Johann Arndt
Johann Arndt or Arnd (born December 27, 1555 either in Edderitz or in Ballenstedt , † May 11, 1621 in Celle ) was a German pastor and one of the most important post-Reformation theologians .
Life
Johann Arndt was the son of the village pastor Jakob Arndt. He received his first instruction from his father; later he attended the schools of Aschersleben , Halberstadt and Magdeburg . From 1575 he studied at the University of Helmstedt the liberal arts and medicine . In 1581 he is said to have gone to the University of Wittenberg , where he found a theological teacher in Polykarp Leyser the Elder . He moved on to the University of Strasbourg to Johannes Pappus and then to the University of Basel to Simon Sulcer . In 1582 he returned to his home in Anhalt and initially became a school teacher in Ballenstedt. After he was ordained in Bernburg (Saale) in 1583 , Prince Joachim Ernst von Anhalt gave him the Lutheran pastorate in Badeborn in 1584 .
Prince Joachim Ernst did not accept the concord formula of 1577, but issued a separate confession formula in 1585. In 1589 his successor, Prince Johann Georg von Anhalt , demanded the abolition of exorcism in baptism. Arndt refused and refused to submit to the new creed. On September 10, 1590, Arndt made a corresponding declaration. A few days later he was removed from office and expelled from the country. Arndt rightly suspected that this confession would only be the first step towards the conversion of the Principality of Anhalt to Calvinism . In 1596 Prince Johann Georg introduced Calvinism. In 1590 Arndt therefore accepted a pastor's position at the Nikolaikirche in Quedlinburg , where he stayed until 1599. He then worked as a pastor and author in Braunschweig (until 1609), in Eisleben and from 1611 to 1621 as general superintendent in Celle .
Among other things, Arndt was influenced by mysticism and edited medieval writings such as Theologia deutsch , Thomas von Kempen or Johannes Tauler . From these and others he compiled the Four Books of True Christianity , which together with his Paradise Garden are among the most successful books of Christian edifying literature and a source of later Pietism . "True Christianity" appeared in a total of 123 editions by 1740.
On the one hand, Arndt's diverse spiritual impulses triggered the violent contradiction of Lucas Osiander , but ultimately led to the movement of German Pietism . Arndt's works have been translated into most European and many non-European languages. With Simeon Todorski's translation of the Four Books of True Christianity , published in Halle in 1735 , a history of impact in Russia that is difficult to overestimate began. After almost a decade of uncontrolled distribution in Russia, Arndt's work was banned here in 1743 due to a lack of censorship. Among others, the three later canonized bishops Tikhon von Sadonsk , Arseni Mazejewitsch and Makari Glucharew used the Russian translation of the edification book.
Fonts
- Of true Christianity , book 1. Rosen, Frankfurt am Main 1605.
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Four books of true Christianity […] . Francke, Böel, Magdeburg 1610.
- Volume: 1, digitized version and full text in the German text archive .
- Volume: 2, digitized and full text in the German text archive .
- Volume: 3, digitized and full text in the German text archive .
- Volume: 4, digitized and full text in the German Text Archive .
- Garden of paradise full of Christian virtues, such as those for the practice of true Christianity, to be planted in the soul through devout, instructive and comforting prayers . Magdeburg 1612.
- Interpretation of the whole Psalter in 451 sermons . Jena 1617.
- Postilla: That is: Interpretation and explanation of the evangelical texts / so throughout the year on Sundays and celebrations / also on the days of the Apostles are preached . Jena 1616–1620 (in four parts).
From 1695 the four books , the paradise garden and other writings appeared under the title Six Books of True Christianity .
- Johann Arnd's six books on true Christianity and its paradise garden . ( Digitized version of the 1860 edition in the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Digital Library)
Remembrance day
May 11th in the evangelical name calendar .
literature
in order of appearance
- Johann Friedrich Arndt : Johann Arndt, formerly Superintendent General of the Principality of Lüneburg. A biographical attempt. Oemigke, Berlin 1838. ( digitized in the digital library Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania)
- August Wildenhahn : Johannes Arndt: A time picture from Braunschweig's church and town history. Leipzig 1847 ( archive.org ).
