Musaus in particular, had departed in not a few things from the sound faith". § 26. These contests were succeeded, and extinguished, by what are called the Pietistic controversies. These originated from those who, undoubtedly with the best intentions, undertook to aid the cause of languishing piety, and to cure the faults both of the public teachers and of the multitude. But as often happens, these controversies were multiplied and aggravated, by various sorts of persons, whose ill-informed understanding, or heated imagination, or some wrong bias of mind, led them to excite horrible commotions in one place and another, by their singular opinions, their pretended visions, their harsh and unintelligible rules for christian conduct, and their very imprudent clamours about a total change of the form and institutions of the church. The slumbering christians, and also such as bemoaned in secret the progress of irreligion, were first aroused by Philip James Spener, an excellent minister, and very highly esteemed both for his great piety and his extensive learning; when he set up private meetings at Frankfort, for the purpose of exhorting and training the people to piety, and afterwards set forth, in a special treatise, his Pious Desires, (Pia Desideria,) that is, his views of the evils existing in our church, and their remedies. Both met the approbation of very many, who had good and upright dispositions. But as many of them did not apply these remedies for diseased souls, with sufficient caution and skill, and as those religious meetings, (or Colleges of Piety, as they were denominated, in terms borrowed from the Dutch,) enkindled in the minds of the multitude, in several places, a wild and enthusiastic spirit, rather than true love to God; several complaints were soon heard, that, under the pretence of aiding and advancing piety, solid religious knowledge was neglected, and fomentations applied to seditious and ill-balanced minds". With what faults the theologians of Jena, and especially Musæus, were charged, may be best learned from the grave and solid work of Musæus himself, entitled, Der Jenischen Theologen ausführliche Erklärung über drey und neunzig cermeynte Religionsfragen, Jena, 1677 and 1704. 4to. Add Jo. Geo. VOL. IV. Walch's Introduction to the Controversies in the Lutheran church, [in German,] vol. i. p. 495, &c. 9 [On these controversies, it is proper to go back to the first causes. The long thirty years' war produced, throughout the whole Lutheran church, very great prostration of order, neg § 27. These first commotions would, undoubtedly, have gradually subsided, if still more violent ones had not supervened lect of discipline, and profligacy and the preachers were incompetent to meet this disordered state of things, which continued to exist after the return of peace. Some preachers were wholly incompetent to it: for the people had to choose such preachers as they could get; and among these, many were of different talents and acquisitions. Others had no lack of native talent; but they had been ill instructed. For education was very differently conducted in the higher schools then from what it is now. The chief science then taught, was the dry and cloudy Aristotelian metaphysics; with which were connected scholastic dogmatics and polemics. Thus our theology was very dark and intricate, and such as was unfit for the pulpit and for common life: the heads of the preachers were full of technical terms and distinctions; and no one understood how to make the truths of christianity intelligible to the common people. Besides, systematic and polemic theology were pursued; but moral theology, and biblical interpretation, were almost wholly laid aside. Of course the preaching was very poor; as is manifest from the postills of those times. The clergy preached from the lectures in the schools; and therefore, explained and proved the doctrines of faith, artificially; which the people could not understand: or they ornamented their sermons with quotations from the fathers, and from the heathen philosophers. They confuted errors and heresies, the very names of which, frequently, were unknown to their hearers; but said little or nothing that was calculated to amend the hearts of their hearers: and they could say the less on such subjects, as they themselves, often, possessed unsanctified minds, hearts in which pride, contentiousness, obstinacy, and a persecuting spirit predominated. Other clergymen, who were competent to instruct the people in true godliness, had not power to correct the disorders that had broken in; because the bad habits had become too deeply rooted, and the evil too inveterate. Hence there were in our church various devout and upright persons, who sighed over this state of the church; and who wished to see godliness more cultivated, and the mode of teaching, both in the schools and from the pulpit, reformed. Among these persons, the first and the most famous was Spener. He must be ranked among the most learned and the most devout ministers of our church; and together with most of the branches of theological science, he was well versed in history, and the auxiliary sciences; and had, successively, as a preacher at Strasburg, an elder at Frankfort, and first court preacher at Dresden, obtained, in all these offices, the reputation of a discreet, modest, and peaceable theologian. At Dresden he fell under the displeasure of the electoral prince, John George IV. who was much addicted to drunkenness, and to whom Spener, who was his confessor, as he was going to confession, addressed a very respectful letter, containing an earnest dissuasive from this bad habit. Spener now went to Berlin; and his migrations spread wider the Pietistic controversy. If any things are censurable in Spener, they are principally two