On Saturday, July 20, Prof. Alec Ryrie (Durham University) came to Wittenberg for the WCRS Summer Course. In the morning, he introduced the Student Fellows to research on the Scottish Reformation and discussed the relationship between the English and Scottish Reformations. The group studied John Knox’s 1558 letter, “To his beloved brethren, the communality of Scotland,” which is a programmatic text of the Scottish Reformation.
In the afternoon, Prof. Ryrie presented some of his findings on “The Reformation and the Global Opening of the 16th Century”. He is in the process of summarizing years of research on this topic in a book. Upon closer examination, there were more Protestant missionary initiatives in the 17th and 18th centuries than one might think. In the wake of trade, conquest, and colonization, Western Christianity spread to indigenous peoples outside of Europe. Even before missionary societies organized missionary work abroad, the “world’s Reformation” had begun, as one 17th-century writer put it. Yet the missionary efforts of Protestantism have long been controversial and only partially successful. Prof. Ryrie’s fascinating panorama of the global impact of the 16th century Reformation stimulated a lively discussion with many questions and further explanations.
The Student Fellows had ample opportunity to interact with Alec Ryrie and benefit from a close exchange that extended to joint activities outside of the classroom.