Francisca Loetz – författare

Early modern European society took a serious view of blasphemy, and drew upon a wide range of sanctions - including the death penalty - to punish those who cursed, swore and abused God. Whilst such attitudes may appear draconian today, this study makes clear that in the past, blasphemy was regarded as a very real threat to society. Based on a wealth of primary sources, including court records, theological and ecclesiastical writings and official city statutes, Francisca Loetz explores verbal forms of blasphemy and the variety of contexts within which it could occur. Honour conflicts, theological disputation, social and political provocation, and religious self-questioning all proved fertile ground for accusations of blasphemy, and her contention - that blasphemers often meant more than they said - reveals the underlying complexity of an apparently simple concept. This innovative approach interprets cases of verbal blasphemy as ''speech actions'' that reflect broader political, social and religious concerns. Cases in Protestant Zurich are compared with the situation in Catholic Lucerne and related to findings in other parts of Europe (Germany, France, England, Italy) to provide a thorough discussion of different historical approaches to blasphemy - ecclesiastical, legal, intellectual, social, and cultural - in the Early Modern period. In so doing the book offers intriguing suggestions about what a cultural history of religiousness could and should be. By linking a broad overview of the issue of blasphemy, with case studies from Zurich and Lucerne, this book provides a fascinating insight into a crucial, but often misunderstood aspect of early-modern society. The conclusions reached not only offer a much fuller understanding of the situation in Zurich, but also have resonance for all historians of Reformation Europe.

Early modern European society took a serious view of blasphemy, and drew upon a wide range of sanctions - including the death penalty - to punish those who cursed, swore and abused God. Whilst such attitudes may appear draconian today, this study makes clear that in the past, blasphemy was regarded as a very real threat to society. Based on a wealth of primary sources, including court records, theological and ecclesiastical writings and official city statutes, Francisca Loetz explores verbal forms of blasphemy and the variety of contexts within which it could occur. Honour conflicts, theological disputation, social and political provocation, and religious self-questioning all proved fertile ground for accusations of blasphemy, and her contention - that blasphemers often meant more than they said - reveals the underlying complexity of an apparently simple concept. This innovative approach interprets cases of verbal blasphemy as ''speech actions'' that reflect broader political, social and religious concerns. Cases in Protestant Zurich are compared with the situation in Catholic Lucerne and related to findings in other parts of Europe (Germany, France, England, Italy) to provide a thorough discussion of different historical approaches to blasphemy - ecclesiastical, legal, intellectual, social, and cultural - in the Early Modern period. In so doing the book offers intriguing suggestions about what a cultural history of religiousness could and should be. By linking a broad overview of the issue of blasphemy, with case studies from Zurich and Lucerne, this book provides a fascinating insight into a crucial, but often misunderstood aspect of early-modern society. The conclusions reached not only offer a much fuller understanding of the situation in Zurich, but also have resonance for all historians of Reformation Europe.

This book examines one of the main centres of the European Reformation, theSwiss city of Zurich, to explore the impact of the reformatory processes on allaspects of everyday life. It looks at how, for the early modern (non-)believers,new visions of Christian living were mediated through law, preaching, teaching,singing, reading, rumours, and heated debates in taverns. Lived Reformationemphasises that the Reformation was for most a longlasting challenge, evidentin church worship, pastoral care, policies for the poor, the spreading of literacyand implementing sexual norms.What did it take to turn from a Catholic to a Protestant? What did it meanfor a Catholic priest to become a Protestant pastor and how did they relateto their flock? What did nuns and monks do when evicted from dissolvedconvents? How was the visual and acoustic culture of the city altered? Whatabout brothels or the belief in ghosts? What impact did the new theologicalconception of sexuality have on hetero- and homosexual couples? How muchdid the population cling to their religious habits or welcome or even ask forreligious changes? Was magical healing to be tolerated or did it go against thenew faith? Through careful examination of Zurich’s rich archival sources, thisvolume answers these questions and brings to life the diverse experiences of men and women in the time of the Long Reformation.

This book examines one of the main centres of the European Reformation, theSwiss city of Zurich, to explore the impact of the reformatory processes on allaspects of everyday life. It looks at how, for the early modern (non-)believers,new visions of Christian living were mediated through law, preaching, teaching,singing, reading, rumours, and heated debates in taverns. Lived Reformationemphasises that the Reformation was for most a longlasting challenge, evidentin church worship, pastoral care, policies for the poor, the spreading of literacyand implementing sexual norms.What did it take to turn from a Catholic to a Protestant? What did it meanfor a Catholic priest to become a Protestant pastor and how did they relateto their flock? What did nuns and monks do when evicted from dissolvedconvents? How was the visual and acoustic culture of the city altered? Whatabout brothels or the belief in ghosts? What impact did the new theologicalconception of sexuality have on hetero- and homosexual couples? How muchdid the population cling to their religious habits or welcome or even ask forreligious changes? Was magical healing to be tolerated or did it go against thenew faith? Through careful examination of Zurich's rich archival sources, thisvolume answers these questions and brings to life the diverse experiences of men and women in the time of the Long Reformation.

Wann und was war «die» Reformation? Für Zürich kann sie als Zeitspanne vom Beginn der Tätigkeit Zwinglis als Leutpriester am Grossmünster 1519 bis zur Abschaffung der Messe 1525 definiert werden. Doch Zwingli fiel nicht vom Himmel und weder waren nach 1525 alle Fragen geklärt noch alle reformatorischen Ziele erreicht. Reformation ist mehr als eine theologische Kontroverse mit kriegerischen Konsequenzen. Reformation als langer Prozess gesellschaftlicher Veränderungen hat vielmehr das Leben und den Alltag der Menschen in der Frühen Neuzeit – der Zeit von rund 1500 bis 1800 – bestimmt und geprägt.Die Historikerinnen und Historiker präsentieren anschaulich den aktuellen Forschungsstand zur Zürcher Reformation – vorwiegend aus sozial-, kultur-, gender- und mediengeschichtlicher Sicht. Ihre innovativen Blickwinkel ermöglichen einen frischen und umfassenden Zugang zur Zürcher Reformation.