Joachim Mörlin
Encyclopedia
Joachim Mörlin was a Lutheran theologian and an important figure in the controversies following Martin Luther
's death.
, and Cruciger from 1532 to 1536. After a brief residence at Coburg, he returned to Wittenberg and in 1539 became Luther's chaplain, declining a call to succeed Poliander
at Königsberg. While a true pupil of Luther, Mörlin was more influenced by the dogmatics of Melanchthon, though devoid of sympathy with the Philippistic efforts for union with the Reformed. On Sept. 22, 1540, he left Wittenberg to become superintendent at Arnstadt, where, until deposed in Mar., 1543, for his rigid discipline and opposition to union, he displayed great activity, moral earnestness, and courage. But neither the appeal of his congregation nor the sympathy of Luther could overcome the hostility of the count of Schwartzburg, and on May 10, 1544, Mörlin became superintendent at Göttingen. Here he was equally firm in insistence on purity of life and doctrine, and wrote his Enchiridion catecheticum (1544), taught rhetoric in the Latin school, and lectured on Erasmus and the Loci
of Melanchthon. Mörlin's activity in Göttingen came to an end with his uncompromising resistance to the union advocated by the Interim
, and on Jan. 17, 1550, after vain protests by both council and congregation to Duke Erich, he was dismissed from office. Mörlin went to Erfurt
, thence to Arnstadt
, and finally to Schleusingen
, where he lived and preached in the castle of the count of Henneberg. Yet even here he was not altogether safe, and on Aug. 25, 1550, he left Schleusingen, arriving at Königsberg on Sept. 13. There, since Prussia did not belong constitutionally to the empire, he could not be molested, and was appointed, on Sept. 27, 1550, pastor at the Kneiphöfer Dom
and inspector.
, for it was not in his nature to remain neutral. The break, however, between Mörlin and Osiander was gradual. When the latter defended his view of justification (act. 24, 1550), Mörlin remained a silent witness; but Osiander's work with on the incarnation and the image of God, and still more his Bericht und Trostschrift, with its savage attack on Melanchthon, led Mörlin to complain on Feb. 7, 1551, to Albert of Prussia, though he did this so delicately that the duke commissioned him and Aurifaber
, Osiander's son-in-law, to assemble the theologians for the conference which was held Feb. 13-17. Here Mörlin's sincere desire for peace was evident, but his suspicion of Osiander increased, even though the latter claimed to be in harmony With Luther, denying the truth of Mörlin's Antilogia seu contraria doctrina inter Lutherum et Osiandrum. On Apr. 19 Mörlin preached against those who depreciated the merits of Christ, and Osiander rightly took this as directed against himself. The breach was now complete, and after an interchange of recriminations, Mörlin was replaced by Stancarus, professor of Hebrew. Before a new colloquy could be held, however, the duke directed (May 8) first Osiander and then his opponents to present their views in writing. Osiander hesitated, and Mörlin attacked him ply from the pulpit (May 27). The duke now forced Mörlin to defend his tenets in writing, and further roused him and his followers to passionate resistance by appointing Osiander to administer the bishopric of Samland
, and by requiring Mörlin and others to submit to the decision of the church. The characteristic reply (July 21) was that Mörlin and his adherents refused to recognize Osiander's jurisdiction, since he was a heretic, and they appealed to a free synod. Osiander's opponents now continued their attacks and virtually met up a separate church. This was forbidden by the duke (Aug. 12), who sent them Osiander's confession of faith, which was returned unread. The polemics still continued, and Albert in despair sent Osiander's confession to the princes and cities of Germany, urging a synod. Mörlin's position was gaining strength in Prussia, and the majority of the opinions of the churches outside Prussia were also favorable to him. The very refusal of the duke to publish these condemnations of Osiander aided Mörlin, who, on May 23, 1552, published a polemic defending the doctrine of justification against his opponent, in which he clearly set forth the orthodox Wittenberg position, and emphasized the difference between it and Osiander's teaching. Besides continuing to urge the publication of the opinions just mentioned, Mörlin preached a sermon (June, 1552) directed against Osiander, deprecating speculations on the inscrutable essence of God; and Osiander replied with his impassioned Schmeckbier, in which he arraigned Mörlin and his friends. The controversy increased in pettiness and coarseness, until Albert threatened (July 15, 1552) to depose Mörlin, only to receive the respectful but firm reply that Mörlin held it his divinely commissioned duty to polemize against Osiander. Meanwhile a second opinion came from Württemberg, and from it both Osiander and Mörlin claimed the support of Johann Brenz, but on Oct. 17, 1552, the weary struggle found its end in the death of Osiander, a defeated man.
