“Ei ei, Herr Pastor, das ist ja eine ganz neue Religion!”

[Jacob G. C. Adler´s Agenda between parishes, priests and authorities.]
In 1797, the German Chancery in Copenhagen introduced the Agenda worked out by superintendent Jacob G. C. Adler in the duchies Schleswig and Holstein. This Agenda was based on the ideas of European Enlightenment and was the first liturgy to be introduced comprehensively. However, especially the rural population soon protested against it so that priests and authorities had to compromise. Many parishes went back to using the old liturgy.

This study by Veronika Janssen is the first monograph on Adler’s Agenda in German language. Using a wide range of sources, she analyzes its development, its in many parishes unsuccessful introduction, as well as the criticism it faced from many perspectives, which in some instances even led to violent unrest. Janssen’s book however is far more than strict church history. It can also be read as a cultural history of everyday life in the duchies Schleswig and Holstein on the eve of the 19th century. Especially helpful for further studies is her appendix in which she gives an overview of the introduction of the agenda in every single parish in Schleswig and Holstein.