Background
Philipp Spener was born on January 23, 1635 at Rappoltsweiler in Upper Alsace.
( This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923....)
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ++++ The below data was compiled from various identification fields in the bibliographic record of this title. This data is provided as an additional tool in helping to ensure edition identification: ++++ Jumalan Lasten Autuudesta Armon Ja Kunnian Waltakunnassa: Kuudessa Saarnassa. Suomentanut Karl Enebäck Philipp Jakob Spener Granlund, 1869
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Philipp Spener was born on January 23, 1635 at Rappoltsweiler in Upper Alsace.
His first university experience began at Strassburg, where he studied history, philosophy, philology, and theology from 1651 to 1659.
He then continued his studies at Basel, Tübingen, and Geneva. At Geneva he became familiar with Reformed teachings and, although a Lutheran, seems to have been much impressed with them.
In 1663 Philipp Jakob Spener returned to Strassburg, where he was made an assistant preacher. Three years later he was called to Frankfurt am Main to become the senior pastor of the Lutheran church. In this position Spener attempted to raise the level of the religious life of the congregation by meaningful reforms. He strengthened Church discipline, emphasized training of the young and use of the catechism, and established the practice of confirmation.
In order to aid in the program of spiritual reformation, Spener arranged small gatherings of interested churchgoers in private houses for cultivation of Christian life by study of the Bible, prayer, and discussion of Sunday sermons. From the name of these groups, the collegia pietatis, is derived the name of this movement for the restoration of a spiritualized Christian faith—namely, Pietism. While in Frankfurt, Spener also provided the theoretical foundation for the Pietist movement in his book Pia desideria. In this work, published in 1675, he spelled out some measures which he considered important for the improvement of the life of the Church. These included use of prayer instead of arguments to settle religious differences, Bible study, improved education of theologians, more stress on a personal and practical Christianity, meaningful and practical sermons instead of learned declamations, and more control of the Church by the congregation instead of ministers and princes.
Spener's criticism of the established Lutheran Church led to much opposition from Church and state officials, who accused him of being untrue to Lutheran doctrines. As a result, in 1686, Spener accepted the invitation of the elector of Saxony to become the chief court chaplain at Dresden, then a very important position in German Lutheranism. Spener soon found himself in conflict with the clergy in Saxony, the theological faculties at Leipzig and Wittenberg, and the elector himself. Consequently, Spener gladly accepted an invitation to become provost of the Church of St. Nicholas in Berlin in 1691. Here he was soundly supported by Elector Frederick III of Brandenburg-Prussia and, as a result, exercised much influence over Church conditions. Because of his ascendancy, the new University of Halle, founded by the elector in 1694, became the cultural center of Pietism. Although his later years were marred by bitter controversies with his opponents, he continued to preach conscientiously until his death.
( This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923....)
At Geneva he became familiar with Reformed teachings and, although a Lutheran, seems to have been much impressed with them.