Eberhard Finen

Eberhard Finen (born November 24, 1668 in Braunschweig ; † April 12, 1726 in Blankenburg ) was a German Protestant theologian , abbot and Braunschweig court preacher.

Life

The son of the Brunswick businessman and councilor Hans Finen and his wife Elisabeth Heine attended the Martineum high school in his hometown. He began studying theology at the University of Jena from 1688 to 1690 , which was interrupted from 1691 to 1694 by being Hofmeister Georg Wilhelm von Mahrenholtz. Finen finished his studies in 1697 at the University of Helmstedt and in 1698 joined the Braunschweigische Landeskirche as a deacon at the Helmstedter Sankt-Stephani-Kirche . In 1699 he married Anna Eleonore Halle, who had worked as a maid for the von Mahrenholtz family.

Brunswick court preacher

In 1704 Finen took up a preaching position at the Braunschweig Cathedral of St. Blasius, which he held until his death. In 1706 he became superintendent of the camping office in Lüneburg. In the same year he took over the office of the princely confessor and court preacher in Wolfenbüttel and Braunschweig, where he was favored by the Guelph Dukes Anton Ulrich († 1714), August Wilhelm († 1731) and Ludwig Rudolf († 1735). In 1707, Finen criticized the conversion of Princess Elisabeth Christine , daughter of Ludwig Rudolf, to Catholicism . The transfer took place in preparation for the marriage concluded in 1708 with the future emperor Charles VI. Finen also criticized the reigning Duke Anton Ulrich's change to the Catholic faith in 1710 in his sermons, but this was tolerated by the princely side and did not damage his career. In 1708 he became a clerical consistorial advisor and abbot of the Michaelstein monastery near Blankenburg. The preacher's seminary was established there during his tenure in 1717, the baroque monastery church was consecrated in 1720 and the monastic Latin school was closed in 1721. Finen continued to live in Braunschweig.

He died in Blankenburg in 1726 and was buried in the Michaelstein monastery there, on the outer wall of which an epitaph commemorates him.

plant

Finen created several songs, prayers, and occasional sermons, a selection of which are listed below.

• Pathetic wish to die […] (funeral sermon to Ferdinand Christian, Duke of Braunschweig-Lüneburg), 1707
• Edifying speeches about the Passion story and other sayings of holy scriptures as well as some pieces of the catechism in preparation in which [...] house prayer hours were held , 2 volumes, 1710
• Ardent prince wish of David [...] (Homage sermon at the homage of Ludwig Rudolf, Duke of Brunswick and Lüneburg, by the estates of the Principality of Blankenburg, May 25th 1714)

literature

• Alexandra Faust: Eberhard Finen (1668–1726). A Lutheran court preacher between adaptation and resistance , Braunschweig: Appelhans 2018 (Supplements to the Braunschweigisches Jahrbuch; 20), ISBN 978-3-944939-35-3 .
• Horst-Rüdiger Jarck (Ed.): Braunschweigisches Biographisches Lexikon. 8th to 18th centuries , page 220, Braunschweig 2006, ISBN 3937664467