Listové do nebe

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Title page of the first edition, 1619.

Listové do nebe (German: letters to heaven ) is an early social theological work by Johann Amos Comenius .

The long full title in the translation by F. Slaměník reads: “Letters to Heaven, in which the poor and rich bring complaints and grievances against one another before Christ and ask for a decision; including the answers given to both parties, as well as the adjournment of the verdict until the future final general, fairest court and a clear decision between the parties. "

The young Comenius was called in 1618 as a clergyman and teacher in the Brethren in Fulnek on the Moravian - Silesian border. With the short text Letters to Heaven , written in the same year, he responded to the deep social contradictions of the society of the time, with which he was confronted as a pastor . The population consisted on the one hand of a high proportion of completely destitute serfs , whose situation worsened due to wars, crop failures and epidemics. On the other side stood the wealthy upper class, the nobles and merchants. Comenius tries to find the right Christian attitude to this social inequality for himself and for his community. It is the old philosophical-theological question of theodicy : Why does the benevolent, just and omnipotent God allow evil in the world he created and ruled by him, why is there so much injustice and suffering.

content

Scripture is in the form of five letters, they contain a dispute “between heaven and earth”: between the poor and rich on the one hand and Christ on the other. The literary form of argument was popular in the Middle Ages . Comenius was probably inspired by letters to Kronos by the Greek satirist Lukian of Samosata , whose Latin translation he knew by Erasmus of Rotterdam , and by the script Rozmlouvání aneb hádání chudého člověka s bohatým (The poor man's dispute with the rich man) by Bartosz Paprocki .

In the first letter (First Letter of the Poor People to the Lord Christ) the poor make a complaint to Christ. They complain against the ruthlessness of the rich, against the unjust treatment and lack of rights. They point to the unequal distribution of goods: ... that is certainly not right, that those have an abundance, even an abundance of earthly things, whereas we should suffer hardship ... Some of them have full bars and pantries, so that Supplies to be eaten by the mice; we on the other hand die of hunger. They also complain of contempt, for the rich look at the poor for tatters of feet , which they rub their feet on at will. Often times they respect their dog more than a poor person. Before God all men are equal: Didn't you create us all, you our only creator? Created in your own image? Have you not ordered us all to be masters of the work of your hands and to do housework in it? Didn't you die for all of us? ... So where did such inequality among us humans come from?

In the second letter (answer of the Lord Jesus Christ to the petition of the poor people) Christ answers that he knows their needs, but that there can be no equality between people. In terms of eternal values, poverty is more of an advantage, the rich are in reality not happy. But Christ promises to help the poor.

In the third letter, Christ addresses the rich. He refers to the complaints of the poor, confirms the justification of their complaints and clearly takes their side. He says: I see and judge what is happening; and witness to it are the tears of my arms that I keep in bottles. The real injustice, however, does not lie in social inequality, but in the arrogance and mercilessness of the rich. Therefore I deign to order you strictly: Do not oppress my arms. Be compassionate; do not burden them with anything more than cheap ...

In the fourth letter, the rich respond to Christ's reproaches. In their opinion, it is not they who are to blame for the social misery, but the poor themselves ... because they usually find themselves in misery and misery through their own guilt, through their gnawing, dining, games, idleness and profligacy; but for others ... their laziness is the only reason that they do not earn anything either. The really needy would be supported by the rich.

In the final fifth letter (Jesus Christ's Public Response) , Christ says he knows the misery in the world. The final decision on this dispute will not be made until the Last Judgment . All people should prepare for this, because then everyone will be rewarded for their works. In the meantime, both sides are exhorted to peace.

meaning

Comenius does not question the class differences of medieval feudal society; they are for him given by God. There cannot be an equal distribution of goods desired by the poor: ... you should know that the first traditional rule should remain and that such a distribution is currently not being done. It is justified with the differences that also exist in nature: Are all trees of the same growth? Do they have the same size of leaves? Do they all bear the same fruit? The poor should accept the class assigned to them: Does the clay also say to the potter: Why do you treat me like that? Why did you make this out of me and not that?

Nevertheless, Comenius's sympathies are clearly on the side of the poor. This becomes clear in the harsh words of Christ in the letter to the rich: And that is why I fully want that you, administering mine, rule according to my will; otherwise I will become a fierce investigator and avenger of injustice ... Man, you are insane when you rise above a person, you are insane and run to your destruction. You are all my servants and I could use the usual expression “serfs” with you, with whom I can do as I please. ... I urge you rich people to reflect and not load my anger on you.

With his writing, Comenius clearly illuminates the deep social tensions of his time. In doing so, he rejects both the Calvinist justification of wealth and success as the visible signs of God's grace and the demand made by the radical Hussites and Anabaptists for equality for all people. He also does not share the fundamental rejection of class differences, which Petr Chelčický , the spiritual father of the Bohemian Brethren, represented in his writings ( The Network of Faith , About Three People ), and which shaped the first generations of the Brethren.

