Reading the documents concerning the negotiations between Catholics and Protestants, drawn up in the course of the years 1540 and 1541, and realizing that many of them were compiled partly or in full by Bucer, one can but wonder at the versatility of the Strasbourg theologian and organizer. In one way or another all these papers deal with the German church, its structure, doctrines, ceremonies and polity. Comparing them with Bucer's major works on ecclesiological themes, his church orders and the reality of the Strasbourg church in his time means at first glance looking at two completely different designs. It is therefore not surprising that in the studies of Bucer's ecclesiology and of his activities in the field of church organization these documents are given little attention. Furthermore, the majority of Bucer's manuscripts and published writings on the negotiations are not yet available in modern editions. The temptation is strong to ignore them, with the excuse that in any case this whole affair could contribute to our knowledge only of the diplomat and negotiator Bucer, not to that of Bucer the theologian. In this respect there is a striking parallel to Bucer's role in the sacramentarian controversy, the difference being that in the latter field this view was abandoned in favour of the recognition that Bucer's activities were based on a firm theological conviction.