Bullinger's Decades

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mgkortus

Puritan Board Freshman
Good news: Reformation Heritage Books is republishing The Decades by Heinrich Bullinger. I know they republished them back in 2004, but those are no longer available and well nigh impossible to get a hold of. So I am excited to see them coming out with a new printing.
 
From Theopedia:

Bullingers hospitality and charity was exemplary and Zurich accepted many protestant fugitives from northern Italy (Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi was a descendant of such fugitives) and after the death of Henry VIII also from England. When these returned to England after the death of Mary I of England, they took Bullingers writings with them who found a broad distribution. From 1550 to 1560, there were in England 77 editions of Bullinger's Latin "Decades" and 137 editions of their vernacular translation "House Book", a treatise in pastoral theology (in comparison, Calvins Institutes had two editions in England during the same time). Some historians count Bullinger together with Bucer as the most influential theologian of the Anglican reformation.​
 
If I was to go back and read one of these early/pre-17th century works would I get more bang for the buck reading Bullinger (Decades) or Ames (Marrow)?
 
If I was to go back and read one of these early/pre-17th century works would I get more bang for the buck reading Bullinger (Decades) or Ames (Marrow)?
Bullinger's work is a lot more comprehensive. Ames's Marrow is shorter and is something of a synopsis. Ames's effort is also from a couple generations later, and so reflects doctrinal developments in the intervening time.
 
Is Bullinger’s Decades a full-fledged systematic? (I do know that “systematic theology” is something of an anachronism for these early Reformers.)

A systematic? Yes, in that it covers the broad strokes of the Christian faith.

Full-fledged? Maybe not, because there are certain topics that Bullinger does not treat that almost every modern systematic theology does treat.

For a better idea of what is all included, see this overview.

Also, The Decades are different from a regular systematic theology in that it is a series of sermons that Bullinger preached.
 
A systematic? Yes, in that it covers the broad strokes of the Christian faith.

Full-fledged? Maybe not, because there are certain topics that Bullinger does not treat that almost every modern systematic theology does treat.
On the flip side of this though, modern systematics often do not treat ethics, which is a topic that was usually present in the older works.
If anyone would like to look through the work before spending on a paper copy, the whole text is available on eebo.
 
From Theopedia:

Bullingers hospitality and charity was exemplary and Zurich accepted many protestant fugitives from northern Italy (Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi was a descendant of such fugitives) and after the death of Henry VIII also from England. When these returned to England after the death of Mary I of England, they took Bullingers writings with them who found a broad distribution. From 1550 to 1560, there were in England 77 editions of Bullinger's Latin "Decades" and 137 editions of their vernacular translation "House Book", a treatise in pastoral theology (in comparison, Calvins Institutes had two editions in England during the same time). Some historians count Bullinger together with Bucer as the most influential theologian of the Anglican reformation.​

By "editions" is meant "printings," of course. I'm glad the cover art has been improved. I never liked the cover of the 2004 printing.
 
Good news: Reformation Heritage Books is republishing The Decades by Heinrich Bullinger. I know they republished them back in 2004, but those are no longer available and well nigh impossible to get a hold of. So I am excited to see them coming out with a new printing.
I borrowed this set using interlibrary loan years ago and loved it. Thanks for the heads up.
 
Good news: Reformation Heritage Books is republishing The Decades by Heinrich Bullinger. I know they republished them back in 2004, but those are no longer available and well nigh impossible to get a hold of. So I am excited to see them coming out with a new printing.
Yay!...good news to all except my wallet...lol.
RHB has been tough on me these past 2 years with so many good books...

Blessings!
 
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