Anabaptist

Anabaptists (Greek ana+baptizo "re-baptizers", German: Wiedertäufer) are Christians of the so-called radical wing of the Protestant Reformation. The term was coined by critics, who objected to the practice of performing baptism for adults whose previous baptism, as infants, the Anabaptists claimed was not valid. Various groups at various times have been called Anabaptist, but this article focuses primarily on the Anabaptists of 16th century Europe.

Anabaptist origins

Forerunners

Though the majority opinion is that Anabaptists began with the Radical Reformers in the 16th century, certain people and groups may still legitimately be considered their forerunners. Peter Chelcicky, 15th century Bohemian Reformer, taught most of the beliefs considered integral to Anabaptist theology. Medieval antecedents may include the Brethren of the Common Life, the Hussites, and some forms of monasticism. The Waldensians also represent a faith similar to the Anabaptists.

Related Topics:
Peter Chelcicky - 15th century - Bohemia - Hussite - Waldensian

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In the following points Anabaptists resembled the medieval dissenters:

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• Some followed Menno Simons in teaching that Jesus did not take the flesh from his mother, but either brought his body from heaven or had one made for him by the Word. Some even said that he passed through his mother, as water through a pipe, into the world. In pictures and sculptures of the 15th century and earlier, we often find represented this idea, originated by Marcion in the 2nd century. The Anabaptists were accused of denying the Incarnation of Christ: a charge that Menno Simons repeatedly rejected.
• They condemned oaths, and also the reference of disputes between believers to law-courts.
• The believer must not bear arms or offer forcible resistance to wrongdoers, nor wield the sword. No Christian has the jus gladii.
• Civil government belongs to the world, is Caesar. The believer who belongs to God's kingdom must not fill any office, nor hold any rank under government, which is to be passively obeyed.
• Sinners or unfaithful ones are to be excommunicated, and excluded from the sacraments and from intercourse with believers unless they repent, according to Matt.18:15 seq. But no force is to be used towards them.

Some sects calling themselves Spirituales or Perfecti also held that the baptized cannot sin, a very ancient tenet.

Related Topics:
Spirituales - Perfecti

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They seem to have preserved among them the primitive manual called the Teaching of the Apostles, for Bishop Longland in England condemned an Anabaptist for repeating one of its maxims "that alms should not be given before they did sweat in a man's hand." This was between 1518 and 1521.

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Views of origins

Research on the origins of the Anabaptists has been tainted both by the attempts of their enemies to slander them, and the attempts of their friends to vindicate them. It was long popular to simply lump all Anabaptists as Munsterites and radicals associated with the Zwickau Prophets, Jan Matthys, John of Leiden (also Jan Bockelson van Leiden, Jan of Leyden), and Thomas Muentzer. Those desiring to correct this error tended to over-correct and deny all connections between the larger Anabaptist movement and this most radical element.

Related Topics:
Zwickau - Jan Matthys - John of Leiden - Thomas Muentzer

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The modern era of Anabaptist historiography arose with the work of Roman Catholic scholar Carl Adolf Cornelius' publication of Die Geschichte des Münsterischen Aufruhrs in 1855. Baptist historian Albert Henry Newman (1852-1933), whom Bender said occupied "first position in the field of American Anabaptist Historiography", made a major contribution with his A History of Anti-Pedobaptism. Though a number of theories exist concerning origins, the three main ideas are that,

Related Topics:
Carl Adolf Cornelius - 1855 - Albert Henry Newman

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• Anabaptists began in a single expression in Zürich and spread from there (Monogenesis),
• Anabaptists began through several independent movements (polygenesis), and
• Anabaptists are a continuation of New Testament Christianity (apostolic succession or church perpetuity).

