Citizendia
Your Ad Here

Menno Simons
Menno Simons

Menno Simons (1496 – January 31, 1561) was an Anabaptist religious leader from Friesland (today a province of The Netherlands). Events 1504 - France cedes Naples to Aragon. 1606 - Gunpowder Plot: Guy Fawkes Anabaptists ( Greek ανα (again twice + βαπτιζω (baptize thus "re-baptizers" are Christians of the Radical Reformation Friesland ( West Frisian: Fryslân, Dutch Friesland) is a province in the north of the Netherlands and part of the bigger region known The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands Simons was a contemporary of the Protestant Reformers and his followers became known as Mennonites. The Protestant Reformers were those Theologians churchmen, and Statesmen whose careers works and actions brought about the Protestant Reformation of the The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after Menno Simons (1496&ndash1561 though his teachings were a relatively

Contents

Birth to priesthood

Menno Simonszoon (Simon's son) was born in Witmarsum, Friesland. Wûnseradiel is a Municipality in the Friesland (Fryslân province of the northern Netherlands, at the eastern end of the Afsluitdijk Friesland ( West Frisian: Fryslân, Dutch Friesland) is a province in the north of the Netherlands and part of the bigger region known Friesland was ravaged by war in the late 15th and early 16th century. Landsknecht soldiers haunted the Frisian lands in the 1490s to force the 'Free' Frisians to accept the duke of Saxony-Meissen as their head-of-state. Landsknechts (singular Landsknecht, German plural Landsknechte, sometimes also in English publications were European most often German, Mercenary The Free State of Saxony (Freistaat Sachsen ˈzaksən Swobodny Stat Sakska is the easternmost federal state of Germany. The duke was the governor of the Netherlands for the Habsburg family. One of the archenemies of the Habsburgs, the Duke of Guelders, invaded Friesland in 1515 and conquered half of it. This article deals with the historical county and duchy of Guelders for other meanings see Gelderland. The other half was ceded by Saxony to the Habsburgers. The Frisians tried to regain their freedom but they were too weak and eventually accepted the imperial authority of the Habsburg emperor Charles V. Charles V (24 February 1500 &ndash 21 September 1558 was Simons grew up in this disillusioned and war torn country. Very little is known concerning his parents or his childhood. He was of poor peasant parentage, and his education was limited to his training to become a priest. A priest or priestess is a person having the authority or power to administer religious rites in particular rites of sacrifice to and propitiation of a deity or deities Ordained as a Roman Catholic priest in 1515 or 1516[1] at Utrecht, he was then made a chaplain in his father's village Pingjum (1524). Utrecht ( city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. A chaplain is typically a Priest, Pastor, ordained Deacon, Rabbi, Imam or other member of the Clergy serving a group of Pingjum is a village in the municipality of Wûnseradiel in Friesland, in the northern Netherlands.

Theological efforts

Around 1526 or 1527, questions surrounding the doctrine of transubstantiation caused Menno Simons to begin a serious and in-depth search of the scriptures, which he confessed he had not previously studied, even being a priest. See also Eucharist (Catholic Church On the related belief that Christ is present in the Eucharist in body blood soul and divinity see Real Presence. Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word bible is from Latin biblia, traced from the same word through Medieval Latin and Late Latin At this time he arrived at what some have termed an "evangelical humanist" position. Humanism is a broad category of ethical philosophies that affirm the dignity and worth of all people based on the ability to determine right and wrong by appealing to universal

Menno Simons - wood engraving by Christoffel van Sichem 1610
Menno Simons - wood engraving by Christoffel van Sichem 1610

Menno's first knowledge of the concept of "rebaptism", which he said "sounded very strange to me", came in 1531. This came through the means of hearing of the beheading of Sicke Freerks Snijder at Leeuwarden for being "rebaptized". Leeuwarden ( Stadsfries: Liwwadden, West Frisian: Ljouwert) is the Capital city of the Dutch province of Friesland A renewed search of the scriptures left Menno Simons believing that infant baptism is not in the Bible. Infant baptism is the Christian religious practice of baptizing infants or young children Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word bible is from Latin biblia, traced from the same word through Medieval Latin and Late Latin He discussed the issue with his pastor, searched the Church Fathers, and read the works of Martin Luther and Heinrich Bullinger. The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, or Fathers of the Church are the early and influential theologians and writers in the Christian Church Martin Luther (November 10 1483 February 18 1546 was a German Monk, theologian, university professor Father of Protestantism, and church reformer Heinrich Bullinger ( July 18, 1504 - September 17, 1575) was a Swiss reformer, the successor of Huldrych Zwingli While still pondering the issue, he was transferred to Witmarsum. Here he came into direct contact with Anabaptists, preaching and practicing believer's baptism. Believer's baptism (occasionally called credobaptism, from the Latin word credo) is the Christian practice of Baptism as this is understood by Later, some of the Münsterite disciples came there as well. The Münster Rebellion was an attempt by radical Anabaptists to establish a Theocracy in the German city of Münster. While he regarded them as misled and fanatical, he was drawn to their zeal and their view on the Bible, the Church, and discipleship. When his brother Pieter was among a group of Anabaptists killed near Bolsward in 1535, Menno experienced a spiritual and mental crisis. Bolsward ( West Frisian: Boalsert) is a Municipality and a City in the Province of Friesland in the Netherlands He said he "prayed to God with sighs and tears that He would give to me, a sorrowing sinner, the gift of His grace, create within me a clean heart, and graciously through the merits of the crimson blood of Christ, he would graciously forgive my unclean walk and unprofitable life…"[2]

