Zwingli’s Approach to Tradition (2), 1 Cor. 11:2-16

Let us continue considering how Zwingli handled different traditions.

·         Marriage of clergy.  What Zwingli saw was so much like what is seen today in the RCC.  Adultery was rampant among the priest as was the number of illegitimate children.  Zwingli himself fathered a child out of wedlock in the early years as a Catholic priest.  But as God changed him through the Word he eventually married, first secretly and then openly.  From his letters it is clear that his marriage was a happy one and his wife was a great help to Zwingli.

·         Music that entertained but lacked gospel-significance.  We should keep in mind that of the major reformers Zwingli was the most gifted musically.  He truly believed in the importance of music in corporate worship.  But the issue of music that merely entertained and that did not help to build up the Body of Christ became a heavy burden for Zwingli.  Thus one of his most famous (infamous) actions was the trashing of the wonderful organ at the Zurich cathedral (trashed, as he took an axe to it). 

(Photo of Grossmunster Church in Zurich.)

·         The Mass.  The issue of the mass was major.  It was a means of receiving grace according to RCC teaching; thus to do away with it was a challenge to people’s salvation.  But Zwingli determined that the continual crucifying of the Lord Jesus was unscriptural.  Thus, being a major issue, he again involved the civil authorities.  First he convinced them sufficiently to gain their backing and thus in Zurich it was no longer the central part of worship.  Worship services became much simpler and the sermon became the center of the service.

There were other challenges as we have mentioned.  But let us note Zwingli’s principle in dealing with tradition.  Remember that in the RCC authority was not simple in Scripture; and it was not simply in Scripture plus the Church Councils.  Authority was bound up in the Pope and he had a lot of tools to use in enforcement of his decisions. 

In that context Zwingli took a strong and bold approach: If the Bible did not say something explicitly and literally, then no Christian should believe or practice it.  His preaching bore this principle out clearly.  As we noted earlier, when he arrived at Zurich from day one (literally; New Years Day) he opened the Bible to Matthew 1:1 and began to preached through the four Gospels.  This verse-by-verse approach replaced the schedule of topical sermons imposed all across Catholicism.  The simple service was not just done because it was easier; it was done because he removed all the trappings of tradition that so filled Catholic worship that it effectively buried the Word of God, causing the people to put their faith in the commandments of men rather than the Word of God.

You might consider Zwingli’s approach to be stringent and difficult to follow.  There are decisions a local church needs to make about how to handle certain issues that come up and the Bible might not give specific answers but only principles. And those decisions become habits and then traditions.  For now, however, let us note Zwingli’s approach.  He desired that nothing should obscure the Word of God.  People needed to be brought back to the Bible and the Bible only and his approach did just that.