Spiritualism

In Christian theology, history an attitude is called spiritualism, which holds in matters of faith all externals at least marginally, or even rejects: from the ecclesiastical institution of the sacraments and dogmas, in some cases leading to defined written word of the Bible. This faith is in the tradition of medieval mysticism, as argued for instance by Johannes Tauler, but resigned in the radical expression of spiritualism first in the Reformation period in appearance. Spiritualists believe in the free operation of the Holy Spirit (Latin Spiritus sanctus ) in every human being; The prerequisite for this is a god married life in a spirit of unconditional love and truthfulness.

History

Spiritualism was accused of many branded as heresy groupings. Gnostic currents remained active in him through the centuries. Martin Luther called spiritualists during the Reformation " fanatics " or " fanatics " and stood in the second phase of the Reformation in violent confrontation with them. Significant German -speaking spiritualists of the Reformation were, for example, Thomas Müntzer, which must be called for the entire left wing of the Reformation as influential, Hans Denck, Sebastian Franck, Kaspar Schwenkfeld and Paracelsus. Especially with Thomas Müntzer, the individualistic and passive tendency of mysticism transformed in the peasant wars led to a revolutionary mass movement. Spiritualistic ideas has a wide variation of organized movements (such as the Quakers and other free Christian- liberal groupings ), but especially in the development by the Radical Pietism.