Valentin Weigel (1533-1588)

This is the first book-length treatment in English of a central but neglected figure in German intellectual history, Valentin Weigel (1533-1588). Like his great contemporary Michel de Montaigne, Weigel anticipated the advent of a tolerant culture of individual knowledge and conscience. In the wake of the German Reformation, the dissenting Lutheran pastor Weigel argued for the inner autonomy of the lay individual in search of knowledge and salvation. His writing recapitulates the traditions of medieval mysticism (Meister Eckhart, Tauler, the Theologia Germanica), Renaissance philosophy (Cusanus, Paracelsus), and Reformation-era dissent (Sebastian Franck). In Weigel's work, these disparate sources come together in a lucid synthesis that stimulated protest and opposition against intolerance and oppression. Taking into account the latest research and editorial achievements of scholars in Germany, this book summarizes what is known of Weigel's life, characterizes the conflicts of his times, discusses his sources, analyzes his writing work by work, and considers his impact on the emergence of tolerance in Germany.