Jakob Strauss und der reformatorische Wucherstreit

Die soziale Dimension der Reformation und ihre Wirkungen

edited by Joachim Bauer and Michael Haspel

Book cover: Jakob Strauss und der reformatorische Wucherstreit

Extent: 240 pages

Publisher: Evangelische Verlagsanstalt

Subjects: Religious Studies

Language: German

Paperback (Published)

(December 2017)

ISBN: 9783374051502

6.06 x 9.09 inches

Price: $36.00

In stock

In the Reformation period the dispute over interest and usury played an important role. In the year 1523 the Eisenach Reformer Jakob Strauss published 51 articles against usury, in which he argued against excessive interest rates on money and land. Many citizens were overindebted and Strauss tried to create justice. For him the question was which actions would be the consequences of faith. In his articles against usury Strauss based his arguments on the bible. Maybe many people in Eisenach and Central Germany welcomed so enthusiastically the message of the reformers because spiritual freedom promised also a liberation from social constraints. The book sheds light on the social-ethical dimension of the Reformation and its historical effects up to the present day.


In the Reformation period the dispute over interest and usury played an important role. In the year 1523 the Eisenach Reformer Jakob Strauss published 51 articles against usury, in which he argued against excessive interest rates on money and land. Many citizens were overindebted and Strauss tried to create justice. For him the question was which actions would be the consequences of faith. In his articles against usury Strauss based his arguments on the bible. Maybe many people in Eisenach and Central Germany welcomed so enthusiastically the message of the reformers because spiritual freedom promised also a liberation from social constraints. The book sheds light on the social-ethical dimension of the Reformation and its historical effects up to the present day.

  • Edited by Joachim Bauer
  • Edited by Michael Haspel