Publication of the Solid Declaration (1577)

The Solid Declaration, also known as the Bergen Book, was presented to Elector August of Saxony on 28 May 1577. This document represents the final form of the Formula of Concord, revised from the earlier Torgau Book by a subset of theologians including Andreä and Chemnitz. It serves as a key component of the later Book of Concord.

Episodes

Background and detail

Publication. The Solid Declaration was presented to Elector August of Saxony on 28 May 1577. This document, also called the Bergen Book, is the detailed exposition part of the Formula of Concord. It was composed shortly before the publication of the Book of Concord in 1580, intended for the pacification and unification of the growing Lutheran movement.

Context. The Formula of Concord consists of two parts: the Epitome and the Solid Declaration. The Epitome provides a brief presentation of the twelve articles, while the Solid Declaration offers a detailed exposition. The original document was written in German, with a Latin translation prepared later for the 1584 edition of the Book of Concord.

People involved

Sources

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.