Cornelis Cooltuyn

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Cornelis Cooltuyn (Latinized: Cornelius Colthunius ) (* in Alkmaar ; † October 15, 1569 in Emden ) was a Dutch theologian.

Live and act

Cornelis Cooltuyn came from Alkmaar, where Petrus Nannius prepared him for the priesthood as principal of the Latin school. Further information about his first years of life is not documented. He was evidently well educated and fluent in Greek, Hebrew, and Latin. He was ordained a priest around 1551. Since he then provoked with his sermons and did not show enough respect for the saints, the authorities of the city of Alkmaar warned him. In 1566 he switched to the St. Pankras Church in Enkhuizen as a preacher . Here too he had problems after a short time because of his sermons. He had to testify before the Inquisitor in The Hague and received a warning.

Then Cooltuyn went back to Alkmaar and worked there first as a teacher, later again as a preacher. Thereupon he got into arguments again with the church superiors. In 1558 he moved to Groningen . In August 1558 he wrote to Jan Arentsz for the community of Emden, who may have been one of his protégés earlier. Cooltuyn asked Arentsz to preach to churches in Holland.

In July 1559, Cooltuyn took over a preaching position in Emden and developed into one of the most important preachers of the Reformation, maintaining contacts between a small community of Protestants and believers who had left the country living in Holland. From Emden he took over a vacancy representation in the north , where he tried to mediate between the parties, but had to be protected against an angry crowd with "spears and halberds" in the north church. He probably traveled repeatedly to the Netherlands and spoke as a preacher in Haarlem , Edam , Kampen and other places. The congregation from Emden asked him to mediate in a long-running conflict between Godfried van Winghen and deacons of the Dutch congregation in London. Cooltuyn traveled to the English capital in 1565, but was only able to reach an agreement there, which only let the dispute rest for a while. When the Eighty Years War broke out , Cooltuyn played a decisive role in the establishment of Reformed churches in his home province. The head of the congregation from Amsterdam asked him for support, whereupon he sent twelve preachers from East Friesland. Cooltuyn held the position of preacher in Emden until 1567 and was president of the Coetus of the Reformed preachers in East Frisia .

The minutes of the Dutch Blood Council indicate that an "Army Cornelis, Apostaet" was staying in Alkmaar. In addition, Cooltuyn is not mentioned between June 10th and July 29th during negotiations of the Council of Churches in Emden. Hence, he may have visited Holland during this time. After his death, city secretary Henricus Paulinus gave a funeral speech, which then appeared in print in Emden.

With the "Gospel of the Poor", Cooltuyn wrote only a more extensive theological work that was written before his work in Emden. It gives a comprehensive overview of his theological views. Cooltuyn harshly criticized religious services, purgatory and the cult of saints, which he viewed as idolatry. This shows that he knew the writings of Johannes Calvin early on .

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Smid: East Frisian Church History. 1974, p. 182.
  2. ↑ Smid: East Frisian Church History. 1974, p. 211.
personal data
SURNAME Cooltuyn, Cornelis
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Colthunius, Cornelius
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Dutch theologian
DATE OF BIRTH 15th century or 16th century
PLACE OF BIRTH Alkmaar
DATE OF DEATH October 15, 1569
Place of death Emden