Regulatory Articles and Regulations for the Election of Saxon Clergymen in the Early Modern Period (1543–1819)
Regulatory Articles and Regulations for the Election of Saxon Clergymen in the Early Modern Period (1543–1819)

Summary/Abstract: The paper examines the regulations governing the election of Saxon pastors in Transylvania, with an emphasis on the relationship between secular and ecclesiastical authorities in the modern era. From a doctrinal and moral point of view, the regulations were intended to help parishes and authorities alike to manage a process that was at the core of Saxon identity: freedom, even in ecclesiastical matters. In accordance with the historical periods, the regulations reflect the needs of the Church: from finding its confessional profile, to consolidating its ranks and internal discipline to withstand political pressure from absolutist monarchs, to implementing an efficient bureaucracy to guarantee fair elections and the best available candidate for each category of congregation. The appendix contains the first explicit regulation on the matter, from a register used to supervise the elections. An illustration has also been added at the end of this paper to introduce the reader to how the election process was managed by the officials.

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