- Julius August Wagenmann : Arndt, Johann . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 1, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1875, pp. 548-552.
- Gustav Hammann: Arndt, Johann. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 1, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1953, ISBN 3-428-00182-6 , p. 360 f. ( Digitized version ).
- Fritz Roth : Complete evaluations of funeral sermons for genealogical and cultural-historical purposes. Self-published, Boppard / Rhein 1976, Volume 9, p. 351. (R 8630)
- Dietmar Peil: On the history of illustration of Johann Arndt's "From true Christianity" with a bibliography. In: Archives for the history of the book industry . Vol. 18 (1977), Col. 963-1066 ( epub.ub.uni-muenchen.de ).
- Martin Schmidt : Arndt, Johann. In: Theological Real Encyclopedia . 4, 1979, pp. 121-129.
- Friedrich Wilhelm Bautz : Arndt (Arnd), Johann. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 1, Bautz, Hamm 1975. 2nd, unchanged edition Hamm 1990, ISBN 3-88309-013-1 , Sp. 226-227.
- Hans Schneider : The strange Arndt. Studies on the life, work and impact of Johann Arndt. Göttingen 2006, ISBN 3-525-55833-3 [with the above statements on the probable place of birth and the course of study].
- Hans Otte , Hans Schneider (Ed.): Piety or Theology. Johann Arndt and the "Four Books of True Christianity" (= Studies on the Church History of Lower Saxony. Volume 40). V & R Unipress, Göttingen 2007, ISBN 978-3-89971-386-2 .
- Dirk Fleischer: Johann Arndt as a writer of edification. In: Ders .: Fulfilled time. Historical-theological attempts. Reken 2009, ISBN 3-9809744-5-6 , pp. 28-37.
- Stefan Reichelt: Johann Arndt's "Four Books of True Christianity" in Russia. Heralds of a modern intercultural dialogue. Evangelische Verlagsanstalt, Leipzig 2011, ISBN 978-3-374-02863-4 .
- Wolfgang Sommer: The spirituality between Lutheran orthodoxy, mysticism and Pietism using the example of Johann Arndt (1555–1621) . In: Peter Zimmerling (ed.): Handbook Evangelical Spirituality , Vol. 1: History . Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 2017, ISBN 978-3-525-56719-7 , pp. 213-238.
Individual evidence
- ^ Friedrich Wilhelm Bautz: Arndt (Arnd), Johann. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 1, Bautz, Hamm 1975. 2nd, unchanged edition Hamm 1990, ISBN 3-88309-013-1 , Sp. 226-227.
- ↑ Hans-Jürgen Hoeppke: Arndt, Johann (1555-1621) . In: Helmut Burkhardt and Uwe Swarat (ed.): Evangelical Lexicon for Theology and Congregation . tape 1 . R. Brockhaus Verlag, Wuppertal 1992, ISBN 3-417-24641-5 , p. 134 .
- ↑ However, this cannot be proven on the basis of the Wittenberg register. However, this cannot be considered impossible as the Wittenberg registers also have gaps
- ↑ Martin H. Jung: Reformation and Confessional Age (1517-1648). Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 2012 (UTB; No. 3628), p. 251.
- ^ Stefan G. Reichelt: Johann Arndts Four Books of True Christianity in Russia. An Early Chapter of West-East European Spiritual Integration In: Piety or Theology. Göttingen, 2007, pp. 315–335 dr-stefan-reichelt.de (PDF; 275 kB) Retrieved on December 27, 2010.
Web links
- Publications by and about Johann Arndt in VD 17 .
- Literature by and about Johann Arndt in the catalog of the German National Library
- Works by and about Johann Arndt in the German Digital Library
- Texts by Johann Arnd in the voice of faith
- Article Johann Arndt in the Ecumenical Lexicon of Saints
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Arndt, Johann |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German Lutheran theologian |
DATE OF BIRTH | December 27, 1555 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Ballenstedt or Edderitz |
DATE OF DEATH | May 11, 1621 |
Place of death | Celle |