things. First, he was not much of a philosopher, at least theoretically and it is not much to be wondered at, that he should have little relish for the dry philosophy of those times. Besides, if he had possessed a taste for it, he would not have accomplished what he did accomplish. Still this deficiency led him, sometimes, to reason inconclusively, and also not to see clearly the consequences of his propositions. Secondly, he was by nature too compliant and yielding. could not say a hard thing to any man: and when he saw in a person any marks of piety, he at once recognized him as a brother, although he might hold erroneous doctrines. And this caused him much trouble, and led him to be often deceived by hypocrites. This was manifestly a consequence of his good-natured character, which judged other men by himself; yet it in some measure obscured the greatness of his talents. Still, this weakness will hin He in 1689, at Leipsic. Certain pious and learned men, especially Augustus Herman Franck, John Caspar Schade, and Paul der no impartial man from acknowledging that Spener was really a great man; to whom we stand indebted for the improvement of our mode of preaching, for more freedom in the manner of handling theological subjects, for the introduction of toleration towards other religious sects, and towards individuals who deviate from the common creed, and for the advancement of true godliness in our church. This last object he endeavoured to effect, especially by his Colleges of Piety; which he set up by the advice of some friends at Frankfort in 1670, first in his own house, and afterwards also in the church; partly to produce more cordial friendship, among those who were seeking to edify their souls; and partly to render the public preaching of God's word more profitable, by explaining the sermons delivered, by catechising, by lectures on the holy Scriptures, with prayer and singing. The appellation, Colleges of Piety, was derived from Holland; where there is a party, who, from their meetings for worship, which they call Collegia, are denominated Collegiants. (See below, chap. vii. § 1.) From them the name was derived, though Spener's meetings had no resemblance to the institutions of the Dutch Collegiants. To the establishment of these meetings, must be added a circumstance, which caused Spener much trouble. When Arnd's Postills were to be republished in 1675, Spener composed a long preface to them; in which, together with his favourite doctrines of better times to come, the previous general conversion of the Jews, and the great downfall of popery, he also described the defects in our church, and proposed some means for their remedy. Among these were an improved mode of teaching in the higher schools, the better instruction of youth, the dispensing with metaphysies, and a zealous application to biblical interpretation and practical theology. This preface was afterwards printed separately, in 1678, and entitled Pia Desideria. [The whole title of the book, which was written in German, was: Pia Desideria, or Earnest Desires for the godly improvement of the true Evangelical Church, with some christian proposals for that object. Tr.] It was well received by the majority, and was praised even by some who afterwards became his enemies. But after a while propositions were drawn from it, which were charged upon him as errors. The first attack was made by Dilfeld, a deacon at Nordhausen, who assailed the position that a true theologian must be a regenerate man. Greater disturbances arose from the meetings. Many imitated them; but they did not possess Spener's prudence. In some, there was no preacher to regulate the meeting; and there, all sorts of irregularity took place. In others, every one was allowed to speak; and of course speeches were often made, which contravened the standard evangelical doctrines, and ran into enthusiasm: and now visionaries and enthusiasts actually connected themselves with the followers of Spener. In small villages, they went on tolerably well: but in larger places, as Hamburg for example, there were frequent commotions. And there in particular, Jo. Fred. Mayer, a Hamburg doctor, distinguished himself in a very offensive manner, by his carnal zeal against Spener's brother-in-law, Jo. Henry Horbius. See Köhler's Hist. Münzbelustigungen, vol. xvii. p. 363, &c. At Erfurt, Dantzic, Wolfenbüttel, Gotha, and even at Halle in Saxony, there were great commotions, which the magistrates had to still. Spener himself, when he saw the disorders that arose from these meetings, suppressed those he had set up. Others followed his example. But in many places, the people would not give them up while yet they did not exercise sufficient prudence. The people frequently began to forsake the public worship, and to run only to the meetings and the blame was cast upon Spener; who was entirely innocent in this matter, and who by his preaching and his publications, explicitly opposed this wrong conduct. Schl.] Antony, who were disciples and friends of Spener, then sustaining the office of first preacher at the Saxon court, and who were teachers of philosophy, supposed that candidates for the sacred office might be, and ought to be, better trained for their employment, than the practice of the universities allowed; and therefore they undertook, themselves, to expound certain books of the holy Bible, in such a manner, as at the same time to infuse a spirit of solid piety into the minds of their hearers. This new and singular course allured very many to their lectures many of whom exhibited the benefits they derived from these recitations, in lives and conduct very remote from the vicious habits of that age. Whether this first fervour of both the teachers and the learners, laudable and excellent in itself, was always kept within due