Jonathan Paul

Jonathan Alexander Benjamin Paul (born May 12, 1853 in Gartz (Oder) ; † April 25, 1931 in Lauter / Saxony ) was a Protestant pastor, tent missionary, publicist and songwriter.

Life and accomplishments

Paul came from a conservative family and was the son of a pastor. In his parents' house, Paul made the acquaintance of the revival preacher Gustav Knak , who also influenced him. Paul attended the Marienstiftsgymnasium in Stettin , after which he studied theology at the University of Greifswald and the University of Leipzig .

After completing his studies, Paul was first rector and pastor in the Kirchsprengel Nörenberg in Pomerania . In 1889 he was transferred to Ravenstein in Pomerania as a pastor . There he made the acquaintance of Johannes Knak , the son of Gustav Knak . On June 17th, 1890 Paul experienced his "revival". He referred to this experience of sanctification as baptism of the spirit , a term that was already used in the Anglo-Saxon sanctification movement . Theologically, however, Paul seems to have been more influenced by Gerhard Tersteegen and thus by Pietism . In his main work "You will receive the power of the Holy Spirit" he systematically presented his understanding of the baptism of the Spirit. In it he describes in three stages how the believer appropriates the salvation accomplished in Christ. With his experience, Paul consciously placed himself in the tradition of Dwight Lyman Moody and Charles Grandison Finney . In contrast to these, however, he did not understand it as an experience to be distinguished from rebirth, but as an umbrella term in which all experience of the spirit in the life of the believer is summarized. As pastor of Ravenstein, Paul founded the magazine Die Heiligung at that time and published it until 1919.

In 1899 Paul began his evangelistic travel service and moved to Berlin-Steglitz in connection with this. As an evangelist he was a sought-after speaker in mission tents or at large faith conferences. Through his frequent stays in Mülheim an der Ruhr , Paul was involved in a significant spiritual revival movement . With Jakob Vetter , another evangelist from the German Tent Mission, we worked together and became friends. Paul supported Vetter in his work and also became a pioneer of the German tent mission .

Through his ministry a number of Christian organizations emerged, such as the professional missions Conference of Christian Railway Workers and the Association of Believing Merchants and Manufacturers . For several years he was chairman of the EC association and member of the board of the Gnadau community association . Pastor Paul resigned this responsibility after the 1909 Berlin Declaration was published.

In the Berlin Declaration, which was made on a private initiative, Paul was attacked by numerous representatives of the Gnadau community association for his teaching of the pure heart . They interpreted Paul's utterances as if it were already possible for those "born again in the spirit" to attain sinlessness in this life. Paul himself felt misunderstood. That is why he notes in his magazine Die Heiligung of September 1919: "That is why I would like to request that what has been said not be accepted as a teaching, but as what it is, a testimony of what Jesus' death and resurrection brought me Has."

Still, the effect of this very personal statement was problematic. If Paul had meant it as a report of his individual experience, precisely because of its written publication and the widespread dissemination that went with it, it was felt to be a dogma that could not be followed.

Over the years, Paul himself felt this problem and corrected misleading statements. The so-called "Paulian doctrine" had meanwhile become a concept through the Berlin declaration. This teaching, Paul was accused of, had contributed to "such a deplorable rift in the church of God". This accusation hurt Paul deeply. Throughout his life he tried to overcome the rift that had arisen and refused institutionalizing processes for the "German Pentecostal Movement" which was constituted after the Berlin Declaration.

But it was not until 1996 that the first bridges between the community movement (Gnadauer Verband) and the Pentecostal movement were built in the Kassel Declaration . Since the joint declaration of the Evangelical Gnadau Community Association and the Mülheim Association of Free Church Evangelical Congregations on the "Berlin Declaration" of 1909 in January 2009, the conflict has been resolved.

The Christian Community Association Mülheim / Ruhr , founded by Paul in 1913, suffered for many decades from Paul's rejection. It was only in the last years of the twentieth century that he was able to step out of the "condemnation" he felt. In 1998 the association formulated its new self -image as an evangelical-charismatic free church and underpinned this with a new name. This association is now called the Mülheim Association of Free Church Evangelical Congregations .

In 1919 Paul stopped the publication of the magazine The Sanctification and founded the song of the lamb as a successor . This was published ten years and was replaced by the periodical Heilzeugnisse in 1929 . Paul looked after this magazine until the end of his life.

Jonathan Paul died at the age of 77 on April 25, 1931 in Lauter, Saxony.

Works

• In Jesus' hands. Contributions to Exodus 15:26. Missionsbuchhandlung, Niedenstein 1990, ISBN 3-923649-19-3 .
• Already blessed here. A guide to true happiness. Mission bookstore , Niedenstein 1991, ISBN 3-923649-17-7 .
• How do you come to rest? A guide from justification to sanctification. Missionsbuchhandlung, Niedenstein 1990, ISBN 3-923649-18-5 .
• A full Pentecost. Publishing house for resolute Christianity, Basel 1904 (1933 in the 9th edition)
• You will receive the power of the Holy Spirit. A testimony of baptism with the Holy Spirit and fire. Verlag der Zeltmission Berlin-Steglitz, 1923, published by Heinrich Vietheer.
• Baptism in its full sense. A testimony of the unity of the children of God in the building up of the body of Christ. Mission Society, Mülheim an der Ruhr 1930.

literature

• Paul Fleisch: The history of the Pentecostal movement in Germany. Francke, Marburg / Lahn 1983, ISBN 3-88224-287-6 .
• Paul Fleisch: The Sanctification Movement . Brunnen-Verlag, Giessen 2003, ISBN 3-7655-9479-2 .
• Ernst Giese: Jonathan Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ. Life and work. Mission bookshop, Altdorf 1965.
• Christian Krust: 50 years of the German Pentecostal movement in the Mülheim direction. Mission bookshop, Altdorf 1958.

Footnotes

1. ↑ http://www.ead.de/nachrichten/nachrichten/einzelansicht/browse/1/article/gemeinsame-erklaerung-des-evangelischen-gnadauer-gemeinschaftsverbandes-und-des-muelheimer-verbandes.html?tx_ttnews