“Because so much is involved in the pastoral office, with teaching, exhortation, warning and discipline, comfort and pardon..and since the Lord has also bestowed and distributed the gifts necessary for this office not to one or two, but in different ways to many, it was his will that his churches, if they were able to have many meetings and essential order, should have elders, whether few or many, according to the requirements of each congregation.”

As one who teaches pastoral (also known as practical) theology, one of my tasks is to help developing ministers, or teaching elders, learn the importance and duties of ruling elders. One of the classic treatises that we reference on this subject was written by Martin Bucer. What follows is an introduction to Bucer, an overview of his book on this subject, how the contrast between the Catholic versus Protestant view of the nature of the church affects its government, and the impact that his ministry had.

In 1491, Martin Bucer was born in Schlettstadt, a village in the northeast of France. He entered Blackfriars, a Domincan monastery, in 1512 in Heidelberg. Bucer studied the teachings of Erasmus and Luther there, and after actually meeting Luther in 1518 he was converted. Three years later he left the monastery to become a priest. Thus, Bucer had a unique knowledge of Rome’s doctrines and practices.

He married a former nun, Elizabeth, in 1522 and went to the smaller town of Landstuhl then on to Wissembourg to minister. His teachings on the new Reformation doctrines were widely spread, and he was eventually excommunicated by Rome and his life threatened. He fled to his parents’ home in Strasbourg, and ended up being the pastor there in 1524 for twenty-five years.

In his ministry in Strasbourg, Bucer worked tirelessly with others to reform the city. During these years, Bucer’s view of the church proper developed significantly through studies and experience. He was often sought after to help bring truth and conciliation in the midst of the doctrinal turmoil of the Reformation. He presided over the Regensberg Coloquy in 1541 that brought Protestants and peaceful Catholics together, with Bucer hopeful that they would reach an agreement on several key doctrines. However, the parties did not sign. Nonetheless, in matters such as these, Bucer’s pastoral heart and wisdom were seen and sought.

In 1538, during his time in Strasbourg, Bucer wrote what he called his “little handbook” on pastoral ministry, which influenced John Calvin and many other Reformers. Bucer took as his theme Ezekiel 34:16, which says, “I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and strong I will destroy.” In Concerning the True Care of Souls^[1], Bucer revealed remarkable discernment regarding the nature and essence of the church.

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