Power and Patronage: Lutheran Revocation Sermons in Germany, 1600–1740

Abstract This article not only considers conversions to Lutheranism from the convert’s perspective, but understands conversion as a process involving multiple actors with a range of motivations. This perspective moves the conversation away from the converts’ own narratives and instead concentrates on Lutheran theologians, urban dignitaries and Protestant princes, who participated in the conversions in various ways. It asks how these actors benefitted from supporting the converts and argues that they actively promoted conversion to Lutheranism. Conversion became a key feature of the Lutheran self-perception and theologians and princes celebrated and promoted them in Germany and beyond. Contrary to previous scholarship, this article shows that Lutherans actively advocated conversions and the converts played a crucial role in the construction of a Lutheran identity.