Monogenesis

A number of scholars (e.g. Bender, Estep, Friedmann) have seen all the Anabaptists as rising out of the Swiss Brethren movement of Conrad Grebel, Felix Manz, George Blaurock, et al. The older view among Mennonite historians generally held that Anabaptism had its origins in Zürich, and that the Anabaptism of the Swiss Brethren was transmitted to South Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, and North Germany, where it developed into its various branches. The monogenesis theory usually rejects the Münsterites and other radicals from the category of true Anabaptists. In this view the time of origin is January 21, 1525, when Grebel baptized George Blaurock, and Blaurock baptized other followers. This remains the most popular single time posited for the establishment of Anabaptism. But in the last quarter of the 20th century, Deppermann, Packull, and others suggested that February 24, 1527 at Schleitheim is the proper date of the origin of Anabaptism. This correlates with the following polygenesis theory.

Related Topics:
Conrad Grebel - Felix Manz - George Blaurock - Zürich - January 21 - 1525 - 20th century - February 24 - 1527

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Polygenesis

James M. Stayer, Werner O. Packull, and Klaus Deppermann disputed the idea of a single origin of Anabaptists in a 1975 essay entitled "From Monogenesis to Polygenesis". That article, emphasizing distinctive characteristics and distinct sources, has become a widely accepted treatment of the plural origins of Anabaptism. According to these authors, South German-Austrian Anabaptism "was a diluted form of Rhineland mysticism," Swiss Anabaptism "arose out of Reformed congregationalism", and Dutch Anabaptism was formed by "Social unrest and the apocalyptic visions of Melchior Hoffman". Pilgram Marpeck's Vermanung of 1542 was deeply influenced by the Bekenntnisse of 1533 by Münster theologian Bernhard Rothmann. The Hutterites used Melchior Hoffman's commentary on the Apocalypse shortly after he wrote it. David Joris, a disciple of Hoffman, was the most important Anabaptist leader in the Netherlands before 1540. Grete Mecenseffy and Walter Klaassen established links between Thomas Muentzer and Hans Hut, and the work of Gottfried Seebaß and Werner Packull clearly showed the influence of Thomas Muentzer on the formation of South German Anabaptism. Steven Ozment's work linked Hans Denck and Hans Hut with Thomas Muentzer, Sebastian Franck, and others. Calvin Pater has shown that Andreas Karlstadt influenced Swiss Anabaptism in areas including his view of Scripture, doctrine of the church, and views on baptism.

Related Topics:
James M. Stayer - Werner O. Packull - Klaus Deppermann - 1975 - Rhineland - Congregationalism - Melchior Hoffman - 1542 - 1533 - Bernhard Rothmann - David Joris - Hans Denck - Hans Hut - Sebastian Franck - Andreas Karlstadt

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Apostolic succession

Another popular theory is that the 16th century Anabaptists were part of an apostolic succession of churches (or church perpetuity) from the time of Christ. According to this idea there had been a continuity of small groups outside the Catholic Church from A.D. 30 to 1525 (which continues also to the present). Proponents of this view point out many common expressions of belief in these Catholic dissenters. The opponents of this theory emphasize that these non-Catholic groups differed from each other, that they held some heretical views, and/or that they had no connection with one another. This view is held by some Baptists, some Mennonites, and a number of "true church" movements.³ The writings of John T. Christian, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary professor, contain perhaps the best scholarly presentation of this successionist view. Somewhat related to this is that the Anabaptists are of Waldensian origin. Some hold the idea that the Waldenses are part of the apostolic succession, while others simply believe they were an independent group out of whom the Anabaptists arose. Estep asserts "the Waldenses disappeared in Switzerland a century before the rise of the Anabaptist movement." Ludwig Keller, Thomas M. Lindsay, H. C. Vedder, Delbert Grätz, and Thieleman van Braght all held, in varying degrees, the position that the Anabaptists were of Waldensian origin.

Related Topics:
Apostolic succession - 30 - 1525 - ³ - John T. Christian - New Orleans - Baptist - Seminary

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sdfs

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See Theology of Anabaptism.

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