Galen Abraham de Haen
Galenus Abrahamsz de Haen (born October 8, 1622 in Zierikzee ; † April 19, 1706 there ) was a doctor and well-known Mennonite preacher in the Netherlands in the 17th century.
Galenus Abrahamsz was born in 1622 in the town of Zierikzee in Zeeland, the Netherlands, as the son of a Mennonite pastor. After studying medicine at the University of Leiden , Galenus settled in Amsterdam as a young doctor in 1646 . On September 16 of the same year he married Saertghen Bierens, who also came from a Mennonite family. In 1648 Galenus was finally appointed preacher to the Flemish community in Amsterdam.
Galenus Abrahamsz was already influenced by the emerging rationalism during his student days and represented ideas of Arminianism . Here, especially the confessional about-are Rijnsburger Kolle Gianten to name. Galenus opened the Mennonites to these new ideas and thus provoked a conflict with more conservative circles within the Amsterdam community. The two groups eventually ruptured. The Arminianist group remaining with Galen called themselves Lammists after their meeting house with the sign of the Lamb . Some of them were called Galenists or Remonstrant baptismalists directly after Galenus . Like the Remonstrants who were expelled from the Reformed Church, they advocated the concept of free will and rejected firm creeds. The second group under Samuel Apostool founded a new community, called himself after their meeting house with the sign of the sun Sonnisten . The split in the Amsterdam Mennonites soon affected other Dutch Mennonite communities. It was not until 1801 that the two parties reunited.
In 1692 Galenus founded the first seminary of preachers , which became a forerunner of the theological seminary of the Dutch Mennonites ( Algemene Doopsgezinde Sociëteit ) that still exists today .
Galenus Abrahamsz and his wife Saertghen Bierens probably had a son together. Nothing is known about other children. During his time as a doctor and preacher, Galenus supported the Mennonites who had been expelled from Switzerland and also the Huguenots who had fled France . Galenus also met several times to meet with Quakers . In his free time he was interested in alchemy , among other things, and sometimes helped to finance alchemical projects. Galenus Abraham died on April 19, 1706 in his birthplace Zierikzee.
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| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Haen, Galenus Abraham de |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Haen, Galenus Abrahamsz de (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Dutch doctor and Mennonite preacher, leader of the Lammist Party |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 8, 1622 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Zierikzee , Netherlands |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 19, 1706 |
| Place of death | Zierikzee , Netherlands |