By 1530 postils were commonly used in Catholic preaching, at least in Germany.
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Late orthodoxy was torn by influences from rationalism and pietism. Orthodoxy produced numerous postils, which were important devotional readings. Along with hymns, they conserved orthodox Lutheran spirituality during this period of heavy influence from pietism and neology. Johann Gerhard, Heinrich Müller and Christian Scriver wrote other kinds of devotional literature.
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Genuine piety was found almost solely in small Pietist gatherings. However, some of the laity preserved Lutheran orthodoxy from both Pietism and rationalism through reusing old catechisms, hymnbooks, postils, and devotional writings, including those written by Johann Gerhard, Heinrich Müller, and Christian Scriver.Devotional Literature Project Aside from that, however, Lutheranism vanished in the wake of rationalist philosophy.
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Eight original postils survive. They are kept at the Vilnius University Library (3 copies), National Martynas Mažvydas Library, Institute of Lithuanian Literature and Folklore, Göttingen State and University Library, Library of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and Vatican Library. The Vatican copy was gifted to Pope Pius XI by President Antanas Smetona in May 1930. Excerpts from the Catholic Postil by Daukša were first republished in 1823 in Vilnius.
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25 (Although this reference specifically mentions Saxony, government promoted rationalism was a trend across Germany) As a result of the impact of a local form of rationalism, termed Neology, by the latter half of the 18th century, genuine piety was found almost solely in small Pietist conventicles. However, some of the laity preserved Lutheran orthodoxy from both Pietism and rationalism through reusing old catechisms, hymnbooks, postils, and devotional writings, including those written by Johann Gerhard, Heinrich Müller and Christian Scriver.
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After the Council of Trent (1545–1563), the Roman Catholic Church religious texts in native languages to combat the Protestant Reformation. Lutheran pastor Jonas Bretkūnas published his Lithuanian postil in the Duchy of Prussia in 1591 prompting Lithuanian Catholics into action. Jakub Wujek, rector of the Jesuit Academy in Vilnius, published two postils in Polish – a larger one in 1573–1575 and a smaller in 1579–1580. The large postil was aimed at well educated clergy and delved into theological arguments by various Christian sects.
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From the time of Martin Luther, who published the first part of his postil under the title Enarrationes epistolarum et evangeliorum quas postillas vocant (Wittenberg, 1521), every annual cycle of sermons on the lessons, whether consisting of homilies or formal sermons, is termed a postil. A few of the most famous Lutheran postils are those of M. Luther (Kirchenpostille, Wittenberg, 1527; Hauspostille, 1542, 1549), P. Melanchthon (Evangelien- Postille, Germ., Nuremberg, 1549; Lat., Hanover, 1594), M. Chemnitz (Evangelien-Postille, Magdeburg, 1594), L. Osiander (Bauern-Postille, Tübingen, 1597), and J. Arndt (Evangelien-Postille, Leipzig, 1616).
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In his agony, he turned to the local vicar, asking for public absolution for his sins. The vicar explained to him that such scruples were merely the work of the devil and he should not pay attention to them. On 22 July 1688 Ulstadius appeared in the Dome of Turku in his rags, with his hair hanging long and with a huge matted beard, interrupting the service by starting to read aloud the radical theses he had written down. He proclaimed that the Lutheran doctrine was doomed, that prayer books and postils were a bunch of lies, and that the ministers were not endowed with the Holy Spirit.
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Impelled by his hatred of Talmudic Judaism, Paul in the year preceding his death composed the Dialogus Pauli et Sauli Contra Judæos, sive Scrutinium Scripturarum (Mantua, 1475; Mayence, 1478; Paris, 1507, 1535; Burgos, 1591), which subsequently served as a source for Alfonso de Spina, Geronimo de Santa Fé, and other Spanish writers hostile to the Jews, and Martin Luther in Germany for his treatise On the Jews and their Lies. A few years after his baptism he wrote Additiones (which consist of addenda to Nicholas of Lyra's postils on the Bible, and have been frequently printed), and in his old age a Historia Universal in Spanish verse.
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The term postil fell into disuse during the period of Pietism and the Enlightenment, but was revived by Claus Harms (Winter- Postille, Kiel, 1812; Sommer-Postille, 1815). It has again become common through W. Löhe (Evangelien-Postille, Frommel 1848; Epistel-Postille, 1858), and M. Stuttgart (Herzpostille, Bremen, 1882, 1890; Hauspostille, 1887–88; Pilgerpostille, 1890). Reformed Churches, which disregard a regular series of lessons, have no postils; in the Roman Catholic Church the term has been kept, especially through Leonard Goffiné (Hand-Postill oder christ-catholische Unterrichtungen von allen Sonn- and Feyr-Tagen des gantzen Jahrs (Mainz, 1690; popular, illustrated ed., reissued twenty-one times by H. Herder, Freiburg-im- Breisgau, 1875–1908; Eng. transl.
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The smaller postil was aimed at an average priest. It was not a summary of the larger postil, but a brand new work that used various texts by other authors, including Louis of Granada, Johann Wild (Ferus), Johann Eck, Johann Augustanus Faber, etc. Wujek's postils were an answer to a Protestant postil of Mikołaj Rej published in 1557. Lithuanian priest Mikalojus Daukša translated the smaller postil into Lithuanian. He used the 2nd edition of the Polish postil and later added details from the 3rd edition which was published in 1590 in Kraków. Several times, the text refers to Pope Gregory XIII, who died in 1585, as the current pope though the text was given to the printing press of the Jesuit Academy in Vilnius in early 1595 (though, due to financial difficulties, it was not published until 1599).
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