Kaspar Schwenkfeld von Ossig (also as Caspar Schwenckfeld von Ossig) (1490-December 10, 1561), was a Silesian nobleman who became a Christian Reformer and spiritualist. Cf. Protestant reformers.He was a nobleman from Liegnitz, he was one of the earliest promoters of the Reformation in Silesia. He came to Reformation principles through Muntzer and Karlstadt. However he developed his own principles and fell out with Luther over the eucharistic controversy (1524). He had his own views on the sacraments - the Heavenly Flesh doctrine. His followers became a new sect, which was outlawed in Germany, but his ideas influenced Anabaptism, Puritanism in England and the Pietistic Movement on mainland Europe. Events Tirant Lo Blanc by Joanot Martorell, Martí Joan De Galba is published. ... December 10 is the 344th day (345th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, 21 days before the next year. ... // Events The Edict of Orleans suspends the persecution of the Huguenots. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... Spiritualism is a religion in which contact with the spirits of the dead through a medium is central. ... The Protestant Reformation, begun 1517 with the nailing of Martin Luthers 95 theses to a church door in Wittenberg, divided the Roman Catholic Church and created the Protestant branch of churches. ... Legnica (pronounce: [lεgniʦa], formerly Lignica, German Liegnitz) is a town in south-western Poland, with 108,000 inhabitants (1995). ... The Protestant Reformation was a movement which began in the 16th century as a series of attempts to reform the Roman Catholic Church, but ended in division and the establishment of new institutions, most importantly Lutheranism, Reformed churches, and Anabaptists. ... Silesia (Czech: ; German: ; Latin: ; Polish: ; Silesian: Åšlónsk) is a historical region in central Europe. ... Thomas Müntzer, in a 18th century engraving by C. Van Sichem Thomas Muentzer (or Müntzer, Münzer) (1489 or 1490–27 May 1525) was an early Reformation-era German pastor who was a rebel leader during the Peasants War. ... Andreas Rudolph Bodenstein von Karlstadt (1486-1541), better known as Andreas Karlstadt, was a Christian theologian during the Protestant Reformation. ... Martin Luther (November 10, 1483 – February 18, 1546) was a German monk,[1] priest, professor, theologian, and church reformer. ... Anabaptists (Greek ανα (again) +βαπτιζω (baptize), thus, re-baptizers [1], German: Wiedertäufer) are Christians of the Radical Reformation. ... The Puritans were members of a group of radical Protestants which developed in England after the Reformation. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... Pietism was a movement within Lutheranism, lasting from the late-17th century to the mid-18th century. ...

Early life

Kaspar Schwenkfeld was born in Ossig, Silesia (a small province in central Europe) to noble parents in 1489¹. From 1505 to 1507 he was a student in Cologne, and in 1507 enrolled at the University of Frankfurt on the Oder. Between 1511 and 1523, Schwenkfeld served his country as an adviser to Duke Karl I (1511-1515), Duke Georg I (1515-1518), and Duke Friedrich II (1518-1523). For other uses, see Cologne (disambiguation). ...

As a Philosopher

In 1518 or 1519, he experienced an awakening that he called a "visitation of God." Martin Luther's writings had a deep influence on Schwenkfeld, and he embraced the "Lutheran" Reformation and became a student of the Scriptures. In 1521, Schwenkfeld began to preach the gospel, and in 1522 won Duke Friedrich II over to Protestantism. He organized a Brotherhood of his converts for the purpose of study and prayer in 1523. In 1525, he rejected Luther's idea of Real Presence and came to a spiritual interpretation of the Lord's Supper (which was subsequently rejected by Luther). Schwenkfeld began to teach that the true believer ate the spiritual body of Christ. He took strong efforts toward 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, Schwenkfeld broke with Martin Luther and followed what has been described as a "middle way". He voluntarily exiled himself from Silesia in 1529 in order to relieve pressure on and embarrassment of his duke. The Real Presence is the term various Christian traditions use to express their belief that, in the Eucharist, Jesus the Christ is really (and not merely symbolically, figuratively or by his power) present in what was previously just bread and wine. ... The Lords Supper is a variation of the name and the service of The Last Supper or Eucharist. ... Martin Luther (November 10, 1483 – February 18, 1546) was a German monk,[1] priest, professor, theologian, and church reformer. ...

Teachings

Some of his other teachings of Kaspar Schwenkfeld 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". An infant is held over a baptismal font as holy water is poured over the head at a Catholic Church in the United States in 2004 In Christian religious practice, infant baptism is the baptism of young children or infants. ...

Publications

In 1541, he 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. The details of this view caused his followers to call themselves Confessors of the Glory of Christ.

Death

In 1561, Schwenkfeld 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. December 10 is the 344th day (345th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, 21 days before the next year. ... // Events The Edict of Orleans suspends the persecution of the Huguenots. ...

The Schwenkfelder Church

Schwenkfeld did not organize a separate church during his lifetime, but followers seemed to gather around his writings and sermons. In 1700 there were about 1500 of them in lower Silesia. Many fled Silesia under persecution of the Austrian emperor, and some found refuge on the lands of Count von Zinzendorf. These followers became known as Schwenkfelders. A group arrived in Philadelphia in 1731, followed by five more migrations up to 1737. In 1782, the Society of Schwenkfelders was formed, and in 1909 the Schwenkfelder Church was organized. Silesia (Czech: ; German: ; Latin: ; Polish: ; Silesian: Ślónsk) is a historical region in central Europe. ... Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf, Count of Zinzendorf and Pottendorf, (May 26, 1700 – May 9, 1760), German religious and social reformer, was born at Dresden. ... The Schwenkfelder Church is a small but unique American Christian body rooted in the 16th century reformation teachings of Caspar Schwenkfeld von Ossig (1489-1561). ...

The Schwenkfelder Church has remained small, and currently there are six² churches with about 3000 members in southeastern Pennsylvania. All of these bodies are within a fifty-mile radius of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Nickname: City of Brotherly Love, Philly, the Quaker City Motto: Philadelphia maneto (Let brotherly love continue) Location in Pennsylvania Coordinates: Country United States State Pennsylvania County Philadelphia Founded October 27, 1682 Incorporated October 25, 1701 Mayor John F. Street (D) Area    - City 369. ...

References

• R. Emmet McLaughlin: Caspar Schwenckfeld, reluctant radical : his life to 1540, New Haven : Yale University Press, 1986 ISBN 0-300-03367-2
• Rufus M. Jones: Spiritual reformers in the 16th and 17th centuries. London: Macmillan, 1914

External links

• The Life & Thought of Caspar Schwenckfeld von Ossig
• Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center
• Schwenkfelders: Who Are They?
• Adherents.com
• Caspar von Schwenckfeld in Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online

Footnotes

1. some sources give 1490, but late in 1489 appears to be preferable
2. for a number of years there were only five churches, but the Schwenkfelder Missionary Church was recently formed in Philadelphia