The letters to heaven clearly show the chiliasm of Comenius. He is convinced that the second coming of Christ is imminent, then Christ himself will put an end to the need. The scriptures end with Christ's promise: Yes, I will come soon ..., followed by the answer of the church: Yes, come, Lord Jesus!

It is one of the first works by Comenius and is included in his so-called consolation writings. He wrote it in Fulnek in 1618, it was first printed in Olomouc in 1619 , and Franz Slaměník published a German translation under the title Letters to Heaven in 1911.

Remarks

  1. ↑ Looking back on his situation at that time, Comenius writes: When I ... became a pastor and was compelled to discuss matters and incidents of conscience, I wrote the booklet "Letters to Heaven". In: Letter to Peter van den Berge (1661), quoted from: Jan Amos Komenský: The labyrinth of the world and other writings . Ed .: Ilse Seehase. Reclam, Leipzig 1984, p. 213 .
  2. ↑ Cf. ( Psalm 8,7  LUT )
  3. ↑ Cf. ( Psalm 56,9  LUT )
  4. ↑ Cf. ( Isaiah 45,9  LUT )
  5. ↑ Cf. ( Revelation 22,12,20  LUT )

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Johann Amos Comenius: Selected Works, Vol. II, 1 . Ed .: Dmitrij Tschižewskij and Klaus Schaller. Georg Olms, Hildesheim New York 1976, p. 70 .
  2. ↑ Jan Kumpera: Jan Amos Komenský, Poutník na rozhraní věků (= Johann Amos Comenius, wanderer in the upheaval of times) . Amosium Servis, Ostrava 1992, ISBN 80-85498-03-0 , p. 261-262 (Czech, 372 pp.).
  3. ^ Johann Amos Comenius: Selected Works, Vol. II, 1 . Ed .: Dmitrij Tschižewskij and Klaus Schaller. Georg Olms, Hildesheim New York 1976, p. 72 .
  4. ^ Johann Amos Comenius: Selected Works, Vol. II, 1 . Ed .: Dmitrij Tschižewskij and Klaus Schaller. Georg Olms, Hildesheim New York 1976, p. 76 .
  5. ^ Johann Amos Comenius: Selected Works, Vol. II, 1 . Ed .: Dmitrij Tschižewskij and Klaus Schaller. Georg Olms, Hildesheim New York 1976, p. 71 .
  6. ^ Johann Amos Comenius: Selected Works, Vol. II, 1 . Ed .: Dmitrij Tschižewskij and Klaus Schaller. Georg Olms, Hildesheim New York 1976, p. 84, 86 .
  7. ^ Johann Amos Comenius: Selected Works, Vol. II, 1 . Ed .: Dmitrij Tschižewskij and Klaus Schaller. Georg Olms, Hildesheim New York 1976, p. 87 .
  8. ^ Johann Amos Comenius: Selected Works, Vol. II, 1 . Ed .: Dmitrij Tschižewskij and Klaus Schaller. Georg Olms, Hildesheim New York 1976, p. 83 .
  9. ^ Johann Amos Comenius: Selected Works, Vol. II, 1 . Ed .: Dmitrij Tschižewskij and Klaus Schaller. Georg Olms, Hildesheim New York 1976, p. 79 .
  10. ^ Johann Amos Comenius: Selected Works, Vol. II, 1 . Ed .: Dmitrij Tschižewskij and Klaus Schaller. Georg Olms, Hildesheim New York 1976, p. 83-84, 85 .
  11. ^ Johann Amos Comenius: Selected Works, Vol. II, 1 . Ed .: Dmitrij Tschižewskij and Klaus Schaller. Georg Olms, Hildesheim New York 1976, p. 99 .

literature

  • Johann Amos Comenius: Selected Works Vol. II, 1 . Ed .: Dmitrij Tschižewskij and Klaus Schaller . Georg Olms, Hildesheim New York 1976, p. 68-99 . Source: Letters to Heaven by JA Comenius. German translation by Franz Slaměník . In: Zeitschrift für Brüdergeschichte Volume II , Georg Olms Verlag, Hildesheim New York 1973. Reprinted from: Zeitschrift für Brüdergeschichte V. , Herrnhut 1911, pp. 201–232.
  • ČSAV (ed.): Dílo Jana Amose Komenského - Johannis Amos Comenii opera omnia . tape 3 . Academia, Praha 1978, p. 161-184 (Czech, online ).
  • Jan Kumpera: Jan Amos Komenský, Poutník na rozhraní věků (= Johann Amos Comenius, wanderer in the upheaval of times) . Amosium Servis, Ostrava 1992, ISBN 80-85498-03-0 , p. 261-262 (Czech, 372 pp.).
  • Veit-Jakobus Dieterich: Jan Amos Comenius. With testimonials and photo documents . Rowohlt, Reinbek 2005, ISBN 3-499-50466-9 , pp. 26-30 (156 pp.).
  • Ctibor Salašovič: Komenského spisy útěšné. Bakalářská práce (= consolation writings by Comenius, bachelor thesis) . Univerzita Karlova v Praze, Husitská teologická fakulta, Praha 2014, p. 29-30, 52-56 (Czech, online ).

Web links