Philipp Spener

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
(Redirected from
Philipp Jakob Spener
)

Philipp Spener
Born
Philipp Jakob Spener

(1635-01-30)30 January 1635
Rappoltsweiler, Upper Alsace, Holy Roman Empire
Died5 February 1705(1705-02-05) (aged 70)
EducationUniversity of Strasbourg
Occupations
  • Lutheran theologian
  • Preacher
  • Lecturer
MovementPietism

Philipp Jakob Spener (23 January 1635 – 5 February 1705)

Wittenberg
, formally accused him of 264 errors.

Life

Spener was born in

Electorate of the Palatinate, and lectured in the university on philology and history. From 1659 to 1662 he visited the universities of Basel, Tübingen and Geneva, and commenced the study of heraldry, which he pursued throughout his life. In Geneva especially his religious views and tendencies were turned in the direction of mysticism.[2]

Memorial plaque on Nikolaikirchplatz in Berlin

Spener returned to Strasbourg in 1663, where he was appointed preacher without pastoral duties, with the right of holding lectures. Three years afterwards he was invited to become the chief pastor in the

Lutheran Church at Frankfurt. Here he published his two chief works, Pia desideria (1675) and Allgemeine Gottesgelehrtheit (1680), and began that form of pastoral work which resulted in the movement called Pietism. In 1686 he accepted the invitation to the first court chaplaincy at Dresden. But the Elector John George III, at whose personal desire the post had been offered to him, was soon offended when Spener condemned the morals of John George's court.[3] Spener refused to resign his post, and the Saxon government hesitated to dismiss him. But in 1691 the Saxon representative at Berlin induced the court of Brandenburg to offer him the rectorship of St Nicholas in Berlin with the title of counsellor of the Marcher Consistory (Konsistorialrat).[2]

In Berlin Spener was held in high honour, though the tendencies of the court and the government officials were rather rationalistic than pietistic. The

Spener died in Berlin.

Theology

Pia Desideria

Highly influenced by Johann Arndt, Lewis Bayly, Jean de Labadie, and Theophil Großgebauer, Spener's own writings display an emphasis on personal transformation through spiritual rebirth and renewal. It is this focus on individual devotion and piety that places him within the realm of Pietism.[4] Spener wanted to strengthen and renew the church through the development of more knowledgeable and devoted members. In his Pia Desideria, he gave six proposals of how to enact this reform: (1) to more thoroughly acquaint believers with Scripture by means of private readings and study groups in addition to preaching; (2) to increase the involvement of laity in all functions of the church; (3) to emphasize that believers put into practice their faith and knowledge of God; (4) to approach religious discussions with humility and love, avoiding controversy whenever possible; (5) to ensure that pastors are both well-educated and pious; and (6) to focus preaching on developing faith in ordinary believers.[5] As these proposals indicate, Spener saw positive change for the church as dependent primarily upon the pious involvement of individual believers.[6]

Though Spener has been called the "father of Pietism,"

Zinzendorf, the leader of the Moravian Brethren's Community at Herrnhut in Saxony. Although Zinzendorf met Spener as a child at his grandmother's home in Hennersdorf, Spener was not his godfather.[7]

Spener was a prolific writer. The list of his published works comprises 7 vols. folio, 63 quarto, 7 octavo, 46 duodecimo; an edition of his chief writings was published by P. Grunberg in 1889.[2] TVG Brunnen Verlag in Gießen, Germany began a new edition of Spener's works in 1996.

References

  1. ^ Encyclopaedia Britannica, Philipp Jakob Spener. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d e Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Spener, Philipp Jakob" . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
  3. ^ Christopher Clark: "Iron Kingdom", 2006. p 125
  4. ^ Howard C. Kee et al., Christianity: A Social and Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1998), 344–45.
  5. ^ Philip Jacob Spener, Pia Desideria, trans. Theodore G. Tappert (Philadelphia, PA: Fortress Press, 1964), 87–122.
  6. ^ Howard C. Kee et al., Christianity: A Social and Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1998), 345.
  7. ^ Dietrich Meyer and Paul Peucker, eds., Graf ohne Grenzen: Leben und Werk von Nikolaus Ludwig Graf von Zinzendorf (Herrnhut: Unitätsarchiv, 2000), 165–167.

Further reading

  • (de) Johannes Wallmann: Philipp Jakob Spener und die Anfänge des Pietismus, Tübingen 1970 (2. Aufl. 1986).
  • (de) Reinhard Breymayer, « Der Vater des deutschen Pietismus und seine Bücher. Zur Privatbibliothek Philipp Jakob Speners », in: Bibliothecae selectae da Cusano a Leopardi, a cura di Eugenio Canone, Firenze, Leo S. Olschki Editore, 1993, p. 299–331 (Lessico Intellettuale Europeo, 58).
  • (en) Werner Raupp: Art. Spener, Philipp Jacob (1635–1705), in: Heiner F. Klemme / Manfred Kuehn (General Editors), The Dictionary of Eighteenth-Century German Philosophers, Vol. 3, London/New York 2010, p. 1106–1110.

External links