Nicolaus Zinzendorf
Nikolaus Ludwig Count von Zinzendorf and Pottendorf ( born May 26, 1700 in Dresden, † May 9, 1760 in Herrnhut ) was a Lutheran Pietist theologian, founder and bishop of the Moravian Church ( " Brethren " ) and writer of many hymns.
Life
Zinzendorf was the son of Georg Ludwig Count von Zinzendorf and Pott village (1662-1700) and Charlotte Justine von Gersdorff ( 1675-1763 ). Philipp Jacob Spener was his godfather. Zinzendorf's father died young; henceforth lived Zinzendorf in Großhennersdorf in Upper Lusatia in his pious grandmother, Henriette Katharina von Gersdorff, nee Friesen. He attended from 1710 to 1715 the Pädagogium of the Francke Foundations in Halle, where he was strongly influenced in the sense of pietism. Just August Hermann Francke himself had great influence on him.
From 1716 to 1719 Zinzendorf studied law at the University of Wittenberg. He founded in 1710 by Friedrich von Watteville the Mustard Seed Order ( collection of lovers of Jesus). From 1719 to 1720 he undertook an educational trip to the Netherlands and France. There he won the friendship of people of other denominations (including Catholics ) and experienced the possibility of the confessions overarching unity among Christians.
From 1721 to 1732 he was then Court and Judicial Council in the service of Augustus the Strong in Dresden.
1722 married Dorothea Countess Zinzendorf Erdmuthe Reuss- Ebersdorf. In May of the same year he bought from his grandmother the estate Mittelberthelsdorf in Upper Lusatia. There began in June 1722 recording of religious refugees from Moravia, descendants of the ancient Bohemian- Moravian Brethren. They founded outside Berthelsdorf, which is located below the Hutberges, the settlement of Herrnhut (Sorbian Ochranow ) from which arose the independent Brethren Church (later by many refugees settled in the Bohemian- Rixdorf on ). In August 1727 saw the founding of the Moravian Church by a penitential act of the priest Johann Andreas Rothe, Zinzendorf and the whole community. From 1731 to the so-called NASB issued - determined by drawing lots Bible verses as a guiding principle for every day. The solutions are new each year to the present day - translated into many languages - issued.
1731 Zinzendorf brought a West Indian slaves from Copenhagen to Herrnhut. His reports from St. Thomas motivated the congregation to mission work. Thus began 1732, the missionary work of the Brethren with the missionaries Johann Leonhard Dober and David Nitsch man. They traveled to St. Thomas and were willing to be slaves themselves. 1735 began missionary work in North America among the Indians in Georgia and Suriname; 1737 under the Khoi Khoi in South Africa and on the Gold Coast; 1754 in Jamaica.
1734 Zinzendorf was ordained as a Lutheran theologian. The orthodoxy audit was conducted in Stralsund, the appointment of the candidate in Tübingen. 1736 there was a banishment Zinzendorf in Saxony ( final 1738). He went into the Wetterau and founded the municipalities Marie Born at Castle Ronneburg (both: 1736) and Mr Hague ( 1738). In 1737 he was ordained by the Reformed court preacher Daniel Ernst Jablonski in Berlin, who was also Bishop of the Polish Brethren, the Brethren bishop. The Polish Unity was connected by succession with the old Bohemian- Moravian whose own episcopal succession about Johann Amos Comenius also could not be continued.
In the following years took Zinzendorf travel as a preacher in the Baltic provinces, England, North America, the West Indies and Saint Thomas. In 1747 his return to Saxony was permitted and 1749 he reached for the Moravian Church the freedom of preaching and the tolerance of the community as one of the Saxon church -knit community. From 1750 Zinzendorf since 1755 lived mostly in London, then in Berthelsdorf. From London Zinzendorf sent letters to Mr. Criminal excited Hague, in which he " threatened to whip twenty to thirty people to the death " and called his son Renatus von Zinzendorf to England. Zinzendorf was deeply angry about the developments in Mr Hague and exhorted his son to reverse. After the death of his wife Dorothea Erdmuthe to which he had very little contact, Zinzendorf married some time later, his close associate Anna Nitsch man. The relationship with Anna Nitsch man he had kept secret from the death of his wife.
It is sometimes claimed that Zinzendorf had been Masons in Dresden. But This is based on an incorrect interpretation of the sources of the Dresden Masonic Lodge.
Work
Zinzendorf has sealed about 2000 hymns. Some of them are still sung today, including the song of Jesus, go ahead. The best known is probably his grace:
"Come Lord Jesus, be our guest and bless what you have graciously given us. Amen. "
The poetic musical work Zinzendorf have music producers such as Jochen Rieger and Gerhard reapers already dedicated concept productions like Jesus, go ahead, 1989 Gerth Medien, with the Schulte & Gerth Studio Choir and heart and heart united together, 2002 Haenssler publisher with the soloists.
Remembrance
May 9 in the Protestant calendar name of the Evangelical Church in Germany and in the calendar of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.