Advocating for Poor Relief in Zurich: Heinrich Bullinger's Contributions to Religious Ideals and Policy Reforms

Despite the demarcations of the political and religious spheres, Heinrich Bullinger (1504-1575) considered the city's system of poor relief to be a pastoral concern. The chief minister of Zurich expected the wealth from confiscated church property to be used for communal needs and believed that...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Chung-Kim, Esther 1973- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Cambridge Univ. Press [2017]
In: Church history
Year: 2017, Volume: 86, Issue: 2, Pages: 311-338
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Bullinger, Heinrich 1504-1575 / Zürich / Bible / Poverty / Supply / History 1530-1580
IxTheo Classification:HA Bible
KAG Church history 1500-1648; Reformation; humanism; Renaissance
KBC Switzerland
NCC Social ethics
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
Description
Summary:Despite the demarcations of the political and religious spheres, Heinrich Bullinger (1504-1575) considered the city's system of poor relief to be a pastoral concern. The chief minister of Zurich expected the wealth from confiscated church property to be used for communal needs and believed that the magistrates needed the ministers to guide them in poor relief reforms. This article demonstrates that Bullinger's biblical interpretation was not peripheral to his political activity, but rather central to his contributions to poor relief and to the justification of his political involvement in poor relief reform. More specifically, Bullinger's involvement in poor relief reform was a consistent development from his articulation of his theological views in the 1530s, applied to the Zurich context in the 1550s, and politically supported in the 1570s. An examination of Bullinger's biblical interpretation and scriptural references in his commentaries, sermons, and speeches reveals a consistent concern for the care of the poor from the early years of his career to the end of his ministry in Zurich.
ISSN:1755-2613
Contains:Enthalten in: Church history
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1017/S0009640717000592