A Study On European Anabaptist Movement In 16th Century

Anabaptism rises in Reformation era in 16th century and aims at establishing a believers' church separated from the worldly society.Anabaptism is an important denomination in Reformation time.Despite of the persecution by both the Catholic and the Protestant Church,Anabaptists spread their doctrines and set up many churches in different countries in Europe.Anabaptists history and theology occupy a very important position in Church history.Many academic scholars pay much attention to this field.Anabaptism was the children of Reformation On one hand,Reformation broke the authority of Catholic Church and released the oppressed thoughts;on the other hand,Reformation reformers proposed the principle of "Sola Bible" and provided a new direction for the liberated thoughts.At the same time,Reformation advocated localization of the Bible,which enabled the common people to read Bible directly and seek for Christian truth themselves without the clergies as intermediate agency.Under this historical background,Anabaptist movement emerged and proposed its unique demands.The Anabaptists,being the spokesman of the common people,wrote a significant chapter in Reformation history.Anbaptist movement sprang up first in Switzerland.In Swiss Reformation,a group of radical reformers opposed to Magisterial Reformation and demanded to reform by the principle of the Bible thoroughly.Those radical ones ultimately broke up from the reform majorities and built Swiss Brethren.As the founder of Anabaptism,Swiss Brethren set out Anabaptist basic beliefs:anti-infant baptism,adult believers' baptism and a true church separated from the state church.These beliefs mean denial to the state church and rebellion to the obligation of religion.Obviously,it weakened the foundation of governments both of Catholic Churches and Protestant Churches.After the birth of Swiss Brethren,Anabaptist movement spread fast in Europe.Under background of different politics and religions and different leaders from varies communities and churches,European Anabaptist movement revealed multiple sources in church organization and diversity in doctrine.Anabaptism in different areas was conducted by different teachings and reform measures.Anabaptist movement in Europe was complex and colorful.In south German,Anabaptist theologian Hubmaier proposed thorough and systematic Baptist theology which was powerful weapon against Magisterial Reformation.Meanwhile,under the protection of local noblemen,Hubmaier claimed a different view of the church-state relationship from Swiss Brethren.He believed that church and state should cooperate with each other.State used swords to protect church and church supported the state to accomplish its work designated by God in turn.Denck was influenced by German mysticism of middle ages.He placed Holy Spirit before the Bi-ble.He emphasized the inside spiritual life and disparaged the outside rule and rituals.Hut was involved in the German Peasants' War.He advocated Eschatology and agitated many believers to take part in Anabaptist movement with the doctrine of imminent coming of Christ and God's Kingdom.Marpeck discussed the relationship between the inner spiritual life and the outer ordinances and liturgy.He defended the necessity of setting up a systematic church which clergies were regarded as shepherds.They performed Baptism and Eucharist,and used the ban as a church discipline.In Moravia,the most important Anabaptist was Hutterite Brethren.Hutterite Brethren advocated and carried out the community of goods and collective style of living.They abolished private property and business activities.They implemented community of goods and distributed goods to all consumers.In addition,Hutterite Brethren carried out a collective style of living,and all members worked and lived collectively.They also raised children up together in the community.The collective system sacrificed the individual and the family,while it ensured the core position of the community and strengthened the power of Hutterite Brethren,especially economic power.Anabaptism was introduced to Netherlands by Melchior Hofinan.He declared the divinity of Jesus Christ first and advocated that people should live a holy life just like Christ.He also declared that Jesus Christ's second coming was soon and Christ would revive the apostolic church and establish the Neew Jerusalem",in the world.Hofmann's eschatology satisfied common people's desire for a righteous society and pushed the reformation in Netherlands forward.Hofinann's followers,Jan Matthijs and Jan Beukels,were much more radical than Hofmann.They believed that God would soon come back to give Last Judgment,and only true believers could survive.The true Christian should use swords which were given by God and joined the battle with the ungodly before God's coming.They took Munster as the "promised land" and "the Holy City Jerusalem",and agitated many Anabaptist believers to come to Munster.After they became the leaders of the Munster reform,they banished the non-Anabaptist citizens from Munster and implemented a series of radical reforms,such as community of goods and polygamy,etc.At the same time,they reformed the political system and founded a theocracy Christian Kingdom.Finally,the Munster Anabaptists were defeated by the Catholic church army and the Kingdom collapsed.After the fall of the Munster kingdom,Netherlands' Anabaptists underwent an important transition.Menno was the leader of the church named after his name.The Mennonite church insisted on the principle of "Sola Bible" and the non-resistance stance in the shadow of persecution.Mennonite Brethren revived Netherlands'Anabaptist movement and moved it forward.Menno's theological doctrines emphasized on true faith,true repentance and regenerated new life.A new life with true repentance was the core concept of Menno's Soteriology,so that the Mennonite church was called "Regenerated Church".Menno's Ecclesiology aimed to build a church "without stain or wrinkle" or "blemish".Mennonite church had been the largest church in the late 16th century.Anabaptist reformation should be classified into the radical reforrmtion due to its reform objection,means and timing.Compared with Magisterial Reformation the radical tendencies of Anabaptist movement are mainly in three points:1)It opposed the infant baptism and advocated adult believers' baptism,aiming at establishing the true church of the true believers;2)It opposed the doctrine of state-church which was approved by both Catholic and Reformed Church.It claimed the separation of church and state and opposed Magisterial Reformation;3)It opposed to limit Reformation within religious field and claimed the social reform to establish a more just and equal society.The Anabaptist movement,as the radical Reformation,claimed and carried out many social reforms and went beyond the limitation of Reformation.Anabaptism demonstrated essentially a movement of lower classes.Anabaptist churches and their social ideals reflected the demand of lower classes,and expressed their discontent and resistance of the society.Therefore,it might be argued that the Anabaptist movement in 16th century is not only religious movement,but also social movement.Its efforts to build a true Christian church showed that the poor people aspired to set up a more just and equal society.Anabaptist movement in 16th century played a very important part both in Christian history and in the history of people fighting for the religious freedom of themselves.