Protestant Pluralities: Cultures of Correspondence and the Formation of Religious Groups in the Early Eighteenth Century

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Alexander Schunka
• Subject Area: Early Modern History ; Protestant Theology
• Term: since 2020
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 429838214

The project stands at the intersection of the history of Protestant churches and early modern history. It focuses on phenomena of intra-denominational plurality, examining practices of group formation within German Protestantism around 1700. It is based on selected manuscript correspondence from the papers of three theologians who have been assigned to different religious milieus in previous research: Lutheran orthodoxy (Ernst Salomon Cyprian), Reformed irenicism (Daniel Ernst Jablonski), and Halle Pietism (August Hermann Francke). With regard to group formation, letters can be analyzed on two levels, namely epistolary practices and content. The aim of the first phase of this project was to use epistolary material in order to explore practices of group creation among (seemingly) divergent Protestant milieus, to reveal particular communication practices, and to analyze mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion. In this process, conventional classifications of Protestant groupings (such as "Lutheran Orthodoxy," "Irenicism," "Pietism") were deconstructed and interpreted as results of contemporaneous scholarly antagonisms. At the same time, the limits of these attributions were pointed out. For the continuation of the project, our results raise new and exciting questions about the structure, scope and coherence of intra-denominational groupings. Research objectives are no longer primarily aimed at long-distance communication between theologians (on a socially horizontal level). We are focusing on the specific tension between face-to-face and long-distance communication which is considered characteristic for the early modern period. This aspect will be addressed in two directions: 1) Local Protestantisms: We will search the epistolary material for asymmetrical relationships of a wider social and gender-specific variety, aiming to make visible the local dimensions in the creation of religious milieus. 2) Translocal Protestantisms: Complementary to (but closely intertwined with) the first goal, the project examines epistolary accounts of travel, which provide important insights into religious as well as social conceptions of space and also into the relationship between mobility and immobility within and among Protestant groups. The project sheds light on the significance of epistolary communication for religious and social group formation in Protestant Central Europe around 1700. It thus contributes to research in several historical subdisciplines (religious history, mobility, communication, and social history). Analyzing religious group formation within supposedly homogeneous denominations and along local as well as translocal linkages offers important insights on a broader level, namely with respect to competing truth claims in particular segments of society. The research of the project’s work group will result in a combined monograph with an edition of sources, another monograph, a textbook, and a conference volume, as well as several scholarly articles.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants