Als Philipp Jacob Spener (1635-1705) im Jahr 1666 sein Amt als Pfarrer und Senior des Pfarrkollegiums in Frankfurt antrat, brachte er kaum pfarramtliche Erfahrungen mit, wohl aber eine gediegene religiöse und theologische Bildung. Die versetzte ihn in den Stand, die geistige Lage des Christentums in Deutschland freimütig zu diagnostizieren und praktizierbare Vorschläge zu machen, wie dem geistlichen Niedergang begegnet werden könnte. Darin liegen die Anfänge des Pietismus, und in ihnen treten zugleich die treibenden Kräfte hervor, die den Pietismus zu einer großartigen religiösen und kulturellen Erneuerungsbewegung weit über die deutschen Länder hinaus werden ließen. Es ist die besondere Leistung Speners, dass er die wissenschaftlichen Entwicklungen seiner Zeit wahrgenommen, in ihrer Relevanz gewürdigt und daraus für Theologie und Kirche die notwendigen Schlüsse gezogen hat. Die hier vorgelegte Auswahl von zum Teil erstmals aus dem Lateinischen übersetzten Briefen präsentiert direkte Zeugnisse dieser spannenden Phase der Herausbildung des Pietismus.
[The Beginnings of the Pietism in his Letters]
In 1666, when Philipp Jacob Spener (1635-1705) assumed office as pastor and senior of the Frankfurt ministerial, he had no parish experience. What he did bring was a thorough religious and theological education. This put him in a position to offer a candid diagnosis of the spiritual condition of Christianity in Germany and to offer practical suggestions for confronting its decline. This marked the beginning of Pietism, and the emergence of forces which would make Pietism into an extraordinary movement of religious and cultural renewal far beyond German borders. It was Spener's singular achievement that he not only was aware of the scholarly developments of his time, but that he assessed their relevance for academic theology and for the life of the church. This selection of Spener's Latin letters, some of them translated for the first time, provides firsthand accounts of this crucial period in the formation of Pietism.
[The Beginnings of the Pietism in his Letters]
In 1666, when Philipp Jacob Spener (1635-1705) assumed office as pastor and senior of the Frankfurt ministerial, he had no parish experience. What he did bring was a thorough religious and theological education. This put him in a position to offer a candid diagnosis of the spiritual condition of Christianity in Germany and to offer practical suggestions for confronting its decline. This marked the beginning of Pietism, and the emergence of forces which would make Pietism into an extraordinary movement of religious and cultural renewal far beyond German borders. It was Spener's singular achievement that he not only was aware of the scholarly developments of his time, but that he assessed their relevance for academic theology and for the life of the church. This selection of Spener's Latin letters, some of them translated for the first time, provides firsthand accounts of this crucial period in the formation of Pietism.