{"id":32723,"date":"2019-05-09T11:01:38","date_gmt":"2019-05-09T15:01:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/?p=32723"},"modified":"2019-05-09T11:01:38","modified_gmt":"2019-05-09T15:01:38","slug":"melanchthon-flaws-verified-by-biographer-manschreck","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/2019\/05\/melanchthon-flaws-verified-by-biographer-manschreck.html","title":{"rendered":"Melanchthon Flaws Verified By Biographer Manschreck"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"\"<\/p>\n

Philip Melanchthon<\/a>\u00a0(1497-1560) was Martin Luther\u2019s best friend and successor as the leader of early Lutheranism.<\/p>\n

I made the following comment:<\/p>\n

As for Melanchthon\u2019s \u201ccomplexity\u201d: yes, he sure was: a mild-mannered humanist who was too much of a wimp to even stand up to his friend Luther, yet who was in favor of killing peaceful Anabaptists, those who rejected the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist (the very belief that he himself later came to hold!), and those who held that some heathen might be saved. He described the Calvin-instigated burning of Michael Servetus as \u201c\u2018a pious and memorable example to all posterity.\u201d A very complex man indeed: and typical of the first generation of Protestants: not exactly renowned for their exceptional holiness, doctrinal orthodoxy or religious toleration.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I received some flak for this. I defend it in the following manner:<\/p>\n

My intent and purpose in making my one paragraph \u201csummary\u201d of this \u201creformer\u2019s\u201d character was distorted by others. First of all, I didn\u2019t claim in the first place that it was summing up the entire man or his character. Rather, it was a semi-sarcastic, critical remark about his \u201ccomplexity\u201d (i.e., including his ethical contradictions and unsavory behaviors).<\/p>\n

Secondly, I either already have, or easily can, back up everything I wrote in that paragraph, with solid documentation: virtually all from Protestant or otherwise non-Catholic historians. I\u2019ve already done that concerning his fascination with astrology<\/a>. I\u2019ve done it regarding his espousal of the death penalty for denial of the Real Presence in the Eucharist<\/a> (and later adoption of the same condemned belief himself<\/em>). The sources were impeccable.<\/p>\n

For the latter, I heavily used, for example, Clyde Manschreck, the (Protestant) biographer of Melanchthon, right from his preface to his translation of Melanchthon\u2019s own systematic theology (Loci communes<\/em>), which has been in my own personal library for years. This is a serious citation. I amply proved my point from impeccable, solid academic, non-Catholic (so I won\u2019t be accused of simply citing biased Catholics) sources.<\/p>\n

Thirdly, Manschreck himself writes paragraphs that are arguably scarcely different from the one I wrote about Melanchthon, highlighting what I view as his glaring faults or questionable attributes. For example, in the 1985 Encyclopedia Britannica<\/em> article on Melanchthon (also in my own library):<\/p>\n

Succeeding generations have questioned Melanchthon\u2019s approval of the death penalty for the radical Reformers, the Anabaptists, and an anti-Trinitarian, Michael Servetus; his approval of war to defend the Gospel; his condoning of polygamy for the English king Henry VIII and Philip the Magnanimous, landgrave of Hesse . . .<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Note that this is five major \u201cshots\u201d at faults of Melanchthon, on one long sentence. It\u2019s exactly the same as what I did, except that he was talking about how others (possibly including himself, but we can\u2019t tell) questioned these aspects of Melanchthon, whereas I was speaking for myself: what I personally disapproved of. So how is it any different? If I am to be pilloried as an incompetent, profoundly-biased Catholic hack for my paragraph, why not also Melanchthon biographer Manschreck? I\u2019ll even do a comparison:<\/p>\n

A) Manschreck criticism of some of Melanchthon\u2019s more glaring faults:<\/strong><\/p>\n

1. \u201cApproval\u201d of the death penalty for the Anabaptists.<\/p>\n

2. \u201cApproval\u201d of the death penalty for Michael Servetus.<\/p>\n

3. \u201capproval of war to defend the Gospel\u201d.<\/p>\n

4. \u201ccondoning of polygamy for the English king Henry VIII\u201d.<\/p>\n

5. \u201ccondoning of polygamy for . . . Philip the Magnanimous, landgrave of Hesse\u201d.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So we have capital punishment (twice), defending the gospel with physical violence, and polygamy (twice). Most folks today think this is pretty bad stuff. But I am tarred and feathered if I dare to bring this up or some similar thing. Here is what I claimed in my paragraph:<\/p>\n

