The Colloquy of Montbéliard

Religion and Politics in the Sixteenth Century

Jill Raitt

The Colloquy of Montbéliard

Religion and Politics in the Sixteenth Century

Jill Raitt

Description

Focusing on the Colloquy of Montbéliard, a theological debate in 1586 between Lutherans and Calvinists, Raitt explores the complex array of shifting political alliances and religious tensions which characterized the Holy Roman Empire after the Peace of Augsburg. When the Wars of Religion broke out in France, both sides courted allies. Often these alliances involved confessional tests--most often concerning the Eucharist. Modern readers might expect that such complex theological questions belong in seminaries, but in many cases, they took place at the request of people and princes. On the outcome of these debates depended the well-being of towns and villages as well as the disposition of troops and the conduct of wars. Raitt's study of the "age of confessionalism" uncovers the background and details of the Colloquy of Monteb((e'))liard and analyzes the nature and implications of the underlying theological conflict.

The Colloquy of Montbéliard

Religion and Politics in the Sixteenth Century

Jill Raitt

Reviews and Awards

"This is an important book. For most of us the period of the so-called 'religious wars' has seemed little more than a confused, chiefly political imbroglio. Jill Raitt's lucid and carefully researched study will do a great deal to change this impression. It accomplishes two major tasks: it establishes the European significance of episodes too often treated in merely local or national terms; and, even more importantly, it demonstrates the seriousness of the religious problem for the later sixteenth century. The author is unique in her ability to clarify and dramatize both of these aspects of the period."--William J. Bouwsma, University of California at Berkeley

"A work of tremendous historical importance....No one in the history profession could do a book so splendid, well and clearly written, so politically and theologically informed, as this volume....A great book for Reformation historians and for all students of the sixteenth and subsequent centuries, including our own."--Lewis W. Spitz, Stanford University

"The bulk of Raitt's book is an extraordinarily finely honed analysis of the arguments raised by each side in the debate. Raitt is at her best here, deftly describing the fine differences between quite a number of Protestant views of the nature of the sacrament....Raitt shows a remarkable sensitivity to the viewpoints and the strategy and tactics of debate of the participants....The book is a fine contribution to ecumenical dialogue between Reformed and Lutheran churches and should go a long way toward dispelling the myth of the belligerence and divisiveness of Reformed Christianity....A first rate example of traditional church history/history of doctrine at its best."--Sixteenth Century Journal

"Raitt is a historian of theology, and she is at her best here, reducing discussions of daunting technical complexity to clear and helpful summaries....All specialists in Reformation history will...be grateful for her book's careful exposition of the issues separating the two main wings of magisterial Protestantism by the late sixteenth century."--American Historical Review

"Jill Raitt displays her trademark qualities of superlative historical theological scholarship....Raitt's solid command of the primary sources and their languages is matched by her interpretive skills. She stays very close to the texts, doing full justice to their intricate detail, but does not hesitate to rearrange materials where this will lead to greater clarity for the reader....Raitt has provided one of the most detailed and accurate accounts of the sixteenth-century eucharistic controversy that one could hope for. This is a superb piece of work, and I highly recommend it to Reformation scholars."--The Journal of Religion