Nikolai Frederik Severin Grundtvig

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NFS Grundtvig. Photograph August 1872

Nikolai Frederik Severin Grundtvig [ ˈgʀondviːʔ ] (born September 8, 1783 in Udby ( Zealand ); † September 2, 1872 in Copenhagen ) - also known as N. F. S. Grundtvig or just Grundtvig - was a Danish writer , poet , philosopher , historian , pastor , Educator and politician .

family

Frederik Grundtvig was the youngest son of five children of pastor Johan Grundtvig († 1813) and his wife Cathrine Grundtvig, b. Bang. Grundtvig's mother was a descendant of the old Danish Bang family. His uncle FL Bang, a brother of his mother and a medic in Copenhagen, was the stepfather of Jakob Peter Mynster , who was Bishop of Zealand from 1834-1854 . Henrik Steffens (1773-1845) came from a marriage of his mother's sister .

On August 12, 1818 - after a seven-year engagement - Grundtvig and Elisabeth Blicher married († January 1851). The sons Johan Grundtvig and Svend Grundtvig (1824-1883) came from this marriage . After the death of his first wife, Grundtvig concluded his second marriage on October 25, 1851 with Marie Toft († 1854), widow of a landowner on Zealand. Grundtvig's love song Hvad er det, min Marie ( What is that, my Marie? ) Belongs to the Danish songs . In his third marriage, Grundtvig was married to Asta Reedz since April 14, 1858. His third wife belonged to the Copenhagen nobility. Because of his age of 75 years, there was public discussion about the marriage.

Life

From 1792 to 1798 Grundtvig received private lessons from Pastor Laurits Feld in Tyregod near Vejle ( Jutland ). Then he attended the Latin school in Aarhus until 1800 . From 1800 Grundtvig studied theology at the University of Copenhagen , where the theologian Friedrich Münter and his ten years older cousin, the philosopher Henrik Steffens, taught. He heard lectures from Steffens in 1802/03. Grundtvig finished his studies in 1803 with the first theological exam . He then returned to Udby. From 1805 to 1807 he was a private tutor on the Egeløkke estate ( Langeland ). There he fell unhappily in love with the landlady Constance Steensen de Leth, which is reminiscent of Goethe's suffering of young Werther . From 1807 to 1811 Grundtvig was a history teacher at the Schouboeske Institute. This is where his first poems and early works on Nordic mythology were written.

In the sermon on the occasion of his ordination on May 29, 1810, Grundtvig spoke out against rationalism , in which, in his opinion, the word of God was not properly proclaimed. In the following years he represented a biblical and consciously Lutheran theology. After his ordination he worked in his hometown Udby as an assistant pastor until 1813. After his father's death he applied in vain to succeed him as pastor. Grundtvig went to Copenhagen , where he still preached, but it was here that his activities as a poet increasingly began . In the Frederiksberg Church on December 26, 1815, Grundtvig declared that after this Christmas sermon he would no longer preach. From 1816 to 1819 his monthly magazine Danne-Virke appeared , in the four volumes of which Grundtvig was able to publish his own articles on the subjects of reason and revelation as well as on the role of the imagination in art and poetry . Furthermore, his poems and essays about church , state and school appeared .

From 1821 to 1822 he was a pastor in Præstø . From 1822 until his resignation in 1826, Grundtvig was pastor at the Church of the Redeemer in Copenhagen. During this time he attached great importance to the creed , the sacraments and the ancient church tradition, i.e. dogma .

Grundtvig traveled to England in the years 1829, 1830 to 1831 and 1843 . He was interested in old Anglo-Saxon manuscripts . The study trips - King Frederik VI. campaigned for funding - influenced Grundtvig's church thinking in the direction of the Enlightenment . At the same time, the trips had an influence on his educational ideas.

In 1832 Grundtvig received government permission to preach in Copenhagen's Christian Church. The year marked his turn to enlightenment . In the opinion of the biographer Kaj Thaning, his basic problem was the question of the relationship between Christian life and human life . From then on, this manifested itself in Grundtvig's principle: Menneske først og kristen så - first human and then Christian. He became more and more interested in humanism .

