Angelus Silesius

Angelus Silesius (Latin for " Silesian messenger / angel " actually Johannes Scheffler, baptized December 25, 1624 in Breslau, † July 9, 1677 same place ) was a German poet, theologian and physician. His deeply religious, mysticism related epigrams are counted among the most significant lyrical works of Baroque literature.

• 3.1 poem examples

• 4.1 Poetry
• 4.2 tracts and pamphlets

Life

Youth, study, medical profession

Angelus Silesius was baptized on December 25, 1624. His father was Stanislaus Scheffler, a Polish nobleman who had to move from Krakow because of his Protestant faith to Wroclaw. Stanislaus Scheffler died in 1639, his junior by many woman Mary Magdalene Hennemann two years later. The son attended from 1639 to 1643, the St. Elisabeth -Gymnasium in Breslau, where he wrote his first opportunity Latin poems and had them printed, which were dedicated to his rhetoric and poetry teacher, Christoph Köler, friend and biographer of Martin Opitz.

In Strasbourg Angelus Silesius began in 1643 to study medicine and of constitutional law, then he went to Leiden ( 1644-1647 ) and finally to the University of Padua ( 1647), where he was in 1648 received his doctorate in philosophy and medicine. In Leiden he came in contact with the mystics and theosophists of Abraham Franckenberg. This made ​​Silesius acquainted with the works of Jakob Böhme, which Silesius designated later as the cause that he came to the knowledge of the truth, and have known the Catholic Church.

1649 Scheffler came into Oels personal physician in the service of the strict Lutheran Duke Silvius Nimrod of Württemberg - oil. As Franckenberg 1650 returned to Silesia and lived near oil which arose between the old friends to many encounters. Franckenberg died in 1652, Angelus Silesius wrote him the Ehrengedächtniß, his first poem, which is typical of his later work. In the same year he was due to Franck 's death and a dispute with the Oelser because of a court preacher not granted permission to print for a small anthology of mystic texts his post and settled as a physician in Breslau.

Fight for Catholicism

Angelus Silesius known at June 12, 1653 in the Church of St. Matthias in Breslau publicly to the Roman Catholic Church and took the name Angelus (after the Spanish mystic St. John from Angelis ). His change of confession had caused quite a stir and provoked harsh criticism from the Protestant side. So he felt compelled, in 1653 to publish a sort of apologia, the Gründtliche Vrsachen VND motifs Warumb he confesses From the Luthertumb abgetretten Vnd to the Catholischen Kyrchen.

In this document he cites as a subject of his transfer the freventliche rejection of mysticism ( Theologiae mysticae ) that the Christians had the highest wisdom. In the prevailing dogmatic Protestantism he saw idolatry of reason. The Catholic Church, which alone does not communicate with the saints in prayer, but also the personal appearance and enjoys SURFING, was the body of the Holy Spirit.

After his conversion he turned with great consistency in the service of the Counter-Reformation in Silesia, which he supported with a total of 55 very sharp and polemical pamphlets formulated against the Protestants. Even his first major polemic ( Turks font, 1663 ) earned him an accusation as a disturber of the peace. Martin Luther he called a Lucifer, who had brought only hellish darkness instead of heavenly light; the Turkish threat as a threat to the Christian West, he interpreted as divine punishment for the Lutheran heresy. The printing of his pamphlets was funded by Abbot Bernard Rose of the Cistercian abbey Grüssau.

Some of his songs, so Follow me, saith Christ, our hero or On, Christian man, on, on to dispute, the Catholics, and especially the Catholic princes in the 19th century often also interpreted as battle cries, encourage violent struggle against the Protestants should. However, the texts that call with biblical metaphors to battle against the devil, flesh and sin, as well as its broad reception in Protestant hymnals do not support this interpretation.

From 1654 Angelus Silesius held the honorary post of court physician of the emperor Ferdinand III. and was a member of the Rosary Confraternity. 1661 Angelus Silesius was ordained for the Diocese of Breslau in Neisse priest. He was known for drunken ecstasy of spectacular processions participate. The Jesuit Daniel Schwartz wrote in his funeral oration on Angelus Silesius, this was not encountered in his first pilgrimage as a private Clerc, and inferior priest, but as a

Last years

From 1664 to 1666 Angelus Silesius was seneschal of Wroclaw Prince Bishop Sebastian of Rostock. After that he lived until his death retired as a doctor for the poor and sick in the pen Matthias in Breslau. He gave away his entire fortune by and by to the poor, cared for the education of orphans and treated as a doctor free of charge indigent patients.

From 1666 Angelus Silesius be made ​​after he had retired to the monastery of St. Matthias, for the drafting of numerous polemical and theological writings, which were printed in 1677 under his real name as ecclesiologia. Angelus Silesius died after a long illness, which he had exacerbated by a strict ascetic life, and was buried in Breslau Matthias Church.

Work

1657 Angelus Silesius published his famous epigrams Witty sense and closing rhymes. Since the second to carry a sixth book increased output the title of Cherubin wanderer, usually two-line sayings in rhymed Alexandrine Formal models were, inter alia, the epigrams of Abraham by Franck Berg and Daniel Czepko. As role models and teachers of God's secret wisdom Angelus Silesius calls, inter alia, Augustine, Bernard of Clairvaux, Meister Eckhart, Mechthild of Magdeburg, John of the Cross and John Tauler.

The reference to the cherubim in the title of the poem collection refers to the traditional hierarchy of angels and indicates that the attempt to describe the mystical path to God is made here in an intellectual, mind pleasing manner. This corresponds to the pointed shape of the Alexandrian epigram, which supports an antithetical presentation and seemingly paradoxical findings and assertions with which the unsayable is to be put into words.