displeasure was now finally incurred, and on Feb. 16, 1553, he presented his resignation. Three days later he sought refuge in Danzig, where he awaited an expected recall, supported as he was by the council and the citizens. But all appeals to the duke were in vain; and the exile at last resigned himself to his punishment and sought for a new field of activity. Mörlin had not long to wait. Brunswick
and Lübeck
were rivals for his services; the former won by right of priority, and he entered Brunswick on July 25, 1553. In the following year he received an assistant in the Melanchthonian Martin Chemnitz
, and developed a powerful activity, strengthening the Lutheran cause with the aid of the religious peace of Augsburg
, and preparing, in 1577, his Leges pro ministerio Brunsvicensi, which all the clergy of his superintendency were required to subscribe when entering upon office. He assailed the Reformed as bitterly as the Roman Catholics. Again, in 1564, the council of Brunswick enacted that the Corpus doctrinae should be subscribed by all theologians, a rule which remained in force until 1672. And this was no dead letter, for in 1566 Johannes Becker, a pastor in Brunswick who had subscribed to the Corpus but become a Calvinist, was forced to resign and ultimately was banished from the city. Meanwhile Mörlin and Chemnitz were active in other inter-Lutheran controversies and in warding off Calvinistic attacks; and the former was the prime mover in the rejection, by the Brunswick clergy, of the doctrines of Schwenckfeld, besides being one of those asked by the council of Bremen to settle the dispute between Johann Timann and Albert Hardenberg
. He furthermore defended Hesshusen
in his pamphlet Wider die Landlügen der heidelbergischen Theologen (1565).
, and to this end wrote his Confessio fidei de eucharistiae sacramento ministrorum ecclesiarum Saxonicarum (Magdeburg, 1557). At Coswik he sought to mediate between Melanchthon and Flacius
, and in his eagerness for peace, when the delegates of the Hanseatic League
assembled at Brunswick, he held a conference with Chemnitz, Westphal, and others (Jan. 14, 1557), and reached an agreement on articles tending to reconcile the adiaphorists
and those holding to the true Gospel. Mörlin then took these articles to Flacius at Magdeburg, after which he conferred with Melanchthon at Wittenberg, but returned to Brunswick unsuccessful (Jan. 28, 1557). Eight months later he went to the colloquy of Worms
, but by his opposition to the Philippists
and by his withdrawal helped render the conference resultless. In Dec., 1558, he visited Weimar and Jena to reconcile Flacius and Strigel
, and in 1560 he signed the petition of the Jena theologians to the princes to call a Lutheran synod to combat Calvinism. Mörlin was also a prominent figure at the conference of theologians from Lower Saxony held at Lüneburg
in July, 1561, and wrote the confession of faith there drawn up, Erklärung aus Gottes Wort und kurzer Bericht der Artikel, etc (Magdeburg, Jena, and Regensburg, 1561), which became binding on all pastors in Brunswick; and he again showed his Wittenberg orthodoxy in his Verantwortung der Präfation so für die lüneburgischen Artikel (1562). In 1563 the Council of Wesel asked the opinion of the Brunswick theologians for a ruling on the admission of Reformed refugees from England, and the decision was that the immigrants should be received and instructed; but, should they propagate their erroneous views, they should be expelled. In 1566 and 1567 Mörlin found himself compelled to break with his old friend Flacius because of the latter's teaching on original sin
; and at the same time he wrote against the Antinomians his Tres disputationes de tertio usu legis.