On June 9, 1839, Grundtvig was given the parish office at Vartovhospital in Copenhagen, where he preached until his death in 1872. Grundtvig was considered rehabilitated after the scandal of 1826 (see section Theological Work). Queen Caroline Amalie was one of his parishes . His collection of psalms, Festsalmer , became the church's hymn book. It was from there that Basic Vitianism began , which changed the spiritual life of Denmark. Today the Grundtvig library is located here.

After the March Revolution in Denmark in 1848, the non-party Grundtvig began his political career. He was considered extremely liberal, campaigned for religious freedom and was one of the few men of his time who supported the incipient women's movement . In 1849 and 1855 Grundtvig fought for freedom of school in Denmark.

Theological work

NFS Grundtvig, the theologian (1843). Painting by Christian Albrecht Jensen

In worldview, he changed from a conservative Lutheran to a reformer . He was of the opinion: Menneske først - kristen så = first man - then Christian . The Danish internet project Grundtvig på Nettet (German: Grundtvig on the Net ) has set itself the task of deciphering its 600 sermons, which have been preserved in manuscripts, and then publishing them (mostly for the first time).

Johann Gottfried von Herder influenced Grundtvig's thinking. As a critic and opponent of his theological view - he campaigned for a renewal of Lutheranism against the rationalism that dominated his time - apply:

In his 1826 pamphlet Kirkens Genmæle (Reply of the Church) he reacted to Clausen's writing Constitution, Doctrine and Rite of Catholicism and Protestantism , which had appeared in 1825. Reported by Clausen for insulting , Grundtvig renounced his pastoral office in 1826. In addition, he was sentenced to a fine on October 30, 1826 and placed under lifelong censorship , which was lifted again in 1837.

In 1837 his Sang-Værk til den danske Kirke , his songbook for the Danish church, was published. It comprises 400 of the total of 1,500 Grundtvig psalms. In 1860 the long poem Christenhedens Syvstjerne , the seven stars of Christianity, based on the seven congregations in the Revelation of John appeared . Six major churches appear in the poem : the Jewish (the Christians from Judaism), the Greek, the Roman, the English, the German and the Nordic. Which should be the seventh remained his secret. In 1861 - fifty years after his ordination - Grundtvig was appointed Bishop of Zealand by King Frederik VII in recognition of his life's work . He was thus nominally primate of the Danish Church.

Act as a poet

NFS Grundtvig, the poet (1820)

Grundtvig specialized in senior Scandinavian and English studies . At the same time he broke with the then predominant style of Romanticism . In his journal Danne-Virke , numerous poems appeared from 1816 to 1819 , alongside philosophical and theological essays .

In 1824 his greatest poetic single work, Nyaars-Morgen ( New Year's Morning ) appeared. It is a large, autobiographical , prophetic poem that expresses his personal development and his great hope for the future of Scandinavia in ten songs . The imagery of the work is based on the seasons and times of day, the contrast between light and darkness, warmth and cold, life and death.

Grundtvig's efforts in Nordic philology led to a friendship with the Faroese linguist VU Hammershaimb , who developed the New Faroese written language . Grundtvig's influence is seen as formative here. He was in constant correspondence with Hammershaimb until his death in 1883. Grundtvig's son Svend Grundtvig continued his father's work and became the editor of the Faroese ballads .

Working as a historian

Grundtvigs Udsigt over Verdens-Krøniken was published in 1812, 1814 and 1817 . It is a view of world history in which he combines his three areas of interest, history , poetry and theology, in one work and describes the interrelationships between the three disciplines.

From 1815 to 1821 Grundtvig translated some volumes of the Chronicle Gesta Danorum by the Danish clergyman Saxo and works by Snorre . Beowulf was added in 1820 .

