Emil Dönges

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Georg Hermann Emil Dönges (born September 2, 1853 in Becheln , † December 7, 1923 in Darmstadt ) was a German preacher , author and publisher of the Brethren movement .

Life

Dönges was the second son of elementary school teacher Philipp Dönges (1825–1890) and his wife Adolfine geb. Boy. The pastors and teachers of the area met regularly for Bible studies in Philipp Dönges' apartment . He also tried to raise his children in a Christian way.

Emil Dönges was tutored by his father until he was 16, after which he attended the higher middle school in Bad Ems and finally the secondary school 1st order in Elberfeld , where he passed the Abitur in 1874 . During his time in Elberfeld he made acquaintance with the circles of the Brethren movement , in particular with Julius Löwen , whose children he gave tutoring and who gave him some writings from the Carl Brockhaus publishing house to read. However, Dönges only came to read them during a subsequent 18-month stay in England to improve his language skills. Dönges worked during this time as a tutor in the county of Herefordshire and came into contact with the Quakers , the "open brothers" and the "closed brothers". He joined the latter permanently.

From 1876 Dönges studied (interrupted by a stay in Paris in the spring of 1878) at the University of Marburg English and French for the higher teaching post; In 1879 he completed his studies with a state examination and doctorate . After that he worked for several years as a teacher at the high school in Burgsteinfurt .

During his studies, Dönges had already started to preach and evangelize in various brother communities . In 1884 he decided to give up his job and devote himself entirely to spiritual work. Until 1886 he worked in Elberfeld in the publishing house of Carl Brockhaus , translated the church history of the Englishman Andrew Miller into German and took part in the review of the Elberfeld Bible . In 1886 he moved to Frankfurt am Main , where he married Katharina Kirch (1855–1934) a year later, with whom he had nine children (two of their sons died in the First World War ).

In 1888, Dönges began - in addition to his extensive preaching activities - with the publication of the evangelistic magazine Good Message of Peace . The illustrated Sunday school newspaper Der Freund der Kinder followed in 1891 (which is still published today), and in 1911 the Bible study magazine Gnade und Friede . There were also various calendars, brochures and books, including an extensive exposition of Revelation . Compared to the publications of the R. Brockhaus Verlag , which played the leading role among the German “closed brothers”, Dönges' writings were more evangelistic and were also more perceived by Christians outside the brother movement. Like Georg von Viebahn, Dönges was considered to be a representative of a “milder direction” of “Darbysm” and also worked with Christians of other denominations, e. B. in the Bible Covenant or at joint events.

In 1899 Dönges moved with his family to Darmstadt and at the same time took over the management of the "Christian Institute for the Imbecile" in Schmalkalden-Aue (until 1920). He died of a heart condition at the age of 70.

Fonts (selection)

  • The Baligante episode in the Rolandsliede (Diss. Marburg 1879)
  • Sign of time. Reflections (1897)
  • Biblical names in German translation (1907)
  • Two singers by God's grace: Paul Gerhardt and K. Johann Philipp Spitta (1908)
  • Biblical Questions and Answers (1912)
  • The divine inspiration (inspiration) of the Holy Scriptures (1913)
  • The Feasts of Jehovah in the Light of the Gospel (1913)
  • "What must happen soon". Reflections on the Revelation of Jesus Christ (1913)
  • (with Otto Kunze :) Guidelines for Biblical Lessons in Sunday School and at Home (n.d.)

Individual evidence

  1. Cf. C. Dönges: Philipp Dönges, teacher and folk writer (born September 26, 1825 in Nauroth, died November 21, 1890 in Dillenburg) . In: Old Nassau Calendar 1915, p. 59f.
  2. The Christliche Verlagsgesellschaft Dillenburg, which has continued the work of the Dönges-Verlag since 1957, therefore traces its origin back to the year 1888 ( The History of the Christliche Verlagsgesellschaft , cv-dillenburg.de, accessed on August 28, 2017).
  3. Cf. the assessment by Ernst Busch, Der Darbysmus , Rotenburg / Fulda o. J., p. 20: “Even among the Elberfeld Darbysts there were Christians who, beyond the narrow darbystic framework, meant something to the community like Georg von Viebahn and Dr. Emil Dönges. "

literature

  • Emil Dönges: "Vita." In: The Baligante episode in the Rolandsliede. Inaugural dissertation to obtain the doctorate at the highly commendable philosophical faculty in Marburg submitted by Emil Dönges from Becheln. Printed by CL Pfeil, Marburg 1879. p. 51.
  • R [udolf] B [rockhaus]: “Dr. Emil Dönges † ”. In: Die Tenne 2 (1924), pp. 2-4.
  • LH: “On the 100th birthday of the departed publisher Dr. Emil Dönges ”. In: Ambassador of Peace 63 (1953), pp. 29–36.

Web links