Négyszázötven éve hunyt el Heltai Gáspár, Kolozsvár reformátora = Commemorating the Four Hundred and Fifty Years Anniversary of the Death of Gáspár Heltai, Reformer of Kolozsvár/Cluj

Ősz, Sándor Előd (2024) Négyszázötven éve hunyt el Heltai Gáspár, Kolozsvár reformátora = Commemorating the Four Hundred and Fifty Years Anniversary of the Death of Gáspár Heltai, Reformer of Kolozsvár/Cluj. ERDÉLYI ÉVSZÁZADOK. A KOLOZSVÁRI MAGYAR TÖRTÉNETI INTÉZET ÉVKÖNYVE, IX. pp. 353-358. ISSN 2558-8761

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Abstract

One of the unique aspects of the Reformation in Transylvania is that we know the details of the denominational changes in relatively few towns. In fact, the Reformation processes of Brașov and Cluj (Kolozsvár) are among the best documented. The latter is primarily associated with Gáspár Heltai. The reformer of Cluj was likely born around 1510 in Sibiu. In 1543 he began his studies at the University of Wittenberg. In 1544, the parish priest of Cluj, Adrianus Wolphard, passed away and Heltai was invited to return from Wittenberg to fill the vacant position. This invitation marked the beginning of the Reformation in Cluj, as inviting a student from Luther’s university was seen as a clear declaration of religious allegiance. However, the entire population of the city had not converted to Protestantism, Roman Catholic rites continued undisturbed for a time in the Dominican and Franciscan churches. At the start of his service in Cluj, Heltai married – thus breaking with the lifestyle of the medieval clergy – and lived as a citizen of the city. He is credited with the significant development of the parish library: on his behalf, István Balásfi (a fellow student) purchased 107 theological works in Wittenberg. By 1555, Heltai was devoting most of his time to his printing house and therefore resigned from his position as chief pastor. He was succeeded by Ferenc Dávid. Towards the end of the 1550s, he began to sympathize with the teachings of the Swiss Reformation. Heltai organized a Bible translation group in Cluj, composed of local pastors and teachers, which managed to translate nearly the entire Bible between 1551 and 1565. Following the second theological debate of Gyulafehérvár (Alba Iulia) in 1568, Heltai joined the Unitarian side and dedicated his printing press to the service of this denomination as well. Heltai died in 1574, the location of his grave remains unknown.

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