Calvinism on the Frontier 1600-1660: International Calvinism and the Reformed Church in Hungary and Transylvania

373 Pages·2000·2.488 MB·English

by  Graeme Murdock

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oxford historical monographs
editors
r. r. davies r. j. w. evans
j. harris h. m. mayr-harting
a. j. nicholls j. robertson
sir keith thomas
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Calvinism on the Frontier
1600 1660
–
International Calvinism and
the Reformed Church in
Hungary and Transylvania
GRAEME MURDOCK
CLARENDON PRESS • OXFORD
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3
Great Clarendon Street,Oxfordox2 6dp
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© Graeme Murdock 2000
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First published 2000
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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Data available
Library ofCongress Cataloging in Publication Data
Murdock,Graeme.
Calvinism on the frontier,1600–1660:international Calvinism and the
Reformed Church in Hungary and Transylvania / Graeme Murdock.
p.cm.––(Oxford historical monographs)
Includes bibliographical references.
1.Magyarorszâgi Reformâtus Egyhâz––History—17th century.
2.Calvinism––Hungary––History––17th century.3.Hungary—Church
history––17th century.4.Calvinism––Romania––Transylvania––History––
17th century.5.Transylvania (Romania)––Church history––17th century.
I.Title.II.Series.
BX9444.2M87 2000 284'.2439—dc21 00-022950
ISBN 0–19–820859–6
1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2
Typeset in Ehrhardt MT
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To Mum and Dad
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The history ofHungary,and indeed ofall eastern Europe,has for too long
been unjustly neglected by western writers. Political divisions in the
twentieth century restricted Europeans’vision ofthe breadth oftheir own
continent but,as I hope this book shows,it has not always been so.Ventur-
ing far on a road ‘less travelled by’has certainly made all the difference to
me,and I want here to acknowledge all the support which has made the
completion ofthis project possible.
I want particularly to thank the rector,staff,and students at the Kolozs-
vár Protestant Theological Institute of the Transylvanian Reformed
church who warmly welcomed a stranger within their gates in 1991,and
were patient with my faltering steps to learn the dreaded Magyar tongue.
From my return to Brasenose College,Oxford,in 1992I have been espe-
cially fortunate to receive wise guidance from Robert Evans,whom I thank
for all his encouragement and direction,and for taking the trouble to com-
ment on different drafts ofthis text.I gladly acknowledge the help which I
received as a graduate student from the Department of Education for
Northern Ireland.I also want to thank the examiners ofmy thesis,Gillian
Lewis and Katalin Péter. I have gained valuable assistance from many
librarians and archivists in Hungary and Romania, and thanks are owed
especially to staffin archives and libraries in Budapest,Pápa,Sárospatak,
Debrecen,Kolozsvár,and Marosvásárhely.Many thanks also to Juliet Vale
and the editorial staffat OUP for their help in the production ofthis book.
The map appears by permission ofRobert Evans and OUP from M.Prest-
wich (ed.),International Calvinism,1541–1715(Oxford,1985),168.
This book could not have been completed without the support ofmany
friends from Belfast to Budapest (especially the book-finder general
Ruzˇica Marasˇand Froukje de Hoop).Most ofall I want to thank my fam-
ily for everything,and this book is dedicated to my parents with much love.
Hungarian Reformed ministers chose many different Bible passages to
commit their books to God,and I hope they might have approved of my
choice:‘For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom,and the
weakness ofGod is stronger than man’s strength’(1Cor.1:25).
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CONTENTS
list of map and table ix
note on family names and place-names x
Place-Names x
List ofTransylvania’s Princes xi
List ofReformed Superintendents,Clergy,and Teachers xi
abbreviations xiii
INTRODUCTION:INTERNATIONAL CALVINISM 1
1. THE HUNGARIAN REFORMATION 10
2. HUNGARIAN MINISTERS AND INTERNATIONAL
CALVINISM 46
(i) Germany 52
(ii) The Dutch Republic 58
(iii) England 64
3. REFORMING HUNGARIAN EDUCATION 77
(i) Hungarian Reformed Schools 78
(ii) Three Foreigners 86
(iii) Reforming Hungarian Education 93
4. CONSTITUTIONAL TOLERATION AND
CONFESSIONAL RIVALRY 110
(i) International Opponents:Catholics 114
(ii) ‘Beyond the Pale’:Unitarians 120
(iii) Internal Allies? Lutherans 126
(iv) Mission:Orthodoxy and Islam 134
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viii Contents
5. REFORMED RELIGION:PUBLIC CEREMONY
AND PRIVATE PIETY 143
(i) Books and Belief 144
(ii) Church Buildings and Services 153
(iii) Baptism and Communion 156
(iv) Sermons,Prayer,and Music 162
6. HUNGARIAN PURITANS AND PRESBYTERIANS 171
(i) János Tolnai Dali and Hungarian Puritanism 172
(ii) Presbyterians and Independents 180
7. THE REFORMATION OF HUNGARIAN LIFE:
RELIGIOUS,MORAL,AND SOCIAL DISCIPLINE 198
(i) The Institutions ofReformed Discipline 199
(ii) The Punishment ofOffenders 208
(iii) Reformed Morality 214
8. BUILDING A REFORMED CHURCH AND SOCIETY:
CLERGY,PRINCES,AND NOBLES 229
(i) The Reformation ofthe Clergy 230
(ii) Godly Princes 243
(iii) The Church and the Nobility 249
9. A MILITANT AND EXPECTANT FAITH 258
(i) Hebraic Patriotism and Apocalyptic Belief 261
(ii) The Protestant Interest and Transylvanian Diplomacy 270
CONCLUSIONS 291
bibliography 304
index 347
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MAP
Hungary and her Neighbours,c.1600 xiv
TABLE
Registrations and attendance ofHungarian and Transylvanian
Reformed students at western European universities,1610–1659 50
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NOTE ON FAMILY NAMES AND
PLACE-NAMES
Some Hungarian family names from the early modern period often appear
with a variety ofspellings.I have followed my preferred choices through-
out. All family names will be placed after Christian names, for example
Gábor Bethlen rather than Bethlen Gábor as in customary Hungarian
usage. Many individuals also have two given names, one of which often
refers to a place oforigin,as in János Tolnai Dali or Péter Szathmári Baka.
I have followed contemporary Reformed writers’ usage and employed
Hungarian names for most towns in the region, occasionally using Ger-
man names where appropriate.However,cities and towns were,and are,
known to the different linguistic communities of this region by different
names,the most important ofwhich appear in the list below.
place-names
Hungarian German Romanian Slovak/Ukranian/
Croatian
Brassó Kronstadt Bras¸ov
Dés Desch Dej
Déva Diemrich Deva
Fogaras Fogarasch Faˇgaˇras¸
Gyulafehérvár Weissenburg Alba Iulia
Karánsebes Karansebesch Caransebes¸
Kolozsvár Klausenburg Cluj-Napoca
Lugos Lugosch Lugoj
Marosvásárhely Neumarkt Tîrgu Mures¸
Nagybánya Frauenbach Baia Mare
Nagyenyed Strassburg Aiud
Nagyszeben Hermannstadt Sibiu
Nagyvárad Grosswardein Oradea
Segesvár Schässburg Sighis¸oara
Szászváros Broos Oraˇs¸tie
Szatmár Sathmar Satu Mare
Székelykeresztúr Kreutz Cristuru Secuiesc
Székelyudvarhely Hofmarkt Odorheiu Secuiesc