Thursday, July 19, 2007

Urbanus Rhegius: Preaching the Reformation

Pastor Weedon writes:

"In the 16th century, this little volume [Ministry, Word, and Sacraments: An Enchiridion by Martin Chemnitz] was published with another one in a single binding. The other was Urbanus Rhegius' Formulae quaedem caute - translated for us into English as Preaching the Reformation by Scott Hendrix.

It showed the pastors how to speak with caution on a wide range of topics - from the Mass to the Saints to Repentance to Good Works. It was the primarily homiletical textbook of the era. It would be great for our pastors and laity to not only be familiar with Chemnitz' little handbook, but also with Rhegius'.

From the intro:
For years now, with great distress, I have seen in many parts of Germany how often laity have been seriously offended by that confused, inept, and imprudent way of speaking when certain thoughtless know-it-alls, with an inflated estimation of their own knowledge, take no notice of what they say, how they say it, or to whom they are speaking. I will give a few examples of these offensive formulations that corrupt the minds of the laity and drive many away from the Gospel...

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