B) Armstrong criticism of some of Melanchthon\u2019s more glaring faults (see the paragraph at the top):<\/strong><\/p>\n

1. He was a wimp with regard to standing up to Luther when necessary<\/a>.<\/p>\n

[nothing more than what Calvin repeatedly states in personal letters to him]<\/p>\n

2. Approval of the death penalty for peaceful Anabaptists<\/a>.\u00a0[Manschreck\u2019s #1]<\/p>\n

3. Approval of the death penalty for rejection of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist.\u00a0[merely a variation of #2]<\/p>\n

4. Later adoption of the same belief (denial of the Real Presence) that he earlier had people killed for.\u00a0[an expansion of the sin of #3]<\/p>\n

5. Approval of the death penalty for a belief that some heathen might be saved.\u00a0[merely a variation of #2]<\/p>\n

6. Approval of death penalty for Michael Servetus.\u00a0[Manschreck\u2019s #2]<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So in my list we have approval of the death penalty (four times), later belief in a tenet for which he advocated a death penalty, and being a wimp, compared to Manschreck\u2019s capital punishment (twice), war for the gospel, and condoned polygamy (twice). Where\u2019s the beef? What\u2019s this huge, chasm-like difference?<\/p>\n

Then I added a general concluding statement: \u201ctypical of the first generation of Protestants: not exactly renowned for their exceptional holiness, doctrinal orthodoxy or religious toleration.\u201d I had in mind mainly the Protestant leaders, and should have stated that. Their religious intolerance is undeniable, and is excoriated by many Protestant historians such as Roland Bainton and Philip Schaff. As a Catholic, I simply rendered my opinion that the early Protestants were not particularly more holy and righteous than the Catholics of the time, considered en masse<\/em>. Melanchthon<\/a> and Luther<\/a> themselves make a host of statements about this. And I think I have offered ample historical proof in many papers.<\/p>\n

I do this because the Protestant myth of origins always asserts that the Catholics were thoroughly corrupt and the Protestants were saintly \u201creformers\u201d with only the highest motivations. But it\u2019s fine and dandy for Protestants to harp on historical Catholic errors and sins till Kingdom come. If Manschreck says basically the same thing, it\u2019s cool; no problem at all. But if I do it, it is Chicken Little. Certainly some remotely fair-minded, rational reader who is reading this can see the clear, blatant double standard here. It\u2019s not rocket science.<\/p>\n

None of this, therefore, should be in the least objectionable. Most of it has been casually stated (and decried) by Protestant observers such as Manschreck. It can all be proven. #1 is utterly obvious to all: all comment on Melanchthon\u2019s \u201cmild-mannered\u201d personality. #2, #3, and #5 are all contained in the 1530 and 1536 \u201cmemoranda\u201d written by Melanchthon and agreed-to and signed also by Luther. That is simply documented historical fact. So is #4. I documented that from Manschreck and other Protestant historians. It\u2019s undeniable. #6 is historical fact. Melanchthon wrote it in a letter that we have. Everything is thus proven and indisputable. These are historical facts, not subjective mush.<\/p>\n

I no more meant my paragraph as a summing-up of Melanchthon\u2019s entire character than Manschreck did.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

