Rebecca Giselbrecht of the Institute for Swiss Reformation History at Zurich has an article on Bullinger’s wife Anna Adlischwyler in the latest edition of Zwingliana. The following is an excerpt from this article:
Heinrich Bullinger II, the reformer, was interested in marriage from a pragmatic theological point of view but was also a romantic – even authoring a love song for his wedding. Already in February 1525, the twenty-one year old Bullinger shared his expert advice on marriage in a reply to a letter from his student Marx Rosen. Bullinger specifically defined masculine marital behavior in his letter to Rosen, depicting the woman as a mere object and portraying her to be the weaker vessel, as he pieced together a picture of the female sex using Bible citations. He also made it clear to Rosen that a woman was not to be beaten.
By personally pursuing Anna Adlischwyler, Bullinger created an interesting legal situation when he ignored the social mores of marriage and its usual third party facilitation. Instead, Bullinger sent Anna a very lengthy letter asking for her hand. With logical and forceful arguments for marriage and the Reformed faith, Bullinger pressed his intentions, trying to convince Anna that life in the convent was neither biblical, not God’s will for her future. After declaring his personal integrity, financial situation, and love for Anna, Bullinger, who was all of twenty-three years old wrote: ‘Yes, you are young, and God did give you such a body, and did not create you so that you remain an eternal madam and do nothing so that fruit comes form you.’ He tells her not to stay a virgin stuck between the walls of a convent, and closes with instructions: ‘Read my letter three or four times, think about it, and ask God so he tells you what his will is in this matter.’ Bullinger’s first letter is remarkably similar to The Complete Teaching on Christian Marriage, a tract that he had begun to write two months previously on his 23rd birthday, 18 July 1527.”
Showing posts with label Marriage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Marriage. Show all posts
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Bullinger on Marriage
Bullinger’s treatise on marriage Der Christlich Eestand was translated into English and was widely consulted in England. See Carrie Euler’s helpful article “ Bullinger’s Der Christlich Eestand: Marriage and the Covenant” in Gordon and Campi (eds.) Architect of Reformation.
The following is taken from Selderhuis’ Marriage and Divorce in the Thought of Martin Bucer (1999):
“Bullinger continually stresses that the character of marriage did not alter after the fall. This is also the fundamental motif of his theology of marriage. Marriage, as divine institution, did not suffer because of the fall, but this is true of human beings and hence of married human beings. Marriage itself remained a gift of God, given for the benefit of humankind, and a means by which people can attain to eternal life because it keeps them from much sin. Married persons are enabled by it to fulfill essential demands of God. Accordingly, marriage is not an emergency measure, necessitated by sin, to restrain sin as much as possible.
Bullinger frequently cites the saying of Hebrews 13:4, which requires that ‘marriage be held in honor among all.’ The very Creator of marriage and the place where marriage was first instituted make clear how highly marriage is to be esteemed. Furthermore, asked Bullinger, is not the fact that the greatest believers in Scripture were married a powerful witness to the value of marriage?
Marriage is an image of the relation between Christ and the believer. The covenantal character of marriage, accordingly, means that sins committed against marriage are simultaneously sins committed against Christ, for one who sins against marriage ‘violates the grace of Christ and desecrates the holy covenant made between him and Christ.’ Bullinger stresses that fornication is an act of breaking that covenant: ‘Fornication makes us into covenant breakers and dishonors the grace of God and members of Christ.’”
The following is taken from Selderhuis’ Marriage and Divorce in the Thought of Martin Bucer (1999):
“Bullinger continually stresses that the character of marriage did not alter after the fall. This is also the fundamental motif of his theology of marriage. Marriage, as divine institution, did not suffer because of the fall, but this is true of human beings and hence of married human beings. Marriage itself remained a gift of God, given for the benefit of humankind, and a means by which people can attain to eternal life because it keeps them from much sin. Married persons are enabled by it to fulfill essential demands of God. Accordingly, marriage is not an emergency measure, necessitated by sin, to restrain sin as much as possible.
Bullinger frequently cites the saying of Hebrews 13:4, which requires that ‘marriage be held in honor among all.’ The very Creator of marriage and the place where marriage was first instituted make clear how highly marriage is to be esteemed. Furthermore, asked Bullinger, is not the fact that the greatest believers in Scripture were married a powerful witness to the value of marriage?
Marriage is an image of the relation between Christ and the believer. The covenantal character of marriage, accordingly, means that sins committed against marriage are simultaneously sins committed against Christ, for one who sins against marriage ‘violates the grace of Christ and desecrates the holy covenant made between him and Christ.’ Bullinger stresses that fornication is an act of breaking that covenant: ‘Fornication makes us into covenant breakers and dishonors the grace of God and members of Christ.’”
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