bounds, it is not easy for any one to say but this is certain, many, and they men of great authority, maintain that it was not; and public fame reports, that some things were brought forward and transacted, in those Biblical Colleges, as they were called, which were in themselves indeed easy to be excused and borne with, if referred to moderate and candid judges, yet not a little variant from common usage and the laws of prudence. When great tumult arose, and the matter was brought to a judicial investigation, the learned men above named, were pronounced innocent, or not guilty of the errors alleged against them; yet they were ordered to desist from the labours, which they had commenced. In these commotions, the invidious name of Pietists was first heard of, or at least first publicly used. Some light-minded people first imposed it on those who attended these Biblical Colleges, and whose lives accorded with the precepts there inculcated afterwards it was extended to all those, who were supposed, either to profess too rigid and austere principles of morals, or neglecting the truth, to refer all religion to mere piety. But, as is apt to be the fortune of names which designate particular sects, this name was not unfrequently applied, in familiar discourse, to the very best of men, to those who were as careful to advance truth as piety: and on the other hand, it was very often applied to those who might more correctly be denominated the flagitious, the delirious, and fanatical '. 1 When Spener was called from Frankfort to Dresden, he had con stantly with him a number of theological students, some of whom lodged in § 28. From Leipsic this controversy spread with incredible rapidity, throughout Lutheran Germany, nay, through our In his house, and others boarded at his table, and whom he instructed how to discharge profitably the duties of preachers. Some of these went to Leipsic, to teach theology there, in accordance with Spener's prescriptions. Among these were Aug. Herm. Franck, and Paul Antony, both afterwards professors at Halle, Jo. Casp. Schade, afterwards a famous preacher at Berlin, and Herm. van der Hart, afterwards professor at Helmstadt. These commenced the biblical lectures. these there was something new; for the lectures were given in German, Luther's translation was here and there amended, and the explanation of the holy scriptures was followed by religious exhortations. Concerning these biblical lectures, especially as the religious lectures of some of the professors were now more thinly attended, all sorts of rumours soon spread abroad, some of which were groundless, and others perhaps had some foundation. It was said, that not only students, but also labouring men, and women, were admitted to them; and that every one present was allowed to teach and to explain the scriptures. Those who attended these lectures changed their manners, and their dress, refrained from the customary amusements, and obtained the name of Pietists; (to which a severe funeral discourse of Dr. Carpzov, at the interment of a hearer of Mr. Franck, and the funeral ode of Lic. Feller, on the same occasion, wherein the import of the word, and the characteristics of a Pietist, were explained, are supposed principally to have contributed.) In the year 1689, the court of Dresden appointed a commission to investigate this affair: but the accused masters, (especially Franck,) obtained the famous Christ. Thomasius for their counsellor; who well defended them, in a published judicial argument, and showed palpably the nullity of the criminal process commenced against them; and they were acquitted of all criminality: though, at the same time, their biblical lectures were prohibited. But the thing shot like lightning, from Leipsic through the whole church. All who loved holiness must have also such Collegia [or lectures: for the Germans use the word collegia in Latin, and collegien in German, both for the lectures of professors in a university, and for associate bodies of learned men: so that Collegia Biblica may here be best translated Biblical Lectures. Tr.] Thus the learned and the unlearned held meetings which were called seasons for prayer and for devotion. Into these meetings, fantastical persons and enthusiasts insinuated themselves, and talked of the millennial kingdom, and the downfall of Babylon; railed against the clergy, and brought forward prophecies, and dreams, and visions. Hence there arose, in almost all places, Pietistic commotions; which the magistrates endeavoured to still by severe laws. During these transactions, Spener was called from Dresden to Berlin; and Thomasius, of whom the Leipsic divines complained as being a heretic and a teacher of error, was obliged to flee to Halle. He it was projected the establishment of the university of Halle; and Spener supported him. The university was established; and the very masters, who had held the biblical lectures at Leipsic, were, in part, appointed the professors of theology in this new university. These commenced reading, according to Spener's views; and abolished the old scholastic method of teaching. They spoke disparagingly of philosophy; and said, that polemics made the people too disputatious; that the greatest heretic was the old Adam; and that he especially must be combated. place of polemic theology, they recommended mystic: and nearly all the mystical writings of the French and Italians, were translated and printed at the Orphan House in Halle. Persons, who on account of their peculiar opinions, were not tolerated in other places, were received and provided for at Halle. While these things were going forward, the divines of Wittemberg, (for we pass over the attack of the Leipsic divines,) in the year 1695, brought a formal accusation against Spener, as a teacher of error: and In |