, the Apology
, and the Schmalkald Articles, the only change being the correction of certain false doctrines which had crept in since the formulation of the Augsburg Confession. The duke, assenting to the rejection of Osiandrianism, readily agreed, and on May 6 Mörlin and Chemnitz gave him their Repetitio corporis doctrinae Christianae, refuting Osiandrianism, Synergism, Antinomianism, Majorism, and similar teachings. Accepted by the synod and the estates, the Repetitio was proclaimed by Albert on July 8, 1567, and Prussia was at last free from theological rancor.
, and though urged by clergy and laity alike to remain in Prussia, Mörlin still felt bound to Brunswick. Accordingly, promised by the estates (June 8, 1567) that no Calvinists should be allowed at court, he returned to Brunswick. But his stay there was brief, and he was unexpectedly released. Learning that a patricide had been let go free, both he and Chemmtz sharply upbraided the magistracy in a sermon on July 13, and were cited to appear before the court. Under these circumstances the envoys of Albert succeeded in inducing the council, unwilling though it was even then, to let Mörlin go (Sept. 24, 1567). He was now declared bishop of Samland, while Chemnitz was made superintendent. Henceforth until his death, in his new office, he was active in preaching and catechizing, never ceasing to polemize against Philippists
, Synergists, and, above all, Calvinists.
Martin Luther
Martin Luther was a German priest, professor of theology and iconic figure of the Protestant Reformation. He strongly disputed the claim that freedom from God's punishment for sin could be purchased with money. He confronted indulgence salesman Johann Tetzel with his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517...
's death.
Early life
He studied at Wittenberg under Luther, Melanchthon, JonasJustus Jonas
Justus Jonas was a German Lutheran reformer.-Biography:Jonas was born at Nordhausen in Thuringia. His real name was Jodokus Koch, which he changed according to the common custom of German scholars in the sixteenth century, when at the University of Erfurt...
, and Cruciger from 1532 to 1536. After a brief residence at Coburg, he returned to Wittenberg and in 1539 became Luther's chaplain, declining a call to succeed Poliander
Johann Gramann
Johann Gramann or Graumann was a Protestant-Lutheran pastor, theologian, teacher, humanist, reformer and leader of the church. He worked as rector of the Thomasschule in Leipzig...
at Königsberg. While a true pupil of Luther, Mörlin was more influenced by the dogmatics of Melanchthon, though devoid of sympathy with the Philippistic efforts for union with the Reformed. On Sept. 22, 1540, he left Wittenberg to become superintendent at Arnstadt, where, until deposed in Mar., 1543, for his rigid discipline and opposition to union, he displayed great activity, moral earnestness, and courage. But neither the appeal of his congregation nor the sympathy of Luther could overcome the hostility of the count of Schwartzburg, and on May 10, 1544, Mörlin became superintendent at Göttingen. Here he was equally firm in insistence on purity of life and doctrine, and wrote his Enchiridion catecheticum (1544), taught rhetoric in the Latin school, and lectured on Erasmus and the Loci
Loci Theologici
Loci Theologici was a term applied by Melanchthon to Evangelical systems of dogmatics and retained by many as late as the seventeenth century....
of Melanchthon. Mörlin's activity in Göttingen came to an end with his uncompromising resistance to the union advocated by the Interim
Augsburg Interim
The Augsburg Interim is the general term given to an imperial decree ordered on May 15, 1548, at the 1548 Diet of Augsburg, after Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, had defeated the forces of the Schmalkaldic League in the Schmalkaldic War of 1546/47...
