This chapter explores popular and learned manifestations of an increasingly difficult neutral position at the height of the Reformation in Germany, in order to underscore and reassess the prevalence of third forces in sixteenth-century religion. The first two sections examine experiences of ambivalent change, at the scale of territorial Reformations and at the scale of personal and local histories. The remaining sections review sixteenth-century attempts to theorize a middle-ground position. Those attempts challenge the historian to integrate marginal, unconventional viewpoints into an otherwise “confessional” intellectual milieu.

Philip Melanchthon is undoubtedly one of the most significant figures to emerge from the Reformation. However, his legacy is frequently overshadowed by Martin Luther and John Calvin – in large part because of his close relationship with both. Because of this, Melanchthon has infrequently been the focus of historical research, functioning much more frequently as a footnote to Luther or a sounding board for Calvin. Yet Melanchthon’s work and writings shaped the religious landscape of Europe and he left an indelible influence on both Lutheranism and the Reformed tradition – particularly through his biblical scholarship and Loci Communes. The overlooking of Melanchthon is, to some extent, explained by the final years of his life, during which he was almost universally disdained for his perceived betrayal of Lutheran principles at the Leipzig Interim. Because of this, Melanchthon has frequently been disregarded or maligned in confessional histories of Lutheranism and the Reformed faith. In more recent years, however, the significance of Melanchthon’s Loci Communes, his contributions to early modern biblical scholarship, his role in the political developments of the German Reformation, and his relationship with Calvin have come to be recognized as formative influences on the history of the early modern world.