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[German Version] I. History of Religion – II. The Early Church – III. Middle Ages, Reformation, Counter-reformation – IV. The Modern Period – V. Martyrs of the Orthodox Church – VI. Judaism – VII. Islam – VIII. Missiology I. History of Religion The term martyrium (Greek μαρτύριον/ martúrion) was coined in early Christianity, where it denotes a self-sacrificial death in religious conflict as a witness to faith Historical and systematic references are found in many contexts, in which comparable terms imply something slightly different. For example, the Islamic šahīd, “witness…

[German Version] (1592, Geneva – May 2, 1657, Paris), became pastor of the Reformed congregation in Paris after studying at the Huguenot Academy of Saumur and was president of the national synod at Charenton in 1631. His ability to formulate knowledgeable as well as reasonable argumentation on issues of controversial theology, which he amply demonstrated in debates and in publications, made him one of the main pillars of French Protestantism in the first half of the 17th century (Controversial the…

[German Version] The three Le Maistre brothers were Jansenist theologians (Jansenism). The oldest, Antoine (May 2, 1608, Paris – Nov 4, 1658, Port Royal), was a successful lawyer in Paris and came under the influence of J. Duvergier de Hauranne, one of the first hermits in Port-Royal Abbey. Known for his piety, Antoine wrote apologies and, among other writings, also a biography of Bernard of Clairvaux. He began a Bible translation that was continued by the youngest brother, Isaac Louis (Mar 29, 1613, Paris – Jan 4, 1684, Pomponne; called Le Maistre de Sacy), who was the mo…

[German Version] (Wits; Feb 12, 1636, Enkhuizen – Oct 22, 1708, Leiden), Reformed theologian. After studying at Utrecht and Groningen, he served as pastor in Westwoud, Wormer, Goes, and Leeuwarden from 1657 to 1675, then as professor of theology at Frankener (1675–1680), Utrecht (1680–1698), and Leiden (1698–1707). Influenced by G. Voetius, he developed a federal theology, more biblically oriented than that of J. Cocceius. Witsius opposed Cartesianism as well as the separatist followers of J. de L…

[German Version] (Henri de Valois; Sep 10, 1603, Paris – May 7, 1676, Paris), philologist. After studying law in Bourges from 1622 to 1624, he worked as a parliamentary lawyer in Paris, but from 1630 on he devoted himself to classical philology. In 1634 he published a first edition of several Greek church fathers. In 1650 he was commissioned by the French episcopate to work on an edition of the Greek church historians (Eusebius of Caesarea, 1659; Socrates Scholasticus and Sozomen, 1668; Theodoret of Cyrrhus and Evagrius Ponticus, 1673). Christoph Strohm Bibliography A. de Valois, De vita …

[German Version] (Placeus; 1596, Saumur – 1655/ 1656, Saumur). After theological studies under J. Cameron in Saumur, Place became professor of philosophy and history in Saumur in 1621, pastor in Nantes in 1625, and professor of theology in Saumur in 1633. Along with his friends M. Amyraut and L. Cappellus, he moderated strict Calvinism by emphasizing ethical and general human aspects, for example, in modifying the doctrine of original sin. With reference to Calvin, and on account of his interest i…

[German Version] (Cloppenburg; May 13, 1592, Amsterdam – Jul 30, 1652, Franeker) studied theology in Leiden under F. Gomarus and Johannes Polyander, as well as at several foreign universities, notably in Heidelberg, Basel and Geneva. He became pastor in Heusden (1618), Amsterdam (1621) and Brielle (1629). In 1640, he was appointed professor of theology in Harderwijk and, in 1643, in Franeker. The literary oeuvre of this staunch Calvinist is dominated by disputes with Mennonites, Arminians and Socinians. His Disputationes de foedere Dei et testamento veteri et novo (1643) prepared…

[German Version] (Jan 6, 1677, Nîmes – Dec 30, 1730, The Hague), Reformed preacher and theologian. After fleeing from France in 1686 following the revocation of the Edict of Nantes (Huguenots: I, 1) and studying in Geneva, he became a pastor of refugee congregations in London, then after 1705 in The Hague. He gained a reputation as an outstanding preacher and used it in support of persecuted coreligionists. Moderately orthodox and totally averse to polemic, his biblical interpretations were primarily in the service of apologetic and ethical goals. Christoph Strohm Bibliography Works i…

[German Version] (Fr. gueux, “beggar”), originally a taunt, soon the self-designation of Dutch aristocracy who opposed Spanish domination and Catholic persecutions of believers in the last third of the 16th century. The designation probably originated when one of the advisers of the Governor General, Margareta of Parma, upon being presented with a petition concerning, inter alia, the abolition of the Inquisition on Apr 5, 1566, cried out: “Voilà des beaux gueux.” The aristocracy and soon also other champions of freedom adopted this designation as ho…

[German Version] (Molinaeus; Oct 16 or 18, 1568, Castle Buhy en Vexin – Mar 10, 1658, Sedan) studied at the Protestant academy in Sedan; became a tutor in England in 1588; was professor of Greek language and philosophy in Leiden, 1592–1598; and pastored the Reformed congregation in Charenton near Paris, 1599–1620. From 1621 until his death, he was preacher and …

[German Version] I. Religious Studies Peace (negatively: absence of fighting and war; positively: security, wellbeing, and harmony) is considered desirable in all traditional religions, although they also have their specific legitimations of war. In archaic religions, peace is primarily related to the community and understood as a present reality. However, from the beginning of the Christian era, religious developments produced stronger differentiations. Peace is no longer seen as a social phenomenon…

[German Version] Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange, took the city in 1591. In the 17th century, it was already home to a Latin school and a Calvinist academy, founded in 1655, at which noted theologians like C. Wittig and J. Braun taught. In 1679 the chaos of war forced the academy to close. Attempts to reestablish it in the 18th century failed. Not until 1923, after almost 20 years of efforts on the part of the Sankt Radboud Foundation, was the Catholic University of Nijmegen founded as a count…

[German Version] (1579, Glasgow – Nov 27, 1625, Montauban) went to France around 1600 and was initially active as a teacher in the vicinity of Humaniora. After studying in Paris, Geneva, and Heidelberg, he became pastor in Bordeaux in 1608, professor of theology at the Protestant academy in Saumur in 1618 and in Montauban in 1624. In the disputes with the Arminians, Cameron defended the Calvinist doctrine of predestination, but modified it by emphasizing …

[German Version] I. Old Testament – II. Judaism – III. New Testament – IV. Church History – V. Dogmatics and Ethics – VI. Practical Theology I. Old Testament The designation Decalogue (“ten words”) for the series of ten commandments derives from the Greek translation of the Hebrew ʾaśeret haddebārîm (δεκάλογος “ten words”). It is employed in late deuteronomic theory in Deut 10:4 for the Decalogue, in Deut 5:6–21 and by the post-dtr. redaction of the …