Johan Henrik Thomander

Johan Henrik Thomander (born June 16, 1798 in Fjälkinge (today part of the Kristianstad parish in Skåne ), † July 9, 1865 in Lund ) was a Swedish theologian, writer, translator and politician.

life and work

Johan Henrik Thomander (1862)

As the illegitimate son of pastor Albrecht Johan Pisarski, Thomander grew up with his grandfather Thomas Thomander (also pastor) and studied Protestant theology at Lund University from 1812 . Because he had to work repeatedly as a tutor, he did not pass his theological exam until 1820 and was ordained pastor of the ( Lutheran ) Church of Sweden in 1821 . In 1827 he returned to Lund as a lecturer and founded the Theologisk Quartalskrift with Henrik Reuterdahl in 1828 , with which he advocated the renewal of Swedish theology and the freedom of science. Most of his publications appeared here. In 1833 he became a professor of pastoral theology at Lund University, where he held the rectorate in 1838/39. In 1845 he switched to the chair for dogmatics . From 1840 to 1858 he was a member of the Reichstag as a representative of the pastorate and stood up for a representative constitution and a better education policy on the side of the liberals. In 1850 he became provost of the cathedral in Gothenburg , and in 1856 bishop of the Lund diocese (as successor to Reuterdahl, who was appointed archbishop).

His main concern was to overcome the confrontation between from the great revival movements emerged Freikirchentum and based on the government Hochkirchentum . He campaigned for the abolition of the conventicle poster , which forbade religious meetings without a pastor, and for the separation of church and school. He also supported the popular movements opposed by most of the bishops , especially the abstinence movement. The constitutional reform of 1866, through which the clergy lost their representation in the Reichstag and a separate church assembly ( synod ) was created that also contained the lay element , goes back to his proposals, which were first published in 1837 and since then have been further developed in many writings and Reichstag speeches. Despite his politically and ecclesiastically liberal attitude, Thomander was rather conservative as a theologian and saw himself as a supporter of Henric Schartau .

Johan Henrik Thomander (1798–1865)

Thomander was a popular preacher, and many of his sermons were published in collections. He also wrote dramatic and lyrical works, but these were only performed in private and not printed. He published only a few hymns in a hymn book edited with Peter Wieselgren in 1849 ; some of them are still in the current Swedish hymn book from 1986. He was also a talented translator. Among other things, he translated dramas by Shakespeare , Aristophanes and Voltaire as well as Lord Byron's Manfred , but also tracts by Johann Tauler . A new translation of the New Testament that was completed in 1835 was unable to assert itself alongside the version approved by the church.

The house in which he lived as a professor from 1833 to 1851 can now be viewed with its original furnishings in the Open-Air Cultures Museum in Lund. A house in Sandgata in Lund given by Thomander's daughters to Lund University is still used today as a student residence ( Johan Henrik Thomanders studenthem ) and was of great importance for the student culture in Lund.

Awards

In 1849 Thomander received a prize from the Swedish Academy for his sermons; In 1855 he was elected a member himself (chair 18). The University of Copenhagen awarded him an honorary doctorate in 1836 .

literature

• Martin Friedrich :  Thomander, Johan Henrik. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 11, Bautz, Herzberg 1996, ISBN 3-88309-064-6 , Sp. 1290-1291.

Web links

Commons : Johan Henrik Thomander  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Article in the Svenskt översättarlexikon

predecessor	Office	successor
Henrik Reuterdahl	Bishop of Lund 1856 - 1865	Wilhelm Flensburg