Overview

This book offers a fresh interpretation of covenantal theology in the Reformation by demonstrating how the writings of the Zurich reformers Huldrych Zwingli (1484-1531) and his successor Heinrich Bullinger (1504-75) decisively shaped a foundation of the Reformed tradition. The book overturns previous research that has both emphasized Zurich's irreconcilability with later developments of Reformed covenant theology and downplayed the contribution of the Zurich theologians in favor of figures such as Philipp Melanchthon (1497-1560) and John Calvin (1509-64). It argues for the dependence of Calvin and other leading figures on Zurich and for continuity in the later Reformed tradition with its origins in the 1520s. Pierrick Hildebrand demonstrates that the concept of a prelapsarian covenant, generally used as an argument for discontinuity between Zurich and Heidelberg, was clearly present in Zwingli and Bullinger. Further, Bullinger's covenantal terminology, which integrates the concept of the covenant with union with Christ, was adopted by Calvin and later by the Heidelberg theologians. Rejecting the idea that Zurich and Geneva represented two different traditions, Hildebrand details significant continuities and agreement while paying attention to differences. To do this, he draws on printed texts but also makes extensive use of previously unexamined manuscript sources, such as commentaries and sermon notes, to provide a much fuller account of the origins of Reformed covenantal theology. Working across a range of literary genres and with careful attention to historical contexts, this book presents the evolution of a crucial part of Reformation thought in a new light.

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9780197607572

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This engaging and finely-crafted study sheds much-needed light on the enduring significance of Zwingli and Bullinger's contributions to covenant theology in the Reformation era. With verve and a well-honed mastery of the Zurich Reformers' writings, including a number of manuscript sources by Bullinger provided in the appendices, Pierrick Hildebrand persuasively argues for the vital role of Zurich's theologians in understanding the development of sixteenth-century covenantal theology. * Karin Maag, Director, Meeter Center for Calvin Studies * Pierrick Hildebrand's The Zurich Origins of Reformed Covenant Theology is a decisive advance in the understanding of the emergence of historic Reformed covenantal thought. His scholarship plumbs the vast corpus of Bullinger's writings and demonstrates Bullinger's substantial covenantal perspective, carefully situating it in the reformational milieu of Zwingli, Melanchthon, Calvin, Olevianus, and Ursinus. He makes a compelling case for the foundational and pivotal role that Bullinger played in the early Reformed organic articulation of covenant themes. Hildebrand's research must be taken into account in the articulation of the origins of covenant theology. * Dr. Peter A. Lillback, President, Westminster Theological Seminary * In The Zurich Origins of Reformed Covenant Theology the author draws a crystal clear map of the road that the biblical concept of the covenant took in theological reflection from Zwingli to Bullinger. A detour takes the reader from Zurich to Geneva. The main route leads to Heidelberg where a younger generation, Ursinus and Olevian, followed the lead of the Zurich fathers. Pierrick Hildebrand is a young scholar who takes Reformation studies a firm stride forwards, critically engaging with older studies and neutralizing anachronistic concepts. Bringing valuable unpublished sources to the table, the author enriches our understanding of the Reformed doctrine of the covenant. Both the academy and churches can profit from this offspring of Zurich scholarship. * Erik de Boer, Professor of Church History, Theological University Kampen *

This engaging and finely-crafted study sheds much-needed light on the enduring significance of Zwingli and Bullinger's contributions to covenant theology in the Reformation era. With verve and a well-honed mastery of the Zurich Reformers' writings, including a number of manuscript sources by Bullinger provided in the appendices, Pierrick Hildebrand persuasively argues for the vital role of Zurich's theologians in understanding the development of sixteenth-century covenantal theology. * Karin Maag, Director, Meeter Center for Calvin Studies * Pierrick Hildebrand's The Zurich Origins of Reformed Covenant Theology is a decisive advance in the understanding of the emergence of historic Reformed covenantal thought. His scholarship plumbs the vast corpus of Bullinger's writings and demonstrates Bullinger's substantial covenantal perspective, carefully situating it in the reformational milieu of Zwingli, Melanchthon, Calvin, Olevianus, and Ursinus. He makes a compelling case for the foundational and pivotal role that Bullinger played in the early Reformed organic articulation of covenant themes. Hildebrand's research must be taken into account in the articulation of the origins of covenant theology. * Dr. Peter A. Lillback, President, Westminster Theological Seminary * In The Zurich Origins of Reformed Covenant Theology the author draws a crystal clear map of the road that the biblical concept of the covenant took in theological reflection from Zwingli to Bullinger. A detour takes the reader from Zurich to Geneva. The main route leads to Heidelberg where a younger generation, Ursinus and Olevian, followed the lead of the Zurich fathers. Pierrick Hildebrand is a young scholar who takes Reformation studies a firm stride forwards, critically engaging with older studies and neutralizing anachronistic concepts. Bringing valuable unpublished sources to the table, the author enriches our understanding of the Reformed doctrine of the covenant. Both the academy and churches can profit from this offspring of Zurich scholarship. * Erik de Boer, Professor of Church History, Theological University Kampen *

Author Information

Pierrick Hildebrand is an Associate Researcher at the Swiss Reformation Studies Institute at the University of Zurich and a minister in the Reformed Church of Bern. His research interests lie with the history and theology of the Reformed tradition in the Reformation and early post-Reformation.

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