, and on Jan. 17, 1550, after vain protests by both council and congregation to Duke Erich, he was dismissed from office. Mörlin went to Erfurt
Erfurt
Erfurt is the capital city of Thuringia and the main city nearest to the geographical centre of Germany, located 100 km SW of Leipzig, 150 km N of Nuremberg and 180 km SE of Hannover. Erfurt Airport can be reached by plane via Munich. It lies in the southern part of the Thuringian...
, thence to Arnstadt
Arnstadt
Arnstadt is a town in Ilm-Kreis, Thuringia, Germany, situated on the Gera River. It is one of the oldest towns in Thuringia and is nicknamed Das Tor zum Thüringer Wald, The Gate to the Thuringian Forest....
, and finally to Schleusingen
Schleusingen
Schleusingen is a town in the district of Hildburghausen, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated 10 km north of Hildburghausen, and 12 km southeast of Suhl....
, where he lived and preached in the castle of the count of Henneberg. Yet even here he was not altogether safe, and on Aug. 25, 1550, he left Schleusingen, arriving at Königsberg on Sept. 13. There, since Prussia did not belong constitutionally to the empire, he could not be molested, and was appointed, on Sept. 27, 1550, pastor at the Kneiphöfer Dom
Königsberg Cathedral
Königsberg Cathedral is a Brick Gothic style building in Kaliningrad on an island in the Pregel . The island was called Kneiphof in German times.-14th Century to World War II:...
and inspector.
Controversy with Osiander
There Mörlin became involved in the Osiandrian controversyAndreas Osiander
Andreas Osiander was a German Lutheran theologian.- Career :Born at Gunzenhausen in Franconia, Osiander studied at the University of Ingolstadt before being ordained as a priest in 1520. In the same year he began work at an Augustinian convent in Nuremberg as a Hebrew tutor. In 1522, he was...
, for it was not in his nature to remain neutral. The break, however, between Mörlin and Osiander was gradual. When the latter defended his view of justification (act. 24, 1550), Mörlin remained a silent witness; but Osiander's work with on the incarnation and the image of God, and still more his Bericht und Trostschrift, with its savage attack on Melanchthon, led Mörlin to complain on Feb. 7, 1551, to Albert of Prussia, though he did this so delicately that the duke commissioned him and Aurifaber
Andreas Aurifaber
Andreas Aurifaber was a German physician of some repute, but through his influence with Albert of Brandenburg, last grand-master of the Teutonic Knights, and first Protestant duke of Prussia, became an outstanding figure in the controversy associated with Andreas Osiander whose daughter he had...
, Osiander's son-in-law, to assemble the theologians for the conference which was held Feb. 13-17. Here Mörlin's sincere desire for peace was evident, but his suspicion of Osiander increased, even though the latter claimed to be in harmony With Luther, denying the truth of Mörlin's Antilogia seu contraria doctrina inter Lutherum et Osiandrum. On Apr. 19 Mörlin preached against those who depreciated the merits of Christ, and Osiander rightly took this as directed against himself. The breach was now complete, and after an interchange of recriminations, Mörlin was replaced by Stancarus, professor of Hebrew. Before a new colloquy could be held, however, the duke directed (May 8) first Osiander and then his opponents to present their views in writing. Osiander hesitated, and Mörlin attacked him ply from the pulpit (May 27). The duke now forced Mörlin to defend his tenets in writing, and further roused him and his followers to passionate resistance by appointing Osiander to administer the bishopric of Samland
Bishopric of Samland
The Bishopric of Samland was a bishopric in Samland in medieval Prussia. It was founded as a Roman Catholic diocese in 1243 by papal legate William of Modena. Its seat was Königsberg, until 1523 the episcopal residence was in Fischhausen. The bishopric became Lutheran in the 16th century during...
, and by requiring Mörlin and others to submit to the decision of the church. The characteristic reply (July 21) was that Mörlin and his adherents refused to recognize Osiander's jurisdiction, since he was a heretic, and they appealed to a free synod. Osiander's opponents now continued their attacks and virtually met up a separate church. This was forbidden by the duke (Aug. 12), who sent them Osiander's confession of faith, which was returned unread. The polemics still continued, and Albert in despair sent Osiander's confession to the princes and cities of Germany, urging a synod. Mörlin's position was gaining strength in Prussia, and the majority of the opinions of the churches outside Prussia were also favorable to him. The very refusal of the duke to publish these condemnations of Osiander aided Mörlin, who, on May 23, 1552, published a polemic defending the doctrine of justification against his opponent, in which he clearly set forth the orthodox Wittenberg position, and emphasized the difference between it and Osiander's teaching. Besides continuing to urge the publication of the opinions just mentioned, Mörlin preached a sermon (June, 1552) directed against Osiander, deprecating speculations on the inscrutable essence of God; and Osiander replied with his impassioned Schmeckbier, in which he arraigned Mörlin and his friends. The controversy increased in pettiness and coarseness, until Albert threatened (July 15, 1552) to depose Mörlin, only to receive the respectful but firm reply that Mörlin held it his divinely commissioned duty to polemize against Osiander. Meanwhile a second opinion came from Württemberg, and from it both Osiander and Mörlin claimed the support of Johann Brenz, but on Oct. 17, 1552, the weary struggle found its end in the death of Osiander, a defeated man.
Driven from Königsberg
The peace-loving policy of Albert was still to demonstrate its futility. The ambiguity of the Württemberg declaration seemed to him to constitute a good formula of union, and on Jan. 24, 1553, he required that sermons on justification should be preached according to the six Württemberg articles, and that all coarseness should be avoided. This was tantamount to a defense of Osiandrianism, but the great majority of the duke's subjects were opposed, while Mörlin declared himself unable to obey the ducal mandate when contrary to the obligations of religion. This was the only course open to him, but the duke'sdispleasure was now finally incurred, and on Feb. 16, 1553, he presented his resignation. Three days later he sought refuge in Danzig, where he awaited an expected recall, supported as he was by the council and the citizens. But all appeals to the duke were in vain; and the exile at last resigned himself to his punishment and sought for a new field of activity. Mörlin had not long to wait. Brunswick
Braunschweig
Braunschweig , is a city of 247,400 people, located in the federal-state of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located north of the Harz mountains at the farthest navigable point of the Oker river, which connects to the North Sea via the rivers Aller and Weser....
and Lübeck
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
were rivals for his services; the former won by right of priority, and he entered Brunswick on July 25, 1553. In the following year he received an assistant in the Melanchthonian Martin Chemnitz
Martin Chemnitz
Martin Chemnitz was an eminent second-generation Lutheran theologian, reformer, churchman, and confessor...
, and developed a powerful activity, strengthening the Lutheran cause with the aid of the religious peace of Augsburg
Peace of Augsburg
The Peace of Augsburg, also called the Augsburg Settlement, was a treaty between Charles V and the forces of the Schmalkaldic League, an alliance of Lutheran princes, on September 25, 1555, at the imperial city of Augsburg, now in present-day Bavaria, Germany.It officially ended the religious...
, and preparing, in 1577, his Leges pro ministerio Brunsvicensi, which all the clergy of his superintendency were required to subscribe when entering upon office. He assailed the Reformed as bitterly as the Roman Catholics. Again, in 1564, the council of Brunswick enacted that the Corpus doctrinae should be subscribed by all theologians, a rule which remained in force until 1672. And this was no dead letter, for in 1566 Johannes Becker, a pastor in Brunswick who had subscribed to the Corpus but become a Calvinist, was forced to resign and ultimately was banished from the city. Meanwhile Mörlin and Chemnitz were active in other inter-Lutheran controversies and in warding off Calvinistic attacks; and the former was the prime mover in the rejection, by the Brunswick clergy, of the doctrines of Schwenckfeld, besides being one of those asked by the council of Bremen to settle the dispute between Johann Timann and Albert Hardenberg
Albert Hardenberg
Albert Hardenberg or Albert Rizaeus was a Reformed theologian, who was also active as a reformer in Bremen and Emden.- Bibliography :...
