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⛪ A Christian group 🕊️ Religious reformers
Waldenses

Waldenses

9.9
People who followed a 12th-century Christian movement that asked ordinary people to preach and to live simply
  • proper noun
  • /wɔːlˈdɛn.siːz/
: valdenses
  • The Waldenses were known for their commitment to simplicity and living a life of poverty.

Examples

  • Baptist minister and theologian Andrew Fuller (1754-1815) identified the two witnesses as the Waldenses and Albigenses.

    Blog text (12)

  • To mention but two European examples, both the peasant Irish (Scheper-Hughes 1987) and the Waldenses (Simmel 1950) have cultivated secretiveness in the face of external threats.

    Academic text (1993)

  • Throughout the Middle Ages, the Waldenses faced persecution for their beliefs and practices.

  • Many Waldenses traveled across Europe to spread their message and advocate for lay preaching.

Synonyms

Waldensian
vsWaldenses
1 9.9

A person who belongs to a Christian group that began in the 1100s in northern Italy and France

emphasizes poverty and lay preaching rather than origin or founder
Vaudois
vsWaldenses
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A member of a Christian group from southern France that began in the 12th century and later followed Calvin

focuses on poverty and lay preaching rather than later doctrinal shifts

Surface Forms

Waldenses main

Etymology

Waldenses comes either from the name of a leader, Waldo, or from the Latin vallis meaning 'valley', a helpful way to remember is that many of these early followers lived simply in remote valleys and preached as ordinary people. That's why the name refers to members of a movement known for poverty and public preaching.