(originally 4-6-08)<\/p>\n

Photo credit:\u00a0<\/strong>Philipp Melanchthon<\/i>\u00a0(1532), by Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472-1553)<\/span> [public domain \/ Wikimedia Commons<\/a>]<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Philip Melanchthon\u00a0(1497-1560) was Martin Luther\u2019s best friend and successor as the leader of early Lutheranism. I made the following comment: As for Melanchthon\u2019s \u201ccomplexity\u201d: yes, he sure was: a mild-mannered humanist who was too much of a wimp to even stand up to his friend Luther, yet who was in favor of killing peaceful Anabaptists, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2331,"featured_media":32726,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[415],"tags":[8627,8621,419,8618,2779,690,8624],"class_list":["post-32723","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lutheranism","tag-clyde-manschreck","tag-early-lutheranism","tag-lutheranism-2","tag-melanchthons-character-flaws","tag-philip-melanchthon","tag-protestant-reformation","tag-reformation-leaders"],"yoast_head":"\nMelanchthon Flaws Verified By Biographer Manschreck<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If I am to be pilloried as an incompetent, biased Catholic hack for my 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Formerly a campus missionary, as a Protestant, Dave was received into the Catholic Church in February 1991, by the late, well-known catechist and theologian, Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J. Dave\u2019s articles have appeared in many influential Catholic periodicals, including \"This Rock\" (now called \"Catholic Answers Magazine\"), \"Envoy Magazine\" (Patrick Madrid), \"The Catholic Answer,\" \"The Coming Home Journal,\" \"Gilbert Magazine\" (American Chesterton Society), and \"The Latin Mass.\" He also writes a featured column for every issue of \"The Michigan Catholic\": published by the archdiocese of Detroit, and was editor for most of the apologetics tracts published by the St. Paul Street Evangelization apostolate. Dave\u2019s apologetics and writing apostolate was the subject of a feature article in the May 2002 issue of \"Envoy Magazine.\" He served as the staff moderator at the Internet discussion forum for The Coming Home Network, from 2007-2010. Dave has been interviewed on many nationally syndicated Catholic radio shows, including \"Catholic Answers Live\" (twice), \"Faith and Family Live\" (Steve Wood), \"Kresta in the Afternoon,\" \"Son Rise Morning Show,\" \"Catholic Connection\" (Teresa Tomeo), and \"The Catholics Next Door.\" His large and popular website, \"Biblical Evidence for Catholicism,\" was online from March 1997 to March 2007, and received the 1998 Catholic Website of the Year award from \"Envoy Magazine.\" His blog of the same name (now transferred to Patheos), begun in February 2004, contains more than 1,500 papers, at least 500 debates or dialogues, and over 50 distinct \"index\" web pages. Unsolicited correspondence has indicated many hundreds of conversions (or returns) to the Catholic faith as a result, by God's grace, of these writings. Dave's conversion story was published in the bestselling book \"Surprised by Truth\" (edited by Patrick Madrid; San Diego: Basilica Press, 1994). Sophia Institute Press has published six of his books: \"A Biblical Defense of Catholicism\" (Foreword by Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J., 1996 \/ 2003), \"The Catholic Verses\" (2004), \"The One-Minute Apologist\" (2007), \"Bible Proofs for Catholic Truths\" (2009), \"The Quotable Newman\" (editor: 2012), and \"Proving the Catholic Faith is Biblical\" (2015). He is co-author (with Dr. Paul Thigpen) of the inserts for \"The New Catholic Answer Bible\" (Our Sunday Visitor: 2005), and editor for \"The Wisdom of Mr. Chesterton: The Very Best Quotes, Quips, and Cracks from the Pen of G. K. Chesterton\" (Saint Benedict Press \/ TAN Books: 2009). \"100 Biblical Arguments Against Sola Scriptura\" was published by Catholic Answers in May 2012. His \"Quotable Wesley\" compilation was published by (Protestant \/ Wesleyan publisher) Beacon Hill Press in April 2014. Several of his 49 books are bestsellers in their field. Dave maintains a popular personal Facebook page, a Facebook author page, and has a Twitter account as well. He offers almost all of his books in e-book form on his own Biblical Catholicism site (http:\/\/biblicalcatholicism.com\/), at a permanent deep discount: only $2.99 for ePub, mobi, and AZW, and $1.99 for PDF. His writing has been enthusiastically endorsed or recommended by many leading Catholic apologists, authors, and priests, including Dr. Scott Hahn, Fr. Peter M. J. Stravinskas, Marcus Grodi, Patrick Madrid, Steve Ray, Tim Staples, Devin Rose, Mike Aquilina, Al Kresta, Karl Keating, Fr. Dwight Longenecker, Brandon Vogt, Marcellino D'Ambrosio, and Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J. Dave has been happily married to his wife Judy since October 1984. They have three sons and a daughter, and reside in southeast Michigan (metro Detroit).","sameAs":["https:\/\/biblicalcatholicism.com\/","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dave.armstrong.798","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@LuxVeritatisApologetics"],"url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/author\/davearmstrong"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32723","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2331"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32723"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32723\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32726"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32723"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32723"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32723"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}