. He furthermore defended Hesshusen
Tilemann Heshusius
Tilemann Heshusius Tilemann Heshusius Tilemann Heshusius (also Hesshus, Heßhusen, Hess Husen, Heshusen (November 3, 1527 in Wesel -- September 25, 1588 in Helmstedt) was a Gnesio-Lutheran theologian.- Life :...
in his pamphlet Wider die Landlügen der heidelbergischen Theologen (1565).
Efforts for Theological Reconciliation
In the struggle with Calvinism Mörlin supported WestphalJoachim Westphal (of Hamburg)
Joachim Westphal was a German "Gnesio-Lutheran" theologian....
, and to this end wrote his Confessio fidei de eucharistiae sacramento ministrorum ecclesiarum Saxonicarum (Magdeburg, 1557). At Coswik he sought to mediate between Melanchthon and Flacius
Matthias Flacius
Matthias Flacius Illyricus was a Lutheran reformer.He was born in Carpano, a part of Albona in Istria, son of Andrea Vlacich alias Francovich and Jacobea Luciani, daughter of a wealthy and powerful Albonian family...
, and in his eagerness for peace, when the delegates of the Hanseatic League
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League was an economic alliance of trading cities and their merchant guilds that dominated trade along the coast of Northern Europe...
assembled at Brunswick, he held a conference with Chemnitz, Westphal, and others (Jan. 14, 1557), and reached an agreement on articles tending to reconcile the adiaphorists
Adiaphora
Adiaphoron is a concept of Stoic philosophy that indicates things outside of moral law—that is, actions that morality neither mandates nor forbids....
and those holding to the true Gospel. Mörlin then took these articles to Flacius at Magdeburg, after which he conferred with Melanchthon at Wittenberg, but returned to Brunswick unsuccessful (Jan. 28, 1557). Eight months later he went to the colloquy of Worms
Colloquy of Worms
The Colloquy of Worms was the last colloquy in the 16th century on an imperial level, held in Worms from September 11 to October 8, 1557. At the Diet of Augsburg in 1555 it had been agreed that the dialog on controversial religious issues should be continued. A resolution was passed at Regensburg...
, but by his opposition to the Philippists
Philippists
The Philippists formed a party in early Lutheranism. Their opponents were called Gnesio-Lutherans.-Before Luther's Death:Philippists was the designation usually applied in the latter half of the sixteenth century to the followers of Philipp Melanchthon...
and by his withdrawal helped render the conference resultless. In Dec., 1558, he visited Weimar and Jena to reconcile Flacius and Strigel
Victorinus Strigel
Viktorin/Victorinus Strigel was a Philippist Lutheran Theologian.-Life:...
, and in 1560 he signed the petition of the Jena theologians to the princes to call a Lutheran synod to combat Calvinism. Mörlin was also a prominent figure at the conference of theologians from Lower Saxony held at Lüneburg
Lüneburg
Lüneburg is a town in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is located about southeast of fellow Hanseatic city Hamburg. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, and one of Hamburg's inner suburbs...
in July, 1561, and wrote the confession of faith there drawn up, Erklärung aus Gottes Wort und kurzer Bericht der Artikel, etc (Magdeburg, Jena, and Regensburg, 1561), which became binding on all pastors in Brunswick; and he again showed his Wittenberg orthodoxy in his Verantwortung der Präfation so für die lüneburgischen Artikel (1562). In 1563 the Council of Wesel asked the opinion of the Brunswick theologians for a ruling on the admission of Reformed refugees from England, and the decision was that the immigrants should be received and instructed; but, should they propagate their erroneous views, they should be expelled. In 1566 and 1567 Mörlin found himself compelled to break with his old friend Flacius because of the latter's teaching on original sin
Original sin
Original sin is, according to a Christian theological doctrine, humanity's state of sin resulting from the Fall of Man. This condition has been characterized in many ways, ranging from something as insignificant as a slight deficiency, or a tendency toward sin yet without collective guilt, referred...
