Johann Wilhelm Petersen

Johann Wilhelm Petersen (1 July 1649 in

Osnabrück Osnabrück (; wep, Ossenbrügge; archaic ''Osnaburg'') is a city in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is situated on the river Hase in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest. With a population ...

– 31 January 1727 in

Zerbst Zerbst () is a town in the district of Anhalt-Bitterfeld, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Until an administrative reform in 2007, Zerbst was the capital of the former Anhalt-Zerbst district. Geography Zerbst is situated in the Anhalt-Wittenberg regi ...

) was a German

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

, mystic, and Millennialist. Johann Wilhelm Petersen grew up in

Lübeck Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the state ...

and studied theology at the

Katharineum The Katharineum zu Lübeck is a humanistic gymnasium founded 1531 in the Hanseatic city Lübeck, Germany. In 2006 the 475th anniversary of this Latin school was celebrated with several events. The school uses the buildings of a former Francisca ...

, as well as in

Giessen Giessen, spelled Gießen in German (), is a town in the German state (''Bundesland'') of Hesse, capital of both the district of Giessen and the administrative region of Giessen. The population is