Erich Beyreuther

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Walter Hans Erich Beyreuther (born February 23, 1904 in Oberröslau ; † January 7, 2003 in Schriesheim ) was a German Lutheran pastor and professor of church history with a focus on Pietism .

Life

Erich Beyreuther referred In 1926 the University of Leipzig to Protestant theology study. He finished his studies in 1932 and became vicar . In 1938 he and Ilse Bäuerle married. The couple had three children. From 1931 he was a pastor and sometimes looked after up to four parishes. This prevented him from embarking on an academic career.

In 1946 Beyreuth became pastor in Stürza . Five years later, the university earned him a doctorate in Protestant theology. The dissertation was called Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg , Theology and Mission Consciousness . In 1953 he was with the work of August Hermann Francke and ecumenism habilitation and received the following year a lecturer for church history at the Theological Faculty of the University of Leipzig .

Beyreuther held the teaching position and the pastor's office until 1956. That year the faculty hired him to teach the history of religion and church. He received a research contract from the German Research Foundation in 1960. However, due to the conditions in the GDR, he was unable to get his own chair . Because of this and because he was involved in the Schmutzler trial , he left Leipzig in 1962 and became a private lecturer in ecclesiastical history at the University of Erlangen , and then promoted to adjunct professor the following year .

Beyreuther was visiting professor at the University of Munich in 1968 , the next year he gave up the Erlangen position. In 1987 he was awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany . He died in 2003 at the age of 98.

Act

Beyreuther dealt with Protestantism in the Baroque and Rococo and was very well known in this field. In his dissertation and habilitation thesis, he worked out the worldwide relationships of Pietism. Among other things, he dealt with Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf and wrote a biography about him in three parts. He also wrote a work on Philipp Jacob Spener . Both works made him known. In 1978 he collected several works on Pietism and published them in the collection History of Pietism .

Fonts (selection)

  • The young Zinzendorf. Marburg an der Lahn 1957.
  • History of Diakonia and Inner Mission in Modern Times. Berlin 1983,
  • The great Zinzendorf trilogy. Marburg 1988.
  • Ludwig Hofacker . Wuppertal 1988.
  • Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf. Testimonials and photo documents. A biography. Giessen / Basel 2000.
  • Studies on the theology of Zinzendorf. Collected Essays. Hildesheim / Zurich / New York 2000.

literature

  • Dietrich Meyer (Ed.): Pietism - Herrnhutertum - Awakening Movement. Festschrift for Erich Beyreuther (= series of publications by the Association for Rhenish Church History. Vol. 70). Rheinland-Verlag, Cologne, and Habelt, Bonn 1982, ISBN 3-7927-0709-8 .

Web links
personal data
SURNAME Beyreuther, Erich
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Beyreuther, Walter Hans Erich (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German Lutheran pastor and professor of church history with a focus on Pietism
DATE OF BIRTH February 23, 1904
PLACE OF BIRTH Oberröslau
DATE OF DEATH January 7, 2003
Place of death Schriesheim