; and at the same time he wrote against the Antinomians his Tres disputationes de tertio usu legis.
Recalled to Königsberg
Meanwhile, inspired partly by him, the struggle had continued in Prussia between the Melanchthonians and the Osiandrian peace-policy of the court. Well informed of all that went on in Königsberg, Mörlin strengthened his sympathisers with his Historia welcher Gestalt sich die osiandrische Schwärmerei im Lande zu Preussen erhoben (Brunswick, 1554). In 1555 he published two other pamphlets on the course of events in Prussia; and finally Albert found himself obliged to yield. On Nov. 30, 1566, Mörlin was invited to return to Prussia, but he declined to leave Brunswick. The invitation was repeated, however (Jan. 31, 1567), and after much persuasion Mörlin accepted and obtained leave of absence from the reluctant Council of Brunswick. On Apr. 9, 1567, he and Chemnitz were joyfully welcomed in Königsberg, and at once began the restoration of Melanchthonian orthodoxy. After much consideration it was decided that the confessional bases should remain the Augsburg ConfessionAugsburg Confession
The Augsburg Confession, also known as the "Augustana" from its Latin name, Confessio Augustana, is the primary confession of faith of the Lutheran Church and one of the most important documents of the Lutheran reformation...
, the Apology
Apology of the Augsburg Confession
The Apology of the Augsburg Confession was written by Philipp Melanchthon during and after the 1530 Diet of Augsburg as a response to the Pontifical Confutation of the Augsburg Confession, Charles V's commissioned official Roman Catholic response to the Lutheran Augsburg Confession of June 25, 1530...
, and the Schmalkald Articles, the only change being the correction of certain false doctrines which had crept in since the formulation of the Augsburg Confession. The duke, assenting to the rejection of Osiandrianism, readily agreed, and on May 6 Mörlin and Chemnitz gave him their Repetitio corporis doctrinae Christianae, refuting Osiandrianism, Synergism, Antinomianism, Majorism, and similar teachings. Accepted by the synod and the estates, the Repetitio was proclaimed by Albert on July 8, 1567, and Prussia was at last free from theological rancor.
Becomes Bishop of Samland
Though offered the bishopric of SamlandBishopric of Samland
The Bishopric of Samland was a bishopric in Samland in medieval Prussia. It was founded as a Roman Catholic diocese in 1243 by papal legate William of Modena. Its seat was Königsberg, until 1523 the episcopal residence was in Fischhausen. The bishopric became Lutheran in the 16th century during...
, and though urged by clergy and laity alike to remain in Prussia, Mörlin still felt bound to Brunswick. Accordingly, promised by the estates (June 8, 1567) that no Calvinists should be allowed at court, he returned to Brunswick. But his stay there was brief, and he was unexpectedly released. Learning that a patricide had been let go free, both he and Chemmtz sharply upbraided the magistracy in a sermon on July 13, and were cited to appear before the court. Under these circumstances the envoys of Albert succeeded in inducing the council, unwilling though it was even then, to let Mörlin go (Sept. 24, 1567). He was now declared bishop of Samland, while Chemnitz was made superintendent. Henceforth until his death, in his new office, he was active in preaching and catechizing, never ceasing to polemize against Philippists
Philippists
The Philippists formed a party in early Lutheranism. Their opponents were called Gnesio-Lutherans.-Before Luther's Death:Philippists was the designation usually applied in the latter half of the sixteenth century to the followers of Philipp Melanchthon...
, Synergists, and, above all, Calvinists.