them in
Schwenkfelder Church has remained small with approximately 3,000 total members and four churches, including Schwenkfelder Missionary Church in Philadelphia. Each of its the existing churches are within a 50 mi (80 km) radius of Philadelphia.
Schwenkfelder Library & Heritage Center
Schwenkfelder Library & Heritage Center is a small museum, library and archives in Pennsburg, Pennsylvania. It is the only institution dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of the history of Schwenkfelder, including Schwenckfeld, the Radical Reformation, religious toleration, the Schwenkfelders in Europe and America, and the Schwenkfelder Church. The Schwenkfelder Library & Heritage Center hosts exhibits and programs throughout the year.
Notes
References
- Peter C. Erb: Schwenckfeld in his Reformation Setting. Valley Forge, Pa: Judson Press, 1978.
- Edited by Chester David Hartranft et alii: Corpus Schwenkfeldianorum. Vols. 1-19. Leipzig: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1907–1961.
- Paul L. Maier: Caspar Schwenckfeld on the Person and Work of Christ. A Study of Schwenckfeldian Theology at Its Core. Assen, The Netherlands: Royal Van Gorcum Ltd, 1959.
- R. Emmet McLaughlin: ISBN 0-300-03367-2
- Rufus M. Jones: Spiritual reformers in the 16th and 17th centuries. London: Macmillan, 1914.
- Douglas H. Shantz: Crautwald and Erasmus. A Study in Humanism and Radical Reform in Sixteenth Century Silesia. Baden-Baden: Valentin Koerner, 1992.
External links
- Official website
- The Life & Thought of Caspar Schwenckfeld von Ossig on Christianity Today
- Caspar von Schwenckfeld in Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online
- Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.