A Brighter Day Begins with His Word.

New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge • VOLUME 2

THE NEW SCHAFF-HERZOG

['Herzog, J. J. (Johann Jakob), 1805-1882', 'Schaff, Philip, 1819-1893', 'Hauck, Albert, 1845-1918', 'Jackson, Samuel Macauley, 1851-1912', 'Sherman, Charles Colebrook, 1860-1927', 'Gilmore, George W. (George William), 1858-1933'] • Public-domain historical edition in the United States (published 1908); OCR from Internet Archive scan

THE NEW SCHAFF-HERZOG

of Homoousios in the Constantinopolitan Creed (1901); An Introduction to the Early History of Christian Doctrine (London, 1903); and Christian Doctrines and their Ethical Significance (1905).

BETKIUS, bet'ki-us (BETKE), JOACHIM: Lutheran preacher and forerunner of the Pietistic movement; b. at Berlin Oct. 8, 1601; d. at Linum, near Fehrbellin (33 m. n.w. of Berlin), Dec. 12, 1663. After finishing his course at Wittenberg, he became associate rector at Ruppin, then was for more than thirty years pastor at Linum. He wrote several theological and devotional works, by the reading of which Spener said he had profited. They contain edifying exhortations against forgetting the need of sanctification in addition to justification, but are marred by intemperate fanaticism; Betkius holds the clergy responsible for all the anti-Christian phenomena of his time, and for the divine judgments of the Thirty Years' war.

(F. W Dibelius.)

BETRAYAL OF PILATE. See Apocrypha, New Testament, B, I, 7.

BEURLIN, bei"er-lin, JAKOB: German Lutheran theologian; b. at Dornstetten (35 m. s.w. of Stuttgart) 1520; d. at Paris Oct. 28, 1561. In Nov., 1533, he entered the university of Tubingen. When the Reformation was introduced in 1534, he remained faithful to Catholicism, but diligently studied philosophy and the writings of the Church Fathers, so that his transition to the new doctrine took place quietly. In 1541 he was made governor of the Martinianum, and at the same time lectured on philosophy. In 1549 he accepted the pastorate of Derendingen near Tubingen, and in 1551 he was called as professor to Tubingen. On June 2, 1557, he examined and signed, together with other theologians, the Confessio Wirtembergica, which had been prepared for the Council of Trent, and in the month of August, together with Brenz's friend Johann Isenmann (q.v.), he went to Langensalza and afterward to Saxony to come to an understanding with the theologians and councilors of the elector Maurice concerning the Wiirttemberg Confession as compared with the Saxon, which had also been prepared for the Council of Trent. In Nov., 1551, in company with Luther's former steward, Jodocus Neuheller, pastor at Entringen, he was sent as theological adviser of the Wiirttemberg delegates to Trent, where they took notes of the disputations. On Jan. 13, 1552, both returned home, but on Mar. 7, Beurlin, Brenz, Heerbrand, and Vannius again started for Trent to oppose the erroneous decisions of the council, and to defend the Confessio Wirtembergica before it; but the council would not hear them in a public session, and they returned home. Beurlin now devoted all his time to his academic duties. He lectured on Melanchthon's Loci, the Gospel and First Epistle of John, and the Epistles to the Romans and Hebrews, and drilled the young theologians in admirably conducted disputations. In May, 1554, the duke sent him to Prussia to pacify those who had been stirred up by Osiander's teaching. He was unsuccessful, however, and, disgusted with the behavior of the factions, he declined the bishop-

ric offered to him by Duke Albert, and returned home. In the interest of his academic office he now retired in favor of Jakob Andrea, who was a more willing interpreter of the theology and ecclesiastical policy of Brenz (q.v.). In Oct., 1557, Beurlin and his father-in-law, Matthaeus Alber, went to the religious conference at Worms in place of the Thuringian theologians. At the Stuttgart synod Beurlin also remained in the background, but he assisted Brenz in the defense of the Confessio Wirtembergica against Peter a Soto, and his attack upon the central point of the Roman system is still worthy of consideration. Vice-chancellor of the university after 1557, Beurlin was the leader of the Swabians at the Erfurt Conference, Apr., 1561, and was still more prominent on his last journey made in the service of the Evangelical Church. King Antony of Navarre sought both at Stuttgart and Heidelberg for a theologian to advise him in the controversy which arose in Sept., 1557, at the religious conference in Poissy between the cardinal of Guise and Beza concerning the relation of the French Protestants to the Augsburg Confession. Duke Christopher sent three theologians, Jakob Beurlin, Jakob Andrea, and Balthazar Bidembach. Before leaving, Beurlin was made chancellor of the university and provost of the Collegiate Church (Sept. 29). The theologians left Oct. 3, and arrived at Paris Oct. 19. Meanwhile the conference at Poissy had been broken off, and the theologians had to wait till the king called them. On Oct. 24 Beurlin fell ill with the plague and died in Paris.

G. Bossert.

Bibliography: The sources are: T. Schnepffius, J. Beurlinus redivivus et immortalis, Tubingen, 1613; J. V. Andrea, Fama Andreana, Strasburg, 1530. Consult G. C. F. Fischlin, Memoria theologorum Vittebergensium resuscitate, i, 82-87, TJlm, 1710; C. F. Sattler, Geschichte von Wurttemberg unter der Regierung der Herzoge, TJlm, 1771; H. F. Eisenbach, Beschreibung und Geschichte der Stadt und UniversitiXt Tubingen, pp. 108-112, Tubingen, 1822; H. L. J. Heppe, Geschichte des deutschen Protestantismus, vol. i, Marburg, 1852-59; C. von Weizsacker, Lehrer und Unterricht an der evangelisch-theologischen Fakultat . Tubingen, Tubingen, 1877; C. A. Hase, Herzog Albrecht von Preussen und sein Hofprediger, Leipsic, 1879; G. Bossert, Die Reise der wilrttembergischen Theologen nach Paris 1561, in Wurttembergische Vierteljahrshefte, 1899, pp. 387-412.

BEVAN, bev'on, ANTHONY ASHLEY: Church of England layman; b. at Trent Park, Barnet (11 m. n.n.w. of London), Herts, May 19, 1859. He was educated at the Gymnase litteraire, Lausanne (1877-79) and the University of Strasburg (1881- 1883), and in 1884 became a member of Trinity College, Cambridge, where he was elected fellow in 1890. Since 1893 he has been Lord Almonor's reader in Arabic in the University of Cambridge. In addition to minor studies, he has written A Short Commentary on the Book of Daniel (Cambridge, 1892) and the Hymn of the Soul Contained in the Syriac Acts of St. Thomas, Reedited with an English Translation, in Cambridge Texts and Studies, v (1897).

BEVAN, LLEWELYN DAVID: Congregationalist; b. at Llanelly (15 m. o.e. of Carmarthen), Carmarthenshire, Wales, Sept. 11, 1S42. He

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