In Wroclaw, the Holy souls - like or appeared clergy pastoral songs (second increased to a fifth edition 1668). Most of the melodies to the songs written by the prince-bishop Breslau musician Georg Joseph. About 50 of the clergy Hirtenlieder went to the Halle Hymnal one, including Thee will I love, my strength.

The texts in this collection tend unlike the first collection to experience poetry. The intensity of religious concern enables the ego to the immediate statement. The form of the text of some rhyming quatrains to most elaborate stanzas varies the basic idea of ​​the love of the soul to its Savior. Angelus Silesius builds on the Song of Songs, in which the allegorical interpretation of love between the soul, the bride, and Christ, the Bridegroom, is described up to the mystical union. Forms and motifs of pastoral poetry be imitated and used for spiritual purposes.

Others

In Martin Scorsese's remake of Cape Fear Movie of criminal Max Cady verballhornt (played by Robert De Niro) a verse of Angelus Silesius: "I'm like God, and God is like me. I am as large as God and God is as small as I am. He can not, I do not stand over me under it! "

In his poem " The saying" takes the Expressionist poet Ernst Stadler regarding Angelus Silesius ' verse: " man is essential, because if the world goes by, the chance falls off, the creature that exists. "

After Angelus Silesius streets are named in Freiburg, Ingolstadt, Cologne and Landsberg.

Poem examples

God is nothing but good: destruction, death and pain, and what is called evil, must man be in you only. The light of the glory seems middle of the night. Who can see it? A heart has and wakes up the eyes. God dwells in a light which lacks the train. Those who do not will himself, who does not see Him forever. Hold on, where are you running out of heaven is within you: Are you looking for God elsewhere, i miss him for ever and ever. I'm as big as God, he is as I so small. He can not, I will not be about me under him.

Works

Poetry

• Bonus consiliarius. 352 German Alexandrians. Wroclaw 1642
• Krist Royal honor remembrance of the Lord of Abraham Franckenberg. 1652
• Holy souls - like or clergy pastoral songs. Founder, Wroclaw 1657 (1668 extended)
• Witty sense VND Schlussrime. Kürner, Vienna 1657 ( digitized and full text in German Text Archive )

• Sensual Description The Four Last Things. Jonisch, Schweidnitz, 1675

Tracts and pamphlets

• Gründtliche Vrsachen of motives, warumb He abgetretten From the Lutherthumb VND has confess to the Catholischen Kyrchen. Hradetzckin, Olomouc, 1653
• Tucken - Scriptures Of the causes of Türckische overdraft. 1663
• Sweeping wiping to Abkehrung the vermin with which his wolgemeynte Türckenschrifft Christianus Chemmtis wanted to make verhast. Neisse, 1664
• Christianity Scriptures by the lovely mark concerning the people of God. Neisse, 1664
• And Scheffler is still talking! That is locust Scheffler protect speech for himself and his Christianity Scriptures. Schubart, Neisse, 1664
• Come and Behold glorified with vernünfftigen eyes like Joseph and the Holy bey the Catholischen. Schubart, Neisse, 1665 ( digitized HAB )
• The Lutherans and Calvinists idol of the bare, Vernunfft shown. Schubart, Neisse, 1665
• Gülden handle Which shape all heretics be mastered by the Ungelehrtesten leichtlich can. Schubart, Neisse, 1665
• The Roman Bapsts Oberhaubtmannschaft on the gantze general Church of Christ. Schubart, Neisse, 1666
• Locust Scheffler Thorough Außführung That the Lutherans, to no more paths their faith in the Scriptures are able to show their God and a mere delusion or thing their Vernunfft sey. Schubart, Neisse, 1667
• Kurtze discussing the question whether the Lutherans in Silesia, where the Augsburg Confessions relatives awarded in Instrumento Pacis religious liberty can take comfort. Tuchscherer, Prague, 1670
• Christiani Conscientiosi missive to all Protestant universities in which he proponirt his conscience scruples. Schubart, Neisse, 1670
• Joann Scheffler Erweiß That the greatest one Hauffe the true church be; And you musse kurtzumb be issued at the Catholischen church where you wil ever Seelig. Schubart, Neisse, 1671
• JE information letter is due to the purgatory of EV In what proved insurmountable that more than Zwey places of souls after death, and a purgatory sey. Schubart, Neisse, 1672
• Hierothei Boranowsky Justified conscience forced Erweiß Or that one could force the heretics to the true faith and should. Schubart, Neisse, 1673
• Locust Scheffler Sole Him [m ] elreich That's dismissal Des harmful delusion that you want Seelig can be when one is not the same Catholisch. Schubart, Neisse, 1675
• D. J. Scheffler Vernünfftiger God's service. Schubart, Neisse, 1675
• Ecclesiologia or church - description. Collection of 39 anti-Lutheran polemics. Schubart, Grüssa, Pink, Neisse, Glatz, 1677

Werkausgaben

• Hans Ludwig Held: Angelus Silesius. All poetic works in three volumes. ( Volume 1: The story of his life and his work documents; Band 2. Youth and occasional poems Holy Seelenlust or spiritual shepherd songs of love in their Jesus Psyche [ Includes: Bonus Conciliarius and Christian honor the memory of Mr. Abraham von Frankenberg. . ]; band 3. Cherubinischer Wandersmann sensuous description of the four Last Things ) 2nd edition, Munich 1924.