Jacob Kautz (also Jakob Kautz) (c. 1500 – c. 1532) was a German

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. ...

who posted seven theses to the door of the

Worms Cathedral St Peter's Cathedral (German: ''Wormser Dom'') is a Catholic Church, Roman Catholic church and former cathedral in Worms, Germany, Worms, southern Germany. The cathedral is located on the highest point of the inner city of Worms and is the mos ...

in 1527. He undermined the authority of the church with accusations of

idolatry Idolatry is the worship of an idol as though it were a deity. In Abrahamic religions (namely Judaism, Samaritanism, Christianity, Islam, and the Baháʼí Faith) idolatry connotes the worship of something or someone other than the Abrahamic ...

. In essence, he took

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 ...

's protest to the logical conclusion that individual

freedom of conscience Freedom of conscience is the freedom of an individual to act upon their moral beliefs. In particular, it often refers to the freedom to ''not do'' something one is normally obliged, ordered or expected to do. An individual exercising this freedom m ...

should be enshrined in law. The protest claimed that by baptising infants (and by indoctrinating children with church customs), the church was suppressing individual

free will Free will is generally understood as the capacity or ability of people to (a) choice, choose between different possible courses of Action (philosophy), action, (b) exercise control over their actions in a way that is necessary for moral respon ...

. Thus, church supporters were not acting on any decision of their own but merely because they were given no other choice. A soul cannot be saved by force, but only by moral persuasion that leads to a conscious decision to embrace salvation. Baptism must be willingly chosen by an adult who understands the meaning of the act. The protest also criticized

's reformation by claiming that the sacrifice of

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 ...

is not in itself sufficient

atonement Atonement, atoning, or making amends is the concept of a person taking action to correct previous wrongdoing on their part, either through direct action to undo the consequences of that act, equivalent action to do good for others, or some othe ...

for sin, especially the sins of people who lived long after Christ and who had no influence on the events of the past. In other words, belief in Jesus must entail following the guidance of Christ in one's own life. Other

Christians A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

labeled this "works righteousness" and claimed that the essence of

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

is not to be found in doing good works. Kautz, like many Anabaptists, was a

Christian universalist Christian universalism is a school of Christian theology focused around the doctrine of universal reconciliation – the view that all human beings will ultimately be saved and restored to a right relationship with God. "Christian universalism" ...

. The fifth of his seven theses was "All that was lost in the first Adam is and will be found more richly restored in the Second Adam, Christ; yea, in Christ shall all men be quickened and blessed forever."Apocatastasis
. ''New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, Vol. I''.

References

External links

Kautz, Jakob (1500-1532?)
on ''Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kautz, Jacob 1500 births 1530s deaths German Anabaptists

See also

References

External links