Wednesday, February 26, 2025

It is the 26th of February 2025. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

I have always been fascinated with “juniors,” that is, the second generation of a movement. Dynamic movements—in our case, the church—have long been pushed forward by charismatic leaders. It’s one thing that is hard to account for when just looking at a page: how the sheer force of personality helped movements succeed.  

But what about the second generation, the often impatient “juniors”? Are they to follow the example of their leader? The literal blood descendants? The ones who properly interpret their tradition? Can there be any modification of the leaders thoughts?

This brings us to one of my favorite characters from the 16th century- a fascinating case study in “Juniors.” he was David Chytraeus, born in Wurttemberg on the 26th of February in 1531. Born the year after the Augsburg Confession, he didn’t see the early days of the Reformation but, by the age of 13, was off to Wittenberg, where he would study under Phillip Melanchthon and hear Luther give his final lectures on the book of Genesis.

Based on his abilities as a scholar, he was recommended for a post at the Lutheran University in Rostock in the 1550s. There, he was instrumental in herding the second generation of Lutherans as they worked towards a consensus on the Book of Concord in 1580. Chytraeus would work on various doctrines, marshaling the arguments with the spirit of his mentor, Philip Melanchthon. This is all interesting, but it is not what made him one of my favorite characters of the age.

As a young undergraduate who came across this man in the library's stacks, the first thing that stuck out to me was that he was attempting to be a historian. He wrote a history of the Augsburg Confession, a history of Saxony, and even a curious oration on Emperor Charles V—one of the Archenemies of the early Reformation. Chytraeus writes sympathetically about him.

But it was not even that that made my eyes widen… Other branches of the Reformation had established their doctrines of the End Times, and the Catholic Church had long followed Augustine's reading of Revelation as (something like) allegory.

But not the Lutherans. Little was written on the subject, and although Luther could be inconsistent, this is unsurprising—he was not a systematic theologian. Chytraeus would write a commentary on Revelation, using his love of history to draw parallels and make predictions much more befitting late 20th-century Southern California than 16th-century Germany.

Chytraeus makes the parallel between his century and the 4th century. He claims that just as Constantine was a figure of world altering importance, so too was Luther. He would thus help to inaugurate a favorite Lutheran tradition of reading the person of Luther into the book of Revelation- for example, seeing him as the Angel of Revelation 14:6- yikes!

Regardless of his interpretations, Chytraeus on Revelation was important for this second generation of Reformers as Luther himself had questioned the place of the book of Revelation in the canon- he said that he “[leaves] everyone free to hold his own opinions” but that it might not be apostolic nor prophetic. Chytraeus would thus serve that important role as a “junior,” a “next generation reformer,” not in his particular reading of the book, but in that he thought it should be read and does,, in fact,, preach Jesus.

Part of his appeal (and what got him into trouble) was his reputation as a “little Phillip”- while others would be called “the second Luther,” Chytraeus was saddled with the reputation of Luther’s faithful but sometimes erstwhile companion. He could be seen as overly accommodating to some, but to his followers he was seeking common ground. He would spend the rest of his career, after the Book of Concord, seeking union with other church bodies- if possible. It was not- but he spent 20 years seeking.

He would die in the round year of 1600, on the cusp of a new century- born on this day in 1530, David Chytraeus was 70 years old.

The Last word for today comes from the daily lectionary and the 17th chapter of Luke:

17 Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to stumble are bound to come, but woe to anyone through whom they come. 2 It would be better for them to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck than to cause one of these little ones to stumble. 3 So watch yourselves.

“If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. 4 Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying ‘I repent,’ you must forgive them.”

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 26th of February 2025, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man whose idea of a millstone line of neckties for teachers didn’t go over well… he is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man who was graciously told it's “Gray-sha Grindel,” not my pronunciation, which made it sound like she is from Mexico… I’m familiar with mispronounced names- I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.