Page 307 - Stati inu obstati, revija za vprašanja protestantizma, letnik IX (2013), številka 17-18, ISSN 1408-8363
P. 307
SYNOPSES, ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN
UDC 929Vlačič Ilirik M.:284″15″
Luka Ilić
Matthias Flacius Illyricus in the Theological Controversies
of the Sixteenth Century
The Croatian-born Lutheran theologian Matthias Flacius Illyricus (1520-
1575) was one of the most prolific polemicists and authors in the second half of
the sixteenth century. Flacius, who spent his adult life mostly within the Holy
Roman Empire of the German Nation, was involved in theological controversies
both in print and in person. This article examines some of the most important
polemics Flacius was involved in, introducing the protagonists of the debates
and focusing on how or why they erupted. The central issues at stake and when
relevant, the outcomes also receive detailed attention. Flacius participated in the
Adiaphoristic Controversy, criticizing Philipp Melanchthon and those who were
involved in negotiating a religious compromise with the Roman Catholic Church
and the secular authorities in order to put an end to violence that erupted in
Germany after Martin Luther’s death. For Flacius, the concessions made on li-
turgical issues regarding the celebration of the Mass, the wearing of vestments,
the use of candles or litany processions had gone too far. These were among the
reasons that eventually led Flacius to resign from his teaching position and lea-
ve Wittenberg in 1549 – a decision he later explained as a matter of conscience
and a defense of the freedom of the church. In the Majorist Controversy he de-
bated Georg Major’s claim that good works are necessary for salvation. The
Osiandrist Controversy set him again Andreas Osiander from Königsberg, who
was arguing that justification comes to man by God’s indwelling or infusion
instead of forensically, that is, being given to the believer through faith alone
(sola fide), which is a gift from God. Flacius also disagreed strongly with Kaspar
von Schwenckfeld’s spiritualist interpretation of the Eucharist and with his views
concerning the role of the Bible and the preached word. The two of them each
authored several publications refuting the other’s theses. The Second Sacramen-
tarian Controversy involved a large number of Lutheran and Reformed theolo-
gians from German and Swiss territories. Flacius entered the already ongoing
debate in print, primarily against Theodore Beza of Geneva. The central issue
regarded the nature of Christ’s presence in the elements of the Lord’s Supper.
The Synergistic Controversy with Johann Pfeffinger on one side concerned the
freedom of the human will. In his quest to uproot synergism and its emphasis
on the cooperation of human will in salvation, Flacius proclaimed that we as
human beings are fully depraved and evil, and therefore are unable to contribute
to our conversion, which should come only by grace (sola gratia). However, he
went one step further and stated that sin has so completely corrupted the human
being that our original imago Dei has been changed and now we are nothing else
305
UDC 929Vlačič Ilirik M.:284″15″
Luka Ilić
Matthias Flacius Illyricus in the Theological Controversies
of the Sixteenth Century
The Croatian-born Lutheran theologian Matthias Flacius Illyricus (1520-
1575) was one of the most prolific polemicists and authors in the second half of
the sixteenth century. Flacius, who spent his adult life mostly within the Holy
Roman Empire of the German Nation, was involved in theological controversies
both in print and in person. This article examines some of the most important
polemics Flacius was involved in, introducing the protagonists of the debates
and focusing on how or why they erupted. The central issues at stake and when
relevant, the outcomes also receive detailed attention. Flacius participated in the
Adiaphoristic Controversy, criticizing Philipp Melanchthon and those who were
involved in negotiating a religious compromise with the Roman Catholic Church
and the secular authorities in order to put an end to violence that erupted in
Germany after Martin Luther’s death. For Flacius, the concessions made on li-
turgical issues regarding the celebration of the Mass, the wearing of vestments,
the use of candles or litany processions had gone too far. These were among the
reasons that eventually led Flacius to resign from his teaching position and lea-
ve Wittenberg in 1549 – a decision he later explained as a matter of conscience
and a defense of the freedom of the church. In the Majorist Controversy he de-
bated Georg Major’s claim that good works are necessary for salvation. The
Osiandrist Controversy set him again Andreas Osiander from Königsberg, who
was arguing that justification comes to man by God’s indwelling or infusion
instead of forensically, that is, being given to the believer through faith alone
(sola fide), which is a gift from God. Flacius also disagreed strongly with Kaspar
von Schwenckfeld’s spiritualist interpretation of the Eucharist and with his views
concerning the role of the Bible and the preached word. The two of them each
authored several publications refuting the other’s theses. The Second Sacramen-
tarian Controversy involved a large number of Lutheran and Reformed theolo-
gians from German and Swiss territories. Flacius entered the already ongoing
debate in print, primarily against Theodore Beza of Geneva. The central issue
regarded the nature of Christ’s presence in the elements of the Lord’s Supper.
The Synergistic Controversy with Johann Pfeffinger on one side concerned the
freedom of the human will. In his quest to uproot synergism and its emphasis
on the cooperation of human will in salvation, Flacius proclaimed that we as
human beings are fully depraved and evil, and therefore are unable to contribute
to our conversion, which should come only by grace (sola gratia). However, he
went one step further and stated that sin has so completely corrupted the human
being that our original imago Dei has been changed and now we are nothing else
305
