Caspar Loescher

Memorial plaque on the Jüdenstrasse house in Lutherstadt Wittenberg

Caspar Löscher (born May 8, 1636 in Werdau , † July 11, 1718 in Wittenberg ; also C (K) aspar Loescher ) was a German Lutheran theologian, assessor at the University of Leipzig, superintendent of Sondershausen and Zwickau, general superintendent of the Saxon spa district, professor of theology, dean of the theological faculty and rector of the University of Wittenberg.

Life

Born as the son of a butcher and citizen named Martin Löscher and his wife Regina (née Mörlin), he experienced the horrors of the Thirty Years' War in his childhood . At the age of seven he lost his father and had to support his mother in the war for survival. His physical development suffered as a result of those events, so that he was often ailing and there was little hope in the eyes of those around him that something would become of him.

However, Löscher had good intellectual abilities. The rector of the Werda school became aware of this and laid a good reason for Löscher by studying the Latin and Greek languages so that he could attend the city school in Naumburg . There he expanded his vocabulary and gained insight into poetry and other school sciences at that time.

In 1656 he moved to the University of Leipzig . After a certain period of study, he was accepted into Samuel Lange's house as a teacher for his children. Promoted by this, he soon obtained his bachelor's degree , in 1660 the academic degree of master's degree at the philosophical faculty and was habilitated as an adjunct at the philosophical faculty with the disputation "de fabuloso Fabricii purgatorio" . Löscher wanted to devote himself to theology and so that he could also give lectures at the theological faculty, he acquired the degree of Baccalaureus in theology in 1662. In 1665 he paved his way to the position of assessor at the theological faculty with the disputation "pro Loco" and often attacked the burgeoning syncretism in his lectures .

After a guest sermon in Sondershausen on November 22, 1667, he was offered the position of senior pastor and superintendent there. However, he did not accept this until June 19, 1668, as he had previously acquired the academic degree of licentiate in theology on February 12, 1668 . He was ordained to this office on June 24th and gave his entrance sermon on November 12th. On March 23, 1670 took over the supervision of the training in the Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen .

After being in Leipzig in 1674 for doctor of theology doctorate , he became pastor at 1676 Predigerkirche in Erfurt , which was associated with the task of an inspector at the local high school. However, in Erfurt he got into religious disputes with a Jesuit named Schönemann, so that in 1679 he accepted an appointment to Zwickau , where he also became pastor and superintendent. Despite the plague in Zwickau, he turned down a request for an appointment to Danzig .

Instead, he took up the post of general superintendent of the district in Wittenberg in 1687. This was linked to the task of consistorial assessor and professor of theology at the University of Wittenberg . Here he has 15 times the Dean's office of the theological faculty, several times administered the rectorate of the university, was eight years senior of the theological faculty and held the first professorship at the theological faculty for twelve years. As a representative of pure Lutheran doctrine , he took an active part in the pietistic and terministic disputes. He was also active in church history and wrote some writings on it. After he died at the age of 83, he was buried on August 14 with a large attendance. Gottlieb Wernsdorf the Elder gave him a funeral speech in Latin , which also appeared in print.

family

Löscher was married twice. His first marriage was on April 24, 1670 in Gehren with Anna Sophia (died March 28, 1649 in Gehren; † June 19, 1670 in Sondershausen), the daughter of the princely Schwarzburg council and bailiff Laurentius Andreas Rothe and his wife Susanna Magaretha (nee Schultze from Lohra). In 1672 he married Eleophene Salome (* 1657; † January 15, 1717 in Wittenberg), the daughter of the monastery superintendent of Merseburg Valentin Sittig. Twelve children were born from the marriages. The following are known:

Valentin Ernst Löscher ,
Christian Wilhelm (born December 29, 1673 in Sondershausen; † October 4, 1746) Dr., Hofrat in Weimar, Commissioner in Lübben , m. May 17, 1700 with Maria Dorothea Reyher (July 21, 1683 - August 10, 1758)
Anton Günther (born May 11, 1675 in Sondershausen) Dr. Princely Saxon Chamber Consultant in Merseburg, married. before 1702 with Dorothea Louisa Reyher
Johann Kaspar Löscher (Superintendent in Leißnig)
Friedrich Gottlieb (born September 11, 1678 in Erfurt) Dr. jur. Legal counsel in Weimar, married. July 9, 1709 with Elisabeth Augusta Reyer (born January 22, 1691)
Martin Gotthelf Löscher (Prof. Physics and Medicine in Wittenberg)
Johanna Salome (born January 21, 1683 in Zwickau)
Christina Sophia (born June 14, 1686 in Zwickau, † June 20, 1732 in Wittenberg) married. 1704 with Georg Friedrich Schröer ,
Eleophe Salome (born September 21, 1688 in Wittenberg) married. with the heir to Dabrun Johann Paul Oberkampf
Daniel Ephraim (born April 4, 1690 in Wittenberg) was legal counsel in Erfurt
Regina Charitas (born April 5, 1691 in Wittenberg, † July 5, 1757 in Sulza) married. 1710 with monastery superintendent in Merseburg Heinrich Gottlieb Schneider (born June 10, 1682 in Halberstadt; † July 26, 1728 in Merseburg)

