The Theology of the French Reformed Churches: From Henry IV to the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes

The Theology of the French Reformed Churches introduces us to the Huguenots of the seventeenth century. The period was an unusual one in which France boasted two state religions, Roman Catholic and Protestant, due to the protections afforded the latter by the Edict of Nantes in 1598. In this book, Martin I. Klauber and his team of scholars survey the development of and difficulties facing the early French Reformed tradition as well as its ecclesiastical, theological, and political challenges during the seventeenth century. They also investigate the important contributions made by some of its most significant theologians: John Cameron, Moise Amyraut, Pierre du Moulin, Jean Daille, Andreas Rivetus, Charles Drelincourt, Claude Pajon, Jean Claude, and Pierre Jurieu. The theologians of the seventeenth-century French Reformed churches displayed a theological richness seldom remembered even among Reformed believers in the centuries following their labor, and this volume resurrects their vitality for a new audience.

"Aside from the Wars of Religion and the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes, French Protestantism is largely ignored in most discussions of early modern history. This important book will help fill that void. The collected essays by many leading scholars highlight the theological contributions and historical travails of the seventeenth-century Huguenots, allowing them to resume their rightful place in a pivotal century in European history."

---Glenn S. Sunshine, professor of history, Central Connecticut State University

"This most welcome collection of essays, authored by an impressive team of leading scholars, goes to the heart of the Huguenot experience during the increasingly troubled seventeenth century. The initial chapters set the context with lucidity and precision. Subsequent contributions offer a superb exploration of the thought and influence of eight celebrated French Reformed theologians. Professor Klauber and his colleagues have provided an encompassing, informative, and absorbing assessment of Reformed theological positions and their elaboration during a critical era in the history of French Protestantism."

---Raymond A. Mentzer, Daniel J. Krumm Family Chair in Reformation Studies, University of Iowa