Antistes
Antistes ( Latin for chief ; plural antistites ) was the name for the leader of a cult community in pre-Christian times. It was later used as an honorary title for bishops, abbots and the Pope .
In the Swiss cantons of Zurich , Basel and Schaffhausen , Antistes designated the highest office in the Reformed churches from the 16th to 19th centuries . The expression was first used in 1525 as an unofficial honorary title for Huldrych Zwingli in Zurich, then in 1530 for Johannes Oekolampad in Basel and in 1532 for Heinrich Bullinger in Zurich. The Antistes was elected by the Grand Council (parliament) and at the same time held a parish office at a main church (in Zurich until 1837 at the Grossmünster , in Basel at the Basel Minster , in Schaffhausen at St. Johann and in Chur at the Martinskirche ). Its task was to represent the church externally and to mediate between the city government and the clergy. He presided over the Synod and the Examination Board ( Examinatorenkonvent ) for the examination of candidates for a pastorate. The office also had a slightly different function in St. Gallen , Thurgau and Graubünden . At the turn of the 20th century, the title was replaced by other names (e.g. in Basel and Zurich: President of the Council of Churches).
In the Lutheran imperial city of Nuremberg , the top pastors at the main churches also carried the honorary title of Antistes, but had no associated supra-congregational functions. The authority assigned to the Antistes is called Antistitium .
Antistites of the Zurich Church
| Name of the antistite | Life dates | Years of office |
| Huldrych Zwingli | 1484-1531 | 1519-1531 |
| Heinrich Bullinger | 1504-1575 | 1531-1575 |
| Rudolf Gwalther | 1519-1585 | 1575-1585 |
| Ludwig Lavater | 1527-1586 | 1585-1586 |
| Johann Rudolf Stumpf | 1530-1592 | 1586-1592 |
| Burkhard Leemann | 1531-1613 | 1592-1613 |
| Johann Jakob Breitinger | 1575-1645 | 1613-1645 |
| Johann Jakob Irminger | 1588-1649 | 1645-1649 |
| Johann Jakob Ulrich | 1602-1668 | 1649-1668 |
| Hans Caspar Waser | 1612-1677 | 1668-1677 |
| Johann Jakob Müller | 1616-1680 | 1677-1680 |
| Johann Heinrich Erni | 1630-1688 | 1680-1688 |
| Anton Klingler | 1649-1713 | 1688-1713 |
| Peter Zeller | 1655-1718 | 1713-1718 |
| Johann Ludwig Nüscheler | 1672-1737 | 1718-1737 |
| Johann Conrad Wirz | 1688-1769 | 1737-1769 |
| Johann Rudolf Ulrich | 1728-1795 | 1769-1795 |
| Johann Jakob Hess | 1741-1828 | 1795-1828 |
| Johann Georg Gessner | 1765-1843 | 1828-1837 |
| Johann Jakob Füssli | 1792-1860 | 1837-1849 |
| Johann Jakob Brunner | 1794-1870 | 1850-1866 |
| Diethelm Georg Finsler | 1819-1899 | 1866-1895 |
See also
literature
- Wilhelm Rees: Antistes . In: Religion Past and Present (RGG). 4th edition. Volume 1, Mohr-Siebeck, Tübingen 1998, Sp. 574.
Web links
- Helmut Meyer: Antistes. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- The Antistites of the Zurich Church 1519 - 1895 (PDF; 27 kB)
Individual evidence
- ^ Helmut Meyer: Antistes. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland . June 7, 2002 , accessed June 12, 2019 .