Eberhard Arnold

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Eberhard Arnold

Eberhard Arnold (born July 26, 1883 in Hufen near Königsberg , East Prussia; † November 22, 1935 in Darmstadt ) was a German theologian , educator , publicist and founder of the Bruderhof communities .

Life

His father, Carl Franklin Arnold, b. on March 10, 1853 in Williamsfeld, Ohio , USA, was a teacher at the high school in Koenigsberg at the time of Eberhard's birth. His mother, Elisabeth, b. Voigt came from old academic circles and was born on September 20, 1852 in Oldenburg . Eberhard Arnold was the third child in his family. He had a brother and three sisters. He was still quite young when his father was called to the University of Breslau in Silesia as a theologian and church historian .

It is said from Arnold's youth that he was a boisterous boy who especially troubled his teachers. They and the parents of his classmates were not always happy about the influence he often exercised on his comrades. Even then he was at odds with his parents' house, as he felt very drawn to the poor and tramps. He found them to be much more natural and warm-hearted than the people of the bourgeoisie. That was often difficult for his relatives to understand, and even then there were some arguments.

Emmy and Eberhard Arnold with their children Emmy-Margret, Heini and Hardy around 1915

As early as 1899, as a 16-year-old student in Breslau , Arnold had heard a strong inner call from Christ to full discipline. During his student days in Halle an der Saale in 1907 he was under the strong impression of a revival movement, under the influence of which he and his bride Emmy von Hollander (1884–1980), whom he married in December 1909, left the state church, the early Christian Accepted baptism of faith and looked for a true church in the New Testament, early Christian sense. The bride's father, Johann Heinrich von Hollander (1853–1920), was a legal scholar and son of the last German mayor of Riga , the mother Monika the daughter of Piers Otto, most recently pastor of the Lutheran Gertrudis congregation in Riga.

From 1905 to 1909 Arnold studied theology , philosophy and education ; He was at the end of 1909 University of Erlangen with a thesis on Original Christian and anti-Christian in the career of Friedrich Nietzsche to Dr. phil. PhD . From 1910 to 1915 Arnold worked as a freelance speaker and writer from Halle, Leipzig and Berlin, and then from 1915 to 1920 he was literary director of the Furche publishing house in Berlin and editor of his magazine “Die Furche”. In 1913/14 Arnold stayed in Oberbozen on the Renon .

In those years Arnold made contact with many lively representatives of the youth movement and religious socialism in their pursuit of a more pristine way of life and true justice. The message of the kingdom of God from Blumhardt, father and son , made a decisive impression on Arnold, as did the radical way of life in the original Anabaptism of Moravia in the 16th century , and above all the testimony of early Christianity in the New Testament of the community of property in the early Jerusalem community .

In the summer of 1920, Arnold and a few friends (including Normann Körber , Heinrich Schultheis ) brought the Neuwerk movement into being, a religious-social association that was merged at the Whitsun conference in Schlüchtern . In Sannerz , Hessen , near Schlüchtern, he and his wife and five children moved into three small rooms in the back of an inn. Initially they were in contact with the Habertshof near Schlüchtern-Elm , where Max and Maria Zink, Jörg Zink's parents , settled, and later Emil Blum founded one of the first folk high schools . In 1927 they moved from Sannerz to the nearby Sparhof in the Rhön . The community grew steadily and soon numbered between 80 and 100 adults and children. The Eberhard Arnold Verlag published the book series "Sources of Christian Testimonies from All Centuries", which comprised around 20 volumes.

From 1930 to 1931 Arnold visited the Hutterites in North America. There he united in December 1930 on behalf of the community in Germany with the Hutterite brothers and was commissioned by them with the mission to Germany and Europe.

After his return from America, Arnold worked on a new edition of his book Innenland, which was first published in 1918 . A guide into the soul of the Bible , which, however, only appeared in print after his death. At that time he was also particularly dedicated to researching the rich, as yet unpublished Anabaptist and Hutterite literature that he found in America and in European libraries. During these years the Bruderhof community grew and strengthened steadily. It also had a strong external influence, both verbally and in writing, and its membership increased steadily.

Since the National Socialists came to power in January 1933, however, the siblings had considerable hardships and difficulties, which led to the establishment of the Almbruderhof in Silum in the Principality of Liechtenstein in 1934 . In the midst of this difficult situation, Eberhard Arnold died suddenly and unexpectedly on November 22, 1935 in Darmstadt as a result of the operation of a complicated broken leg.

The Bruderhof communities founded by Arnold are now in Germany, England, Australia and the USA .