Menno Simons rejected the Catholic church and the priesthood on 12 January 1536,[1] casting his lot with the Anabaptists. Events 475 - Basiliscus becomes Byzantine Emperor, with a coronation ceremony in the Hebdomon palace in Constantinople His date of baptism is unknown, but by October of 1536 his connection with Anabaptism was well-known. In Christianity, baptism ( Greek, "immersing" "performing Ablutions " is the ritual act with the use of water by which one is admitted In that month Herman and Gerrit Jans were arrested and charged with having lodged Simons. He was probably baptized not long after leaving Witmarsum in early 1536. He was ordained around 1537 by Obbe Philips. Obbe Philips (ca 1500-1568 (also spelled Philipsz and Filips) was one of the early founders of Dutch Anabaptism. Obbe and his brother, Dirk Philips, were among the peaceful disciples of Melchior Hoffman (the more radical having set up the kingdom in Münster). Dirk Philips (1504-1568 was an early Anabaptist writer and theologian. Melchior Hoffman or Hofmann (c 1495 &ndash 1543 was an Anabaptist prophet and a visionary leader in northern Germany and the Netherlands Münster ( is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the It was Hoffman who introduced the first self-sustaining Anabaptism to the Netherlands, when he taught and practiced believers' baptism in Emden in East Frisia. Emden is a City and Seaport in the northwest of Germany, on River Ems. East Frisia or Eastern Friesland ( Low Saxon: Oostfreesland, German Ostfriesland) is a coastal region in the northwest of the Menno Simons rejected the violence advocated by the Munster movement, believing it was not Scriptural. [3] His theology was focused on separation from this world, and baptism by repentance symbolized this. [3]

Menno evidently rose quickly to become a man of influence. Before 1540, David Joris, an Anabaptist of the "inspirationist" variety, had been the most influential leader in the Netherlands. David Joris (c 1501 &ndash 1556 sometimes Jan Jorisz or Joriszoon was an important Anabaptist leader in the Netherlands before 1540 By 1544, the term Mennonite or Mennist was used in a letter to refer to the Dutch Anabaptists.

The house that Menno Simons is believed to have worked in
The house that Menno Simons is believed to have worked in

Twenty-five years after his renunciation of Catholicism, Menno died at Wüstenfelde, Holstein, and was buried in his garden. Holstein (ˈhɔlʃtain ( Low German: Holsteen, Danish: Holsten, Latin and historical English: Holsatia) He was married to a woman named Gertrude, and they had at least three children, two daughters and a son.

Menno Simons influence on Anabaptism in the Low Countries was so great that Baptist historian William Estep suggested that their history be divided into three periods: "before Menno, under Menno, and after Menno". The Low Countries, the historical region of de Nederlanden, are the countries on low-lying land around the delta of the Rhine, Scheldt William Roscoe Estep ( February 12, 1920 &ndash July 14, 2000) was an American Baptist historian and professor He is especially significant in coming to the Anabaptist movement in the north in its most troublesome days, and helping not only to sustain it, but also to establish it as a viable Radical Reformation movement. The Radical Reformation was a 16th century response to what was believed to be both the corruption in the Roman Catholic Church and the expanding Magisterial

Quotes

Notes

  1. ^ a b   "Mennonites". Catholic Encyclopedia. The Catholic Encyclopedia, also referred to today as the Old Catholic Encyclopedia, is an English-language Encyclopedia published by The Encyclopedia (1913). New York: Robert Appleton Company.  
  2. ^ Menno Simon's Renunciation of the Church of Rome. Retrieved on 2007-04-13. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1111 - Henry V is crowned Holy Roman Emperor. 1204 - The Fourth Crusade sacks Constantinople
  3. ^ a b Gonzalez, J. (1975). A History of Christian Thought. Abingdon Press, p. Abingdon Press is the Book publishing arm of the United Methodist Publishing House 96.  

References

External links

© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org
 Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic