Christoph Graefe

Christoph Gräfe (also Christophorus Graefius ; * 1632 in Bad Sulza , Thuringia ; † November 2, 1687 ) was a German educator and Evangelical Lutheran theologian .

Life

Christoph Gräfe lived in very poor circumstances in his youth and therefore had to work as a cattle guardian. Later, by a happy coincidence, he was given enough funds to continue his education. After acquiring the necessary prior knowledge, he moved to the University of Leipzig to study theology and philosophy . After completing his university education, he obtained his degree in philosophy in 1660 and wrote several treatises on subjects from ancient Hebrew and Roman times:

• Diatriba de Καταποντισμω, num judaicum fuerit supplicium, nec ne? , Leipzig 1662
• Vita C. Octavii Augusti , Altenburg 1666
• De cruce , Jena 1667

Around 1662, Graefe followed a call to teach at the grammar school in Altenburg , where he was promoted to sub- rector in 1666 and vice-rector in 1678 . Besides his professional work, he loved Latin poetry; however, his poetic attempts cannot be called particularly successful. On the other hand, the editions of foreign works accompanied with good comments, which at that time were still fondly cultivated, as well as works belonging to rhetoric , such as the collection of mostly erotic poetry by the French poet Jean Bonnefons (Helmstadt 1667) and the writing about the human, known under the title Pancharis, are to be commended Misery from the Bohemian nobleman Bohuslaus Lobkowicz von Hassenstein ( De miseria vitae humanae liber cum notis historico-philologicis , Altenburg 1667). The writings Dissertatio de monstris and Politicus orientalis , which he wrote himself, are less important .

In 1680, Gräfe accepted the proposed pastoral position in Breitenhain and Prößdorf , which he conscientiously carried out until his death (1687). The songs he wrote were included in the Naumburg hymnbook (1717) published by Johann Martin Schamelius .

literature

• Philipp H. Külb : Gräfe (Christoph) . In: Johann Samuelersch , Johann Gottfried Gruber (Hrsg.): Allgemeine Encyclopädie der Wissenschaften und Künste , 1st section, vol. 78 (1864), p. 51.