In 1832 Nordens Mythologi eller Sindbilled-Sprog - Historisk-Poetisk udviklet og oplyst af NFS Grundtvig ( Mythology of the North ) appeared. In the work, Grundtvig created a combination of poetry and history.

In 1838 Grundtvig began his historical lectures , which were a series of lectures on the history of Europe . At the same time, he established his habit of beginning a lecture by singing one of his psalms, and his audience spontaneously started singing the psalm Kommer hid, I piger smaa ( Come here, you little girls ). The tradition is maintained at the Danish adult education centers to this day.

On his initiative, the Grundtvig Dolmen, later named after him, was placed under protection as one of the first prehistoric monuments in Denmark.

The popular pedagogue

The non-state adult education centers founded by Grundtvig in Denmark, the so-called folkehøjskoler , have become internationally known . In 1844 Grundtvig opened the first European folk high school in Rødding , which was relocated to Askov in 1865 as a result of the German-Danish War . Ryslinge Højskole on the island of Funen followed in 1851, followed by Marielyst højskole in Hillerød (today Grundtvigs Højskole ) in 1856 . With these foundations an alternative to the state education system should be created.

His pedagogical concept was the living word between teacher and student. There are no grades in Grundtvig schools. It is not the teachers who are lecturing material, but rather they are learning by asking the students. All from the point of view of enlightenment. Grundtvig wanted the school of life , lifelong learning for everyone involved. The theory of the Grundtvig school is not written down in a compact canon. Rather, it is primarily passed on orally and above all through practice.

This alternative school idea spread worldwide, but especially in Scandinavia. In Norway and Sweden, the Folkehøgskole and Folkhögskola are part of the state education system. The common life and learning of young adults for several months is a connecting element.

Today Grundtvig is the namesake of an EU program of the same name, which is dedicated to the idea of lifelong learning under the Socrates program . The Grundtvig programs seek to develop European cooperation in the field of adult education.

The politician

In the 19th century, N. F. S. Grundtvig was an important Danish politician. Initially a staunch monarchist and against the liberalism of the pro-German Danish bourgeoisie , he nevertheless took part in the bourgeois revolution of 1848. He became a member of the Danish National Assembly , which passed the first constitution of the kingdom and thus established the constitutional monarchy .

As a non-party, he campaigned for freedom of religion and freedom of school, as well as for the burgeoning women's movement . His thirst for freedom manifested itself in an extremely liberal attitude.

From 1850 to 1858 he was a member of the Danish Reichstag . In 1866, after the debacle of the Düppeler Schanzen , he experienced a late comeback at the age of 83 and distinguished himself as the leader of the left opposition .

The philosopher

N. F. S Grundtvig was inspired by the idea of popular enlightenment . He represented an emancipatory view that, after the national trauma of 1864 ( German-Danish War ) , found itself in a national position that can be paraphrased with the words: What was lost outside must be regained within . He saw the national crisis in Denmark as an opportunity to find a national identity.

Popular thinking

Grundtvig believed the Danish people were chosen and traced the origins of the Danish people back to the Old Testament tribes . In doing so, he uses a Gothic-Nordic tradition of interpretation . He himself calls his methodology a historical science, the vidskab . With it, the history of the world , salvation and one's own life are interpreted and paralleled. In the place of empiricism, Grundtvig put “an aesthetic theory of perception” and legitimized his findings by means of mythical traditions. According to Inga Meincke, Grundtvig sees himself in “an unbroken tradition with the visionary skalds of the Edda ..., approving of the necessary ability for Nordic historical perception in an exclusive way. By naming God as his witness to the truth, he develops a legitimation strategy in which his own life becomes the object on which Grundtvig prefers to practice his historical-poetic science. Nonetheless, Grundtvig does not feel obliged to the exactness of his autobiographical writings, the symbolic character of his life only reveals itself through the processing. "(Alexandra Bänsch)

