Richard C. Kessler Reformation Collection

The Richard C. Kessler Reformation Collection was established in 1987, when Richard and Martha Kessler donated their private collection of Reformation imprints and manuscripts to Emory University. These materials were combined with Reformation holdings at the Pitts Theology Library, and an effort was launched to enlarge and sustain this collection in the years to come. An advisory committee of Lutheran laypersons and clergy and of Candler School of Theology faculty and administrators oversees the nurture of the collection and its programs. The Reformation Notes newsletter provides semiannual updates on the growth of the collection, and the Reformation Day at Emory program of music and lectures each October celebrates the collection and its contributions to music, history, and theology. In the sixteenth century the social and theological movements of central Europe, known collectively as the Reformation, critically shaped religion, law, education and other institutions in the West, and their long shadow has extended even to the present. The purpose of the Kessler Collection is to document these changes by collecting print and manuscript materials down to 1570 by Martin Luther (1483-1546) and those whom he influenced or engaged in debate. In this way historians and theologians will be able to hear the full range of voices that were raised in this dynamic period. The holdings of the collection now exceed 4,000 items, a mark approximated by only two other libraries in North America; no American library approaches the Kessler Collection's 1,000+ publications by Luther himself.

Georg Spalatin letters

This collection consists of three letters written by Georg Spalatin. The first letter, on paper measuring 22 x 33 cm., is written to the "Noble and Right worthy Heinrich von Einsiedel" in Gnansteyn. The matter being addressed is the refusal of Brosius Berger to take an oath, thus hindering Katharina Gockritz from getting married. Mention of consultation with Doctor Martin [Luther] is in the letter. With the exception of the upper right corner which is missing, the paper is in good condition. The date "1528" appears in the upper left corner in a different ink. The second letter is on paper and measures 22.1 x 21.8 cm. The letter is written to Heinrich von Einsiedel and was enclosed with a copy of a sermon by Philipp Melanchthon. Within the body of the letter, Spalatin entreats Einsiedel to "exert your goodwill on the work's behalf". The letter is dated 1536. Also included are copies of translations and transcriptions of the first two letters, prepared by Andreas Baudler in December 2005. The third letter is on paper and measures 23 x 19.9 cm. It is a cover letter, dated May 3, 1534, for a manuscript which Spalatin had promised to Duke Magnus III of Mecklenburg regarding the justification used by Henry VIII for his divorce from Catherine of Aragon, which was never recognized by Rome. Henry had married Anne Boleyn in January of 1533 and on May 23 1534, Pope Clement VII invalidated Henry's divorce and remarriage, which led to England's final break with Rome and the foundingn of the Anglican Church. The German reformers and Protestant princes took an active part in these events, and some of them still believed that they had found an ally in Henry, despite his earlier hostility to Luther.