Nikolaus Funk

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Nikolaus Funk, lithograph by Carl Friedrich Kroymann

Nikolaus Funk (born May 13, 1767 in Marne (Holstein) ; † January 17, 1857 in Altona ) was a Lutheran theologian and pastor in Schleswig-Holstein .

Life

Funk was the tenth child of a farmer. With the support of Pastor Petersen from Marner, after attending the school of scholars in Meldorf in 1786 , he was able to begin a three-year theology course in Kiel , which he finished with a very good exam. As early as 1790 he became adjunct in Ottensen and in 1791, before the official minimum age of 25, he became the second compastor at the main church in Altona. After the death of his colleague Johann Adrian Bolten, he became the first compastor in 1809. In 1840 he was retired. He was married twice and had a total of eight children.

Funk represents a moderate direction within theological rationalism of the early 19th century: “In F. we encounter a typical figure of the rationalist theologian of a moderate direction […]. His special devotion was to the [...] school system, poor and orphan welfare. [...] He was a conscious citizen of the entire Danish state and a loyal supporter of the ruling dynasty; he was an eulogist of Danish neutrality in the Napoleonic turmoil. ”One focus of his work was the improvement of the Altona schools and the support of the poor. Soon after taking up his duties, he was responsible for building the new orphanage, of which he was inspector until 1808. In 1801 he set up a Sunday school to train future craftsmen.

On January 28, 1810, Funk became a knight of the Dannebrog Order , and in 1826 he was honored with the golden medal of merit by the Danish king. In 1824 he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Rostock .

Works

In 1798, in connection with the dispute over the church agendas written by General Superintendent Adler , Funk wrote a frank assessment of the proceedings of the Danish government in introducing the new church agendas (Hamburg 1798). In it he emphasized the sovereign rights of the Danish king over the church.

He wrote two works about the school system, which is particularly close to his heart:

  • History and description of the orphanage, school and workhouse in Altona , Altona 1803;
  • About the connection of the school system with industrial schools , Altona 1804.

Together with Detlev Olshausen , he published eight volumes of sermons on the entire doctrine of duty (1798–1805).

He worked for the Hamburg and Altona magazine .

The Altona Bible

In 1815 Funk published the so-called Altona Bible , an annotated edition of the Luther translation , with royal privilege and the support of General Superintendent Adler . In the style of the Enlightenment historical commentary literature, he explained the biblical text in order to make the results of the historical-critical research of his time accessible to the readers in the interest of a deeper understanding of the Bible and thus, as it was said in the preface, "the reputation of the divine word, which has meanwhile sunk so deep " to lift.

Financially, the two-volume edition turned out to be a success in favor of the school for the poor and orphans, whose publisher also published the edition. But the opponents quickly formed, especially the Kiel theology professor Johann Friedrich Kleuker and the Kiel archdeacon Claus Harms , who directed some of his 95 theses against the Altona Bible . Harms also accused Funk of King Friedrich VI. to want to introduce a “new faith” and to twist the “core messages of the Bible”. Although Harms did not criticize Funk's comments himself, he found fault with the form of printing, which blurred the distinction between the biblical text and the notes. The protests led to success: the remaining edition was withdrawn from the market and a second edition was banned.

In 1823, Funk took a position against the allegations against him in a detailed defense of the history of the latest Altona biblical edition, as well as illuminating the most distinguished accusations against it. He later joined the Hamburg-Altonaische Bibelgesellschaft founded in 1814 .

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ According to GND: 1847
  2. ↑ Small encyclopedia of people on strolling in Altona
  3. ↑ Kongelig dansk hof- og statskalender. 1826. Carl Friderich Schubart, Kiobenhavn, p. 21 digitized
  4. ↑ See also the entry of Nikolaus Funk's honorary doctorate in the Rostock matriculation portal
  5. ^ Hamburg and Altona. A magazine on the history of time, customs and taste . Hamburg (Nestler) 1801-1805
  6. ↑ Johann Friedrich Kleuker: About the new Altona Bible edition and with it partly related, partly other important objects , Kiel 1818
  7. ↑ The Hamburg-Altonaische Bibelgesellschaft was the first joint institution of the free imperial city of Hamburg and the city ​​of Altona, which was part of the Duchy of Holstein . In addition to members of the Lutheran state church, the founders also included Reformed, Catholics, Moravians and Mennonites. History of the North Elbian Bible Societies (PDF; 255 kB), pp. 5–10 (accessed on January 13, 2011)
personal data
SURNAME Funk, Nikolaus
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German Lutheran theologian and pastor
DATE OF BIRTH May 13, 1767
PLACE OF BIRTH Marne (Holstein)
DATE OF DEATH January 17, 1857
Place of death Altona