Grundtvig countered the Age of Enlightenment with his concept of folkness ( Folkelighed ). He understood the French Revolution as a crisis of Christianity. On the other hand, Danishism does not need any politics; enlightened absolutism is the appropriate form of government. However, Grundtvig was later a staunch supporter of democracy and worked on the first Danish constitution of 1849. Enlightenment , on the other hand, can be gained through historical-poetic science, whose prophet Grundtvig presented himself as. Grundtvig's ideas of world history and world judgment were determined by the image of the crisis. This crisis stands between the past Golden Age ( Guldalder ) and the upcoming Gylden-Aar (Güldenjahr). In order to overcome the crisis, the Danish people must " prove their folkelighed [= nationality]", for which Grundtvig added that of the community of conviction to the concept of the community of origin. As a Dane man is already ennobled by his ancestry, but in spirit an individual can only belong to the Danish nation through a confession.

Political reception

The Grundtvigianism , though no political direction by itself, is traditionally associated in Denmark with a free, democratic and Christian existentialist default, their representatives find themselves in all parties, with one but not necessarily emphasizing the same aspects. Grundtvig's ideals of popular education have traditionally been emphasized by the Venstre and Radikalische Venstre parties . Overall, Grundtvigianism was and is a source of inspiration for politicians from Venstre, Conservative People's Party , Radical Venstre, partly from Social Democracy , Socialist People's Party and in recent years also from the Danish People's Party , as well as for EU supporters and EU opponents, although interpreted differently .

Grundtvig's concept of nationality is taken up by right-wing extremist theorists, especially the New Right , and associated with expressions of völkisch thought . In Germany, the national revolutionary magazine Wir sich , magazine for national identity, and its successor Volkslust attempted to incorporate Grundtvig's vocabulary and ideologems in order to connect to ethnic ideologies and make them “socially acceptable”.

Publications

  • Grundtvig's overview of the world chronicle, especially the Lutheran period . From the Danish, after the 1817 edition, translated by Dr. Volkmann. Reviewed and accompanied by some comments by AG Rudelbach. J. Ph. Raw's bookstore. Nuremberg 1837
  • Of true Christianity. As an antidote to Dr. Karl Gottl. Bretschneider's "religious doctrine of faith based on reason and revelation for thinking readers" . From the Danish transl. by Emil Francke. Gebauer, Leipzig 1844
  • Salmer and aandelige Sange . (Grundtvig's hymn book for the Danish church). Karl Schönbergs Forlag, Copenhagen Vol. 1–2 1873, Vol. 3–4 1873-1875
  • Nyaars morning . Det Schönbergske Forlag, Copenhagen 1925

Translations

  • Saxo Grammaticus. Danmarks Riges Krönike . 13 volumes with illustrations by Gudmund Hentze. Forlaget Danmark, Copenhagen 1924

Recent selection editions

  • Johannes Knudsen: Selected Writings. Fortress, Philadelphia 1976, ISBN 0-8006-1238-8
  • What Constitutes Authentic Christianity? Fortress, Philadelphia 1985, ISBN 0-8006-1844-0
  • Max Lawson: Selected educational writings. The International People's College, Elsinore 1991, ISBN 87-88735-08-7
  • Niels Lyhne Jensen: A Grundtvig Anthology. Selections from the Writings. James Clarke & Co., Cambridge 2000, ISBN 0-227-67885-0
  • Knud Eyvin Bugge, Flemming Lundgreen-Nielsen, Theodor Jorgensen (eds.): NFS Grundtvig: Writings in selection . Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 2010, ISBN 978-3-525-56002-0