Fonts (selection)

Around a quarter of the songs contained in the hymn book Sonnenlieder came from the pen of Eberhard Arnold.
  • The early Christian and anti-Christian in Friedrich Nietzsche's career. Bruno Becker, Eilenburg 1910.
  • Way of life of living communities. Oncken, Kassel 1913.
  • Inland. A guide to the soul of the Bible. Furche-Verlag, Berlin 1918.
  • The religiosity of today's youth. Furche-Verlag, Berlin 1919.
  • with Emmy von Hollander: The first Christians after the death of the apostles. Eberhard Arnold-Verlag, Sannerz 1926.
  • Light and fire. The world judgment of world history and the collecting light of the church of Christ. Eberhard Arnold-Verlag, Neuhof near Fulda 1933.
  • The conscience. His testimony and his recovery. Book publisher of the Almbruderhof, Silum (Post Triesenberg) 1936.
  • Experiencing God. Book publisher of the Almbruderhof, Silum (Post Triesenberg) 1936.
  • Heart, soul and spirit. Book publisher of the Almbruderhof, Silum (Post Triesenberg) 1936.
  • Salt and light. About the Sermon on the Mount. Brendow-Verlag, Moers 1982, ISBN 3-87067-166-1 .
  • The revolution of God. From the life testimony of the Hutterite communities. Radius-Verlag, Stuttgart 1984, ISBN 3-87173-689-9 .
  • Collected speeches and writings. Book publisher of the Almbruderhof, Pflug-Verlag of the Hutterische Bruderhof community, Silum (Post Triesenberg) 1992.

literature

in order of appearance

  • Heinrich Kautz:  Arnold, Eberhard. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 1, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1953, ISBN 3-428-00182-6 , p. 384 f. ( Digitized version ).
  • Emmy Arnold: Eberhard Arnold's Life and Work. In: Eberhard Arnold. A testimony of church community from his life and writings. Plow Publications, Rifton, NY 1964, 2nd edition. 1974, ISBN 0-87486-112-8 , pp. 1-15.
  • Stephan Wehowsky: Religious Interpretation of Political Experience. Eberhard Arnold and the Neuwerk movement as exponents of religious socialism during the Weimar Republic. Vandenhoeck and Ruprecht, Göttingen 1980, ISBN 3-525-87368-9 .
  • Yaacov Oved: The Witness of the Brothers. A History of the Bruderhof. Transaction Publications, New Brunswick, NJ 1996, ISBN 1-56000-203-4 .
  • Markus Baum: Stumbling block. Eberhard Arnold 1883–1935 (= Edition C / C. 481). Brendow-Verlag, Moers 1996, ISBN 3-87067-657-4 .
    • Edited new edition: Markus Baum: Eberhard Arnold. A life in the spirit of the Sermon on the Mount. Neufeld-Verlag, Schwarzenfeld 2013, ISBN 978-3-86256-035-6 .
  • Markus Baum: Against the Wind: Eberhard Arnold and the Bruderhof. Plow Publications, Rifton, NY 1998.
  • Julius H. Rubin: The Other Side of Joy. Religious Melancholy among the Bruderhof. Oxford University Press, New York 2000, ISBN 0-19-511943-6 .
  • Markus Baum:  Eberhard Arnold. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 19, Bautz, Nordhausen 2001, ISBN 3-88309-089-1 , Sp. 23-32.  ( Article / beginning of article in the Internet archive ) .
  • Marco Hofheinz: "Francis in knee breeches". Eberhard Arnold's Christian pacifism as evidence of common life (1883–1935). In: Marco Hofheinz, Frederike van Oorschot (ed.): Christian-theological pacifism in the 20th century. Nomos, Baden-Baden / Aschendorff Verlag, Münster 2016, ISBN 978-3-8487-3317-0 (Nomos) / ISBN 978-3-402-11699-9 (Aschendorff), pp. 69–94.

Web links

Portal: Anabaptist Movement  - Overview of Wikipedia content about the Anabaptist Movement

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Arnold Pfeiffer: Arnold, Eberhard (1883-1935) . In: Helmut Burkhardt, Uwe Swarat (ed.): Evangelical Lexicon for Theology and Congregation . tape 1 . R. Brockhaus Verlag, Wuppertal 1992, ISBN 3-417-24641-5 , p. 135 .
  2. ^ Arnold, Emmy von Hollander (1884–1980). In: gameo.org, accessed on August 10, 2020.
  3. ↑ Markus Baum: Eberhard Arnold. 2013, p. 63.
  4. ^ Baltic Historical Commission (ed.): Entry on Hollander, Johann Heinrich v .. In: BBLD - Baltic biografisches Lexikon digital .
  5. ↑ Markus Baum: Eberhard Arnold. 2013, p. 39 ( preview in Google Book Search).
personal data
SURNAME Arnold, Eberhard
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German theologian, educator, publicist and founder of the Bruderhof communities
DATE OF BIRTH July 26, 1883
PLACE OF BIRTH Hufen near Königsberg , East Prussia
DATE OF DEATH November 22, 1935
Place of death Darmstadt