THE NEW SCHAFF-HERZOG
respondence with him, and encouraged him not to be frightened off by the rebellious peasants, while Melanchthon, who began to correspond with him in 1527, warned him against imprudent interference in non-religious affairs. Myconius reformed the schools of the city and awakened the interest of the citizens in them. In the Augustinian monastery he erected a school whose first rector from 1524 to 1535 was Basilius Monner of Weimar. Myconius exerted great influence both by his sermons and in his practical pastorate and by his exemplary conduct. His influence, moreover, was not confined to Gotha. He accompanied as preacher Prince John Frederick three times to the Lower Rhine, to Cologne, Julich and Cleves, and in 1534, after the latter had become elector, to Dusseldorf, Brunswick, and Celle. On these journeys, Myconius preached to large concourses. With Melanchthon, Menius, and others he took part in the church visitations of Thuringia in 1527 and 1533, also in many important conventions of the Reformation, in the religious colloquy of Marburg 1529, the Wittenberg Assembly of 1536, the convention of Schmalkald 1537, the negotiations in Frankfort and Nuremberg 1539, and the convention of Hagenau 1540. In 1538 he went to England with Franz Burkhardt and Georg von Boyneburg in order to discuss the articles of the Augsburg Confession with the theologians of Henry VIII. He was successful in introducing the Reformation in Saxony after the death of Duke George in 1539, at first in his beloved Annaberg, then in Leipsic, where he preached the first Evangelical sermon in the Church of St. Nicolai. The princes left him there that he might carry through the work of the Reformation; he remained nine months, meeting an obstinate and violent opposition, but finally mastered the situation. He won the affection of the citizens to such a degree that Elector John Frederick was asked to leave him there two years, but in 1540 he returned to his congregation. His health had always been very delicate and unequal to his arduous tasks. Owing to overexertion on the occasion of the Thuringian visitations, he was compelled after the year 1539 to interrupt his labors from time to time, especially as he developed bronchial troubles.
Few characters of the Reformation appeal to the sympathy as strongly as does Myconius. Like Luther, he had attained the light and truth of the Gospel by personal experience. His character had been firmly fixed early in life and could not be unsettled by the theological disputes and opinions of the time. In Luther he recognized with gladness from the beginning " the chosen man of God and the last Elijah," and his devotion to Melanchthon was not less sincere. The purity of his character was undisputed and secured him the respect of friend and foe. In spite of his efficiency in the Latin and German tongues and his popular gifts, he did not aspire to the fame of a writer or scholar, but exerted his activity in the practical work of the church. Nevertheless, he has left some treatises which are still valuable, as, for instance, Wie man die einfeltigen und sonderlich die krancken, im Christen thumb vnterrichten soil (Wittenberg, 1539; new cd., Frankfort, 1598, enlarged by the treatise Wie
man mil den besessenen Leuten umgehen soil). Whenever the condition of his throat prevented him from preaching, he busied himself with searching the archives of the church, of monasteries, and the hospital, and published extracts of them under the title Neues Erbbuch und Kopey der Ministratur 1542 and wrote his Historia Reformationis 1517—42, both extant in manuscript in the archducal library at Gotha. This history reflects his experiences and impressions in an unpretentious, but fresh and plastic manner, and is the valuable contribution of a contemporary of the events.
(G. Kawerau.) Bibliography: His Historia Reformationis contains many biographical details. Biographies were written by A. Probus, Schmalkalden, 1597; M. Adam, Frankfort, 1705; Juncker, Waltershausen, 1730; J. G. Bosseck, Leipsic, 1739; C. K. G. Lommatzsch, Annaberg, 1825; K. F. Ledderhose, Gotha, 1854; M. Meurer, Leipsic, 1864 (contains an excellent list of literature); G. Kreyenberg, in Grensboten, 1892, i. pp. 114 sqq,; and P. Scherffig, Leipsic. 1909. Consult also: H. E. Jacobs, Martin Luther, pp. 65- 66, 79, 117, 287, New York, 1898; J. W. Richard, Philip Melanchthon, pp. 159, 254, 280, ib. 1898.
MYCONIUS, OSWALD: Swiss reformer; b. at Lucerne 1488; d. at Basel Oct. 14, 1552. His original name was Geisshusler. After completing his education at Basel, where he became acquainted with Zwingli, Holbein, and Erasmus, he became a teacher at the canons' school at Zurich in 1516. Here he published two pamphlets in one of which (1518) he held that the pope must be obeyed only so long as he required nothing contrary to Christianity. He took a decisive part in the calling of Zwingli to Zurich. Shortly afterward Myconius was called to teach in his native city, but he continued to correspond with his lifelong friend Zwingli. In 1522 his views forced him to retire from his position. After teaching for a time at Einsiedeln he returned to Zurich, primarily as teacher at the school attached to the Fraumunster. Here he held German lectures on the New Testament, besides taking a silent though active part in all the measures of Zwingli. To this period belongs his Ad sacerdotes Helvetia qui Tigurinis male loquuntur suasoria ut male loqui desinant (1524). In 1531 Myconius was called to the church of St. Albans at Basel and in 1532 he was appointed the successor of fficolampadius (q.v.). Though he accepted this only on condition that he might resign as soon as one more worthy could be found, he continued to discharge the double office of head of the Basel church and professor of theology until his death. He was involved in many difficulties, however, by Carlstadt (q.v.), who formed a faction in the faculty to subordinate the church to the university, only to be defeated by Myconius; and when the latter sought to carry out the reformatory measures of GScoIampadius, Carlstadt declared to the council that his rival wished to make the civil authorities slaves of the priests, and told the people that Myconius disapproved all their pleasure. Despite this the prestige of Myconius increased everywhere.
In the eucharistic question, while remaining generally in accord with the Zwinglian position, as is clear from his letters and from his commentary on Mark (Basel, 1538), Myconius approximated Luther