Remembrance day

literature

  • Arthur Macdonald Allchin: NCCR Grundtvig. An Introduction to his Life and Work. Århus University Press, Århus 1997, ISBN 87-7288-656-0
  • Friedrich Wilhelm Bautz :  Grundtvig, Nikolai Frederik Severin. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 2, Bautz, Hamm 1990, ISBN 3-88309-032-8 , Sp. 373-375.  ( Article / beginning of article in Internet archive )
  • Poul Dam: Nikolaj Frederik Severin Grundtvig (1783–1872) - the herald and awakening… . Royal Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Copenhagen 1983, ISBN 87-87-646-10-2
  • Bernd Henningsen: The politics of the individual. Studies on the genesis of Scandinavian civil theology: Ludvig Holberg, Søren Kierkegaard, NFS Grundtvig. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 1977, ISBN 3-525-87481-2
  • Hal Koch: Grundtvig. Life and work . Translated from Danish by H. Winkler et al. Victor Schmitz. Gustav Kiepenheuer, Cologne a. Berlin, 1951
  • Inga Meincke: Vox viva - The "true enlightenment" of the Dane Nikolaj Frederik Severin Grundtvig. Winter, Heidelberg 2000, ISBN 3-8253-1045-0
  • Fritz Paul :  Grundtvig, Nikolai. In: Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde (RGA). 2nd Edition. Volume 13, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin / New York 1999, ISBN 3-11-016315-2 , pp. 122–126.
  • Paul Röhrig (Ed.): For the sake of man. Grundtvig's spiritual legacy as a challenge for adult education, school, church and social life. Deutscher Studien-Verlag, Weinheim 1991, ISBN 3-89271-252-2
  • Kaj Thanning: The Dane NFS Grundtvig . Translated from Danish by Eberhard Harbsmeier. Det Danks Selskab, Copenhagen 1972, ISBN 87-7429-0088
  • Christian Thodberg, Anders Pontoppidan Thyssen (ed.): NFS Grundtvig - Tradition and Renewal. Grundtvig's visions of people, people, education and the church, and their significance for the present. Det Danske Selskab, Copenhagen 1983, ISBN 87-7429-049-5 .
  • Norbert Vogel (Ed.): Heimvolkshochschule as a place of learning , Schöningh, Paderborn 1983 (further training, volume 11), ISBN 3-506-79651-8 .
  • Norbert Vogel: Grundtvig's importance for German adult education. A contribution to the history of education , Klinkhardt, Bad Heilbrunn 1994, ISBN 3-7815-0757-2 .

Web links

Commons : Nikolaj Frederik Severin Grundtvig  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Hal Koch: Grundtvig. Life and work . Translated from Danish by H. Winkler et al. Victor Schmitz. Gustav Kiepenheuer, Cologne a. Berlin, 1951, pp. 15-25.
  2. ^ Kaj Thanning: The Dane NFS Grundtvig . Det Danske Selskab, Copenhagen 1972, p. 40.
  3. ↑ Hal Koch: Grundtvig. Life and work . Translated from Danish by H. Winkler et al. Victor Schmitz. Gustav Kiepenheuer, Cologne a. Berlin, 1951, p. 86.
  4. ↑ Home adult education center Leck (Ed.): 50 years HVHS Leck 1923-1973 . Leck 1973, p. 14.
  5. ↑ Alexandra Bänsch, review of Inga Meincke: Vox viva
  6. ↑ Quote: Alexandra Bänsch, review of Inga Meincke: Vox viva. The "true enlightenment" of the Dane Nikolaj Frederik Severin Grundtvig. (Scandinavian works, Volume 17) Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag C. Winter 2000. [1]
  7. ↑ Quote: Alexandra Bänsch, review of Inga Meincke: Vox viva. The "true enlightenment" of the Dane Nikolaj Frederik Severin Grundtvig. (Scandinavian works, Volume 17) Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag C. Winter 2000. [2] .
  8. ^ Clemens Heni: German pleasure. In: click to the right
  9. ^ NFS Grundtvig in the Ecumenical Lexicon of Saints
personal data
SURNAME Grundtvig, Nikolai Frederik Severin
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Grundtvig, Nicolaj Frederik Severin; Grundtvig, NFS
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Danish writer, theologian, patriot and politician, member of the Folketing
DATE OF BIRTH September 8, 1783
PLACE OF BIRTH Udby (Zealand)
DATE OF DEATH September 2, 1872
Place of death Copenhagen