Antistes (from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

''ante'' "before" and ''sto'' "stand") was from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century the title of the head of a church in the

Reformed Churches Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Calv ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. It was the highest office in churches with

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin word mean ...

al church governance. The word was used first in 1525 as an unofficial title of honor for

Huldrych Zwingli Huldrych or Ulrich Zwingli (1 January 1484 – 11 October 1531) was a leader of the Reformation in Switzerland, born during a time of emerging Swiss patriotism and increasing criticism of the Swiss mercenary system. He attended the Univ ...

in Zurich, then in 1530 for

Johannes Oecolampadius Johannes Oecolampadius (also ''Œcolampadius'', in German also Oekolampadius, Oekolampad; 1482 – 24 November 1531) was a German Protestant reformer in the Calvinist tradition from the Electoral Palatinate. He was the leader of the Protestant f ...

in Basel and in 1532 for

Heinrich Bullinger Heinrich Bullinger (18 July 1504 – 17 September 1575) was a Swiss Reformer and theologian, the successor of Huldrych Zwingli as head of the Church of Zürich and a pastor at the Grossmünster. One of the most important leaders of the Swiss R ...

in Zurich. The antistes was elected by the great council (the parliament) of the city and also held besides this office a pastorship of one of the main churches. The antistes had to be an ordained minister. He was the official representative of the church. He presided over the

, and over the theological examinations of candidates for the office of pastor. His direct rights were very limited, but a man with high

leadership Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets v ...

capabilities like Zwingli or Bullinger could exert a great influence on the church in this office. In the late nineteenth century the title was replaced by other office designations, e.g. church president or president of the church council.

Examples

;Antistes of Zurich *

(1525–1531) *

(1532–1575) * Rudolph Gualther (1575–1585) * Ludwig Lavater (1585–1586) * Johann Rudolph Stumpf (1586–1592) * Burkhard Leeman (1592–1613) *

Johann Jakob Breitinger (Antistes) Johann Jakob Breitinger (19 April 1575 in Zürich - 1 April 1645) was a Reformed pastor in Zürich, professor, antistes and politician. Johann Jakob Breitinger studied in Herborn, Marburg, Franeker, Leiden, Heidelberg und Basel. He was a pas ...

(1613–1645) * Johann Jacob Irminger (1645–1649) * Johann Jacob Ulrich (1649–1668) * (1668–1677) * Johann Jacob Muller (1677–1680) *

Johann Henry Erni Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name ''Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious" ...

(1680–1688) * Antonius Klinger (1688–1713) * Peter Zeller (1713–1718) * (1718–1737) * Johann Conrad Wirz (1737–1769) * Johann Rudolph Ulrich (1769–1795) * Johann Jacob Hess (1795–29 May 1828) ;Antistes of Basel *

(1530–1531) *

Oswald Myconius Oswald Myconius (1488, Lucerne – 14 October 1552, Basel) was Swiss Protestant theologian and Protestant reformer. He was a follower of Huldrych Zwingli. Life He was born at Lucerne, Switzerland. His family name was Geisshüsler, and his ...

(1531–1552) *

Ambrosius Blarer Ambrosius Blarer (sometimes Ambrosius Blaurer; April 4, 1492 – December 6, 1564) was an influential Protestant reformer in southern Germany and north-eastern Switzerland. Early life Ambrosius Blarer was born 1492 into a leading family of Ko ...

(1552–1553) *

Simon Sulzer Simon Sulzer (23 September 1508 – 22 June 1585) was a Reformed theologian, Reformer, and Antistes of the Basel church. Life Sulzer was born in Schattenhalb, the child of a priest. He was educated in Bern and Lucerne. The sudden death of ...

(1553–1585) *

Johann Jakob Grynaeus Johann Jakob Grynaeus or Gryner (October 1, 1540 – August 13, 1617) was a Swiss Protestant divine. Life Grynaeus was born in Bern. His father, Thomas Grynaeus (1512–1564), was for a time professor of ancient languages at Basel and Bern, but ...

(1585–1618) *

Johannes Wolleb Johannes Wolleb (Wollebius) (1589–1629) was a Swiss Protestant theologian. He was a student of Amandus Polanus, and followed in the tradition of a Reformed scholasticism, a formal statement of the views arising from the Protestant Reformation. ...

(1618–1629) * (1630–1654) *

Lucas Gernler Lucas or LUCAS may refer to: People * Lucas (surname) * Lucas (given name) Arts and entertainment * Luca Family Singers, also known as "lucas ligner en torsk" * ''Lucas'' (album) (2007), an album by Skeletons and the Kings of All Cities * ''Lu ...

(1656–1675) *

Peter Werenfels Peter Werenfels (May 20, 1627 – May 23, 1703) was a Swiss theologian, professor at the University of Basel and antistes of the Basel church. He served as the doctoral advisor of prominent mathematician Jacob Bernoulli Jacob Bernoulli (als ...

(1675–1703) * (1816-1838) *

Samuel Preiswerk Samuel Preiswerk ( Rümlingen, 19 September 1799 – Basel, 13 January 1871) was a Swiss Reformed Lutheran theologian, pastor and church hymn poet. He is the maternal grandfather of Carl Jung. Biography Preiswerk was born in 1799, in Basel, ...

(1859-1871) ;Antistes of

Schaffhausen Schaffhausen (; gsw, Schafuuse; french: Schaffhouse; it, Sciaffusa; rm, Schaffusa; en, Shaffhouse) is a town with historic roots, a municipality in northern Switzerland, and the capital of the canton of the same name; it has an estimate ...

* (1569–1570) * Melchior Habicht (1738-1817)Biography
/ref>

References

Bibliography

*

in the ''Historical Lexicon of Switzerland'' (in German) {{Authority control Ecclesiastical titles History of Calvinism Protestantism in Switzerland