The ''Erfurt Enchiridion'' ( enchiridion, from , hand book) is the second

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

hymnal A hymnal or hymnary is a collection of hymns, usually in the form of a book, called a hymnbook (or hymn book). They are used in congregational singing. A hymnal may contain only hymn texts (normal for most hymnals for most centuries of Christia ...

. It appeared in 1524 in

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital (political), capital and largest city of the Central Germany (cultural area), Central German state of Thuringia, with a population of around 216,000. It lies in the wide valley of the Gera (river), River Gera, in the so ...

in two competing editions. One of them contains 26 songs, the other 25, 18 of them by

Martin Luther Martin Luther ( ; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, Theology, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. Luther was the seminal figure of the Reformation, Pr ...

, others by Elisabeth Cruciger, Erhard Hegenwald,

Justus Jonas Justus Jonas, the Elder (5 June 1493 – 9 October 1555), or simply Justus Jonas, was a German Lutheran theologian and reformer. He was a Jurist, Professor and Hymn writer. He is best known for his translations of the writings of Martin Luther ...

and Paul Speratus. While the songs of the ''Enchiridion'' could be used in churches, they were intended primarily for singing elsewhere, such as at home, at court, and in guild meetings.

History

The songs of the reformer Luther and others were first sold as broadsheets, and contributed to the spreading of Protestant ideas. They were printed in collections, beginning with the First Lutheran hymnal, called the ', and with the Wittenberg song book, both published in 1524. The Erfurt ''Enchiridion'' appeared the same year, in two almost equal editions by two different printers,

Johannes Loersfeld Johannes Loersfeld (''fl.'' 1525–1528) was a German printer at Erfurt in the Archbishopric of Mayence. Among his significant editions was the Erfurt Enchiridion, an early Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that eme ...

and Matthes Maler. Both books are identical except for one song. The double appearance suggests that there was a great demand. Probably the edition printed by Loersfeld came first, to be copied by Maler.

Description

The version of Loersfeld was printed in octavo, and includes 48 pages, 47 of them printed. It contains 25 songs, the German version of the creed and a two-page anonymous preface. The version of Maler contains one song more. Sixteen different choral melodies are used, and eighteen of the songs are by Luther, but his name is attached to only one of them. Three of the hymns were written by Paul Speratus, one or two by

, one by Elisabeth Cruciger, and one is attributed to

Jan Hus Jan Hus (; ; 1369 – 6 July 1415), sometimes anglicized as John Hus or John Huss, and referred to in historical texts as ''Iohannes Hus'' or ''Johannes Huss'', was a Czechs, Czech theologian and philosopher who became a Church reformer and t ...

. The arrangement of the songs is not systematic, and only seven paraphrases of

psalms The Book of Psalms ( , ; ; ; ; , in Islam also called Zabur, ), also known as the Psalter, is the first book of the third section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) called ('Writings'), and a book of the Old Testament. The book is an anthology of B ...

form a cohesive group. Five songs are German rhymed versions of

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

liturgical chants. The song "" (A new song we begin) describes the execution in Brussels of two monks who were martyrs of the Reformation, Hendrik Vos and Johannes van Esschen. The title describes: "Eyn Enchiridion oder Handbüchlein. eynem ytzlichen Christen fast nutzlich bey sich zuhaben / zur stetter vbung vnd trachtung geystlicher gesenge vnd Psalmen / Rechtschaffen vnd kunstlich verteutscht." (An Enchiridion or little handbook; for every Christian very useful to keep at hand / for continuous practice and contemplation of spiritual songs and psalms / honestly and artfully translated to German.) The author of the preface describes the former ecclesiastical chant as "shouting like the priests of

Baal Baal (), or Baʻal, was a title and honorific meaning 'owner' or 'lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The ...

in unintelligible cries" and "cry like the forest-donkeys to a deaf God". The songs included in the collection are described as founded on scripture, serving improvement, doctrine, and the education of youth, and the preface suggests that a Christian should always carry the book with him, for constant practise. While the songs of the ''Enchiridion'' could be used in churches, they were intended primarily for singing elsewhere, such as at home, at court, and in guild meetings. Many of the songs of the Erfurt ''Enchiridion'' were widely disseminated, and seventeen are still in the current German Protestant hymnal ', some of them now with different melodies. Five of the hymns are part of the Catholic hymnal '' Gotteslob''. Translations began with ''Goostly psalms and spiritual songes drawen out of the holy Scripture'' by

Myles Coverdale Myles Coverdale, first name also spelt Miles ( – 20 January 1569), was an English ecclesiastical reformer chiefly known as a Bible translator, preacher, hymnist and, briefly, Bishop of Exeter (1551–1553). In 1535, Coverdale produced the fi ...

, the so-called "first English hymn book", which was printed in London in 1555 and contained 16 of the songs from the Enchiridion (1–5, 8, 10, 12–19, 22).

Hymns

Ambrose Ambrose of Milan (; 4 April 397), venerated as Saint Ambrose, was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promoting Roman Christianity against Ari ...

, - , 22, , , , Martin Luther , , after "" , - , 23, , , , Martin Luther , , after , - , 24, , , , Martin Luther , , after , - , 25, , , , Martin Luther , , , - , 26, , , , unknown , , in ', possibly by Jonas

References

Bibliography

*
Full digital facsimile and diplomatic transcription of the hymnbook in the Deutsches Text Archiv
* * * * *Henrike Lähnemann (2017): Das Erfurter ‘Enchiridion’ in der Goslarer Marktkirchen-Bibliothek, in: ''Marktkirchen-Bibliothek Goslar. Beiträge zur Erforschung der reformationszeitlichen Sammlung'', Regensburg: Schell und Steiner, ed. Helmut Liersch, pp. 232–243.

History

Description

Hymns

See also

References

Bibliography

Further reading