Dirk Philips (1504–1568) was an early

Anabaptist Anabaptism (from Neo-Latin , from the Greek language, Greek : 're-' and 'baptism'; , earlier also )Since the middle of the 20th century, the German-speaking world no longer uses the term (translation: "Re-baptizers"), considering it biased. ...

writer and

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

. He was one of the peaceful disciples of Melchior Hoffman and later joined

Menno Simons Menno Simons (; ; 1496 – 31 January 1561) was a Roman Catholic priest from the Friesland region of the Low Countries who was excommunicated from the Catholic Church and became an influential Anabaptist religious leader. Simons was a contempor ...

Gunnar Westin, ''Vapaan kristillisyyden historia'', s. 203. in laying out practical doctrines for what would become the

Mennonite Mennonites are a group of Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian communities tracing their roots to the epoch of the Radical Reformation. The name ''Mennonites'' is derived from the cleric Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland, part of ...

church.

Biography

Dirk Philips was born in

Leeuwarden Leeuwarden (; ; ; ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in Friesland, Netherlands, with a population of 127,073 (2023). It is the provincial capital and seat of the Provin ...

in 1504, the son of a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

(it was not uncommon at the time for a priest to have unofficial wives and families). He was a

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

friar. He joined the

Brotherhood in 1533 and became an elder in 1534. In 1537, he was named one of the outstanding Anabaptist leaders. In 1561, he was described as an old man, not very tall, with a grey beard and white hair. He died in Het Falder in 1568.

Beliefs

He was the leading

of his time among Dutch Mennonites. He was known to be very systematic in his thinking, and very strict and unwavering in his beliefs. There were two key themes to his theology: the word of

scripture Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They often feature a compilation or discussion of beliefs, ritual practices, moral commandments and ...

, and the word

incarnate Incarnation literally means ''embodied in flesh'' or ''taking on flesh''. It is the conception and the embodiment of a deity or spirit in some earthly form or an anthropomorphic form of a god. It is used to mean a god, deity, or Divine Being in ...

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

. Like other Anabaptists, he gave Christ pre-eminence. He identifies seven ordinances and commandments that must be maintained to be recognized as an authentic church: *Pure, unfalsified teaching of the divine Word by true ministers *Scriptural use of the

sacraments A sacrament is a Christian rite which is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence, number and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol of ...

, baptism and the Lord's Supper * Washing the feet of the saints *Separation of sinners (the ban and

shunning Shunning can be the act of social rejection, or emotional distance. In a religious context, shunning is a formal decision by a denomination or a congregation to cease interaction with an individual or a group, and follows a particular set of rule ...

) *Command of love one for another *Keeping all the commandments of Christ Jesus *Suffering and

persecution Persecution is the systematic mistreatment of an individual or group by another individual or group. The most common forms are religious persecution, racism, and political persecution, though there is naturally some overlap between these term ...

is expected for all Christians He believed in strict adherence to the ban or shunning. This is when open

sin In religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law or a law of the deities. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered ...

ners are expelled from the church until they repent. He felt this was necessary in order to maintain the purity of the church. His emphasis on the ban and the purity of the community makes Dirk Philips' writings more popular with the

Old Order Amish The Amish (, also or ; ; ), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptist Christian church fellowships with Swiss and Alsatian origins. As they maintain a degree of separation from surrounding populations, and ho ...

. He believed in the absolute opposition between the church and the world, and therefore that believers should expect

References

External links

Philips: The Sending of Preachers or Teachers
- essay by Dirk Philips on Anabaptist evangelism

in ''Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online''
''Enchiridion'' at Internet Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Philips, Dirk 1504 births 1568 deaths Dutch Protestant theologians People from Leeuwarden Dutch Anabaptists Dutch Mennonites Dutch Christian pacifists 16th-century Protestant theologians 16th-century Anabaptist ministers

Biography

Beliefs

See also

References

External links