Biographies of a Reformation: Religious Change and Confessional Coexistence in Upper Lusatia, 1520–1635 by Martin Christ

Abstract

Reviewed by: Biographies of a Reformation: Religious Change and Confessional Coexistence in Upper Lusatia, 1520–1635 by Martin Christ Susan Mobley Biographies of a Reformation: Religious Change and Confessional Coexistence in Upper Lusatia, 1520–1635. By Martin Christ. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021. 261 pp. This work re-examines the Reformation in Upper Lusatia (German-Polish border region), focusing on six cities comprising the Lusatian League, and challenges the traditional understanding of the Reformation in Upper Lusatia as a "strictly Lutheran affair" (28). It also qualifies the confessionalization thesis, arguing that the Reformation in Upper Lusatia was far more complex than previously accepted and was shaped not only by influences from neighboring Saxony but also by the distant but acknowledged rule of the Catholic king of Bohemia. The book contains eight chapters, each organized around an individual from one of the cities of the Lusatian League, plus a conclusion. This organizing principle allows the author to illustrate the contours of the Reformation and to feature various aspects of civic life that affected religious change. Christ effectively illustrates that these "stately actors," regardless of their own religious position, found themselves mediating between an increasingly Lutheran population in the region, influential Catholic institutions such as convents, and a Catholic king. Because of the particularly strong position of the towns of the Lusatian League, the king of Bohemia rarely intervened in their affairs, leaving the urban elites to negotiate [End Page 235] and resolve religious conflict. As a result, the religious landscape of Upper Lusatia featured what the author describes as "confessional coexistence" or "religious syncretism." After the Peace of Augsburg, however, only Lutheranism and Catholicism were tolerated; Zwinglianism and Calvinism were not. While the author makes a convincing case for the multiconfessional landscape of Upper Lusatia, his argument for syncretism is less compelling. At times the author does not provide enough context for the reader to be able to see the syncretism. For example, in chapter five he clearly sketches out the differences between Catholic and Lutheran deathbed rituals which allows the reader to see that the people of Bautzen incorporated elements of both. Christ does not provide the same context for other practices such as marriage, baptism, and communion, which makes it difficult to discern distinct confessional aspects. At other times the distinctions between Lutheranism and Catholicism are perhaps overdrawn, because, as the author himself acknowledges, confessional boundaries were fluid for much of the sixteenth century and even medieval Catholicism was marked by a broad range of accepted beliefs and practices. The book is based upon extensive reading in the secondary literature and draws upon multiple, if often fragmentary, primary sources. Citations are plentiful—perhaps too much so, as each chapter contains an average of one hundred footnotes. The book contains helpful maps and illustrations as well as a comprehensive bibliography but is unfortunately marred by careless editing. One sees numerous typographical errors, inconsistent capitalization of the word "Bible," and confusing use of the word "transgression." The writing in some chapters is clunky, while in other chapters the prose is smooth and readable. The author presents a compelling case for the complexities of the Reformation which must be understood not only from the perspectives of the rulers, advisors, and theological combatants, but also from lesser stately actors, like mayors and town councilors, and town populations. Away from imperial politics and intellectual theological debates the urban populace desired "peace, quiet and unity" (227) above all and were willing to compromise to maintain order. While [End Page 236] the region displays perhaps a greater range of beliefs in the sixteenth century than before, one gets the sense that the people of Upper Lusatia in the early modern era acted much as they did before and after the Reformation—owing due fealty to secular and religious authorities, but largely managing their own affairs, both civic and religious, through argument, negotiation, and compromise. Susan Mobley Concordia University Wisconsin Mequon, Wisconsin Copyright © 2023 Johns Hopkins University Press and Lutheran Quarterly, Inc.