Friday, June 19, 2026

It is the 19th of June 2026. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

 

It was common in the 16th century for Reformers and Humanists to change their names: Martin Luderus becomes Martin Luther. Johannes Hussgen called himself Oecolampadius. Phillip Schwarzerd became “Melanchthon”. Which makes it all the more strange that the Melanchthon of Switzerland- that is, the brains behind the movement went by his given name for most of his life: Leo Jud- or “Leo the Jew”- a problematic name for a Christian in Early modern Europe. His friends would take to calling him “Master Leo,” and he would also refer to himself as “Leo Juda”- calling yourself the “Lion of Judah” might have other proprietary problems.

 

Nonetheless, who was this man, the intellectual heavyweight to Ulrich Zwingli’s Swiss Reformation, a kind of parallel movement to Luther's?

 

Leo was born in Alsace in 1482, the illegitimate son of a priest. He had intended to study medicine- a useful and available career for a man in his situation. But first, at a Latin school in Selestat, and then in Basel by 1499, he would come into contact with a young Martin Bucer and Ulrich Zwingli. His friendship with these later reformers led him to study theology. He would make a trip to Rome to plead his case and was ordained as a priest by 1512 and served a parish in his home in the Alsace.

 

In 1519, he was called to Einsiedeln- to a church that was recently vacated by his old friend Zwingli, who would be called to the Grossmunster in Zurich (would you like to see that church with me? Maybe even attend a church service there after seeing Luther’s churches and homes? Go to GTItours.org to find out more)

 

So Jud is at Einsiedeln, where his friend Zwingli was, and continues some of his sneaky reforms- reading Scripture publicly and continuously (instead of only the appointed readings) and de-emphasizing some practices he considered excessive- such as the newly imposed indulgences that made waves in Wittenberg.

 

 

By 1522, he was in Zurich to be near Zwingli, and his allegiance to the Reformation movement was made public both at the affair of the sausages (a Friday BBQ of meat- forbidden by the church) and his marriage to Katharina Gmunder, a former nun.

 

His genius was in translating, both Latin to German and the creation of critical Latin texts. He helped to translate the Old Testament Prophets for the Zurich Bible, and his Latin text of the whole Bible was finished by his students and friends posthumously. He would translate modern Latin tracts into German as well as works by Augustine and A Kempis into modern German for the newly literate masses.

 

Whereas Zwingli was the fiery preacher and Bullinger the academic, Jud put an emphasis on teaching- he would write an early catechism for Zurich parishes and helped prepare the first Helvetic Confession. He was also, reportedly, quite musical. Known for his singing voice, he was one of the few in the early Swiss Reformation who saw song as a particularly useful way to teach the new doctrine, amidst reformers who tended to be more skeptical of the excesses of music.

 

While Zwingli and the Swiss Reformation would take a turn towards the radicals with their view of the Lord’s Supper, but not so with Baptism. And this would be in large part the result of Jud, who was responsible for altering the Baptismal practices from the Medieval and Catholic, but did so sparingly.

 

After Zwingli’s early death at Kappel, some suggested that Jud was the next in line, but knowing his skills were more interpersonal and pastoral (and perhaps seeing that it got his friend killed), he suggested the young Heinrich Bullinger, who would shape the second generation of Swiss Reformers.

 

 

Leo Jud- master Leo, the Lion of Judah (figuratively and not messianically) would die on this, the 19th of June in 1542- he was able to summon his friends, commend his Latin Old Testament to their hands, and reportedly died peacefully. Born in 1482, Leo Jud was 60 years old.

 

The Last word for today comes from the daily lectionary and Acts 5:

17 Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. 18 They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. 19 But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. 20 “Go, stand in the temple courts,” he said, “and tell the people all about this new life.”

21 At daybreak they entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people.

When the high priest and his associates arrived, they called together the Sanhedrin—the full assembly of the elders of Israel—and sent to the jail for the apostles. 22 But on arriving at the jail, the officers did not find them there. So they went back and reported, 23 “We found the jail securely locked, with the guards standing at the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside.” 24 On hearing this report, the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests were at a loss, wondering what this might lead to.

25 Then someone came and said, “Look! The men you put in jail are standing in the temple courts teaching the people.” 26 At that, the captain went with his officers and brought the apostles. They did not use force, because they feared that the people would stone them.

 

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 19th of June 2026, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man who won't tell you his real name: just the made-up humanist one he uses: Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man who was going to use a “b” word earlier… and correctly so- defensibly… but, you know… little ears in cars don’t need that… I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.