Works (selection)

Dissertations

de fabuloso Fabricii purgatorio, Leipzig 1660
de Numo Scorteo, Leipzig 1661
Ecloga de engastrimythis, Leipzig 1663
de Behemoth, Leipzig 1664
de praedicatione generaliter & formaliter considerata, Leipzig
de probatione rerum dubarum per ignem facta, Leipzig 1665
de Eunuchis, Leipzig 1666
de suppositione, Leipzig 1666
de metempsychosi Pythagorica, Leipzig 1666
de concursu causae primae cum secundis, Leipzig 1667
de natura Leipzig 1667
de Calvinianis, quod nullum habeant articulum fidei, pro Licentia, Leipzig 1668
de pericopis Evangelicis & Epistolicis: Disp. Synodalis, Sondershausen 1668
Decades duae selectiorum de religione theasium: Disp. Synoadalis. Zwickau, 1679
Decades duae selectiorum de religione thesium: Disp. Synodalis, Zwickau 1684
Harmonia Theologica in locis de Theologia & Verbo Dei, Zwickau 1685
Sorex Romanus suo se indicio prodens, h. E. Traditiones Pontificatiae semt ipsos evertentes, Wittenberg 1687
De voce Personae ejusdemque in fidei articualis usu & abusu. Wittenberg 1688
De domestico adversariorum veritatis dissensu, Wittenberg 1690
De traditionibus Pontificiis, quae ex propriis Pontificiorum fundamentis evertuntur, Wittenberg 1691
To muti & surdi ad. S. Coenam sint admittendi?, Wittenberg 1692
De fidei vita & morte, Wittenberg 1692
Repetitio doctrinae de visionibus, Wittenberg 1693
Scylla & Charybdis interpretibus aeque ac concionatoribus vitandae, Wittenberg 1694
De consensu orthodoxo in loco de Christo Disp. I., Wittenberg 1694
De vulneribus Christi singularia, Wittenberg 1697
De consensu orthodoxo in loco de Christo, Disp. III, Wittenberg 1698
De arbore scientiae boni & mali., Wittenberg 1700
De homine per mortem a peccatis justificato, ad Rome. VI. 7th, Wittenberg 1701
Harmonia ecclesiatstica in exemplis dubiis miscellaneis, Wittenberg 1702
De nomine regenerationis ejusque usu & abusu., Wittenberg 1702
De quibusdam propositionibus apparenter contradictoriis. Wittenberg 1704
De legis termino, ad Gal. III. 29. Wittenberg 1706
Hypomnemata Symbolica, Wittenberg 1709
Praeterita Symbolica., Mountain 1710
Quod Theologia a Logica non fit separanda, Wittenberg 1711
Lutherus Anti-Pietista, Wittenberg 1716

Books and tracts

Sincere opposition to EVRH, Leipzig 1665
Embarrassed rags, which BS brought to Marckte in his summary reports, Leipzig 1666
Obex Calvinianorum Syncretismo positus, Leipzig 1669
Tractratus de latrociniis Pontificiorum in concilia, canones, Patres & alios Scriptores publicos commissis, Leipzig 1674
Erfurt treasure, Erfurt 1677
Faith Acting Through Love, Zwickau 1681
Palladium Calvinianis ereptum, Wittenberg 1688
Absolution formulas, Zwey Theile, Leipzig 1690, 1731
Nucleus SS. Theologiae, Wittenberg 1694
Amoenitates Evangelicae, Wittenberg 1696
Opened death chamber, Wittenberg 1697
Consensus orthodoxus sive Harmonia ecclesiastica in loco de Christo, Wittenberg 1698
Theologia Thetica, Wittenberg 1701

literature

Michael Ranfft : Life and writings of all Chursächsischen divine scholars . Wolfgang Deer, Leipzig 1742
Continued collection of old and new theological matters to the year 1720. Johann Friedrich Braun, Leipzig, 1721, p. 842 ff. ( Online )
Walter Friedensburg : History of the University of Wittenberg . Max Niemeyer publishing house, Halle (Saale) 1917
Christian Gottlieb Jöcher : General lexicon of scholars . 3rd part, column 1495
Löscher, (Casp). In: Johann Heinrich Zedler : Large complete universal lexicon of all sciences and arts . Volume 18, Leipzig 1738, columns 171-173.
Armin Koehnle, Beate Kusche: Book of Professors of the Theological Faculty of the University of Wittenberg 1502 to 1815/17. Evangelische Verlagsanstalt, Leipzig, 2016, ISBN 978-3-374-04302-6 , pp. 126–128

Web links

Commons : Caspar Löscher - Collection of images, videos and audio files

personal data
SURNAME	Löscher, Caspar
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Loescher, Kaspar; Loescher, Caspar
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	German Lutheran theologian, university professor, university rector
DATE OF BIRTH	May 8, 1636
PLACE OF BIRTH	Werdau
DATE OF DEATH	July 11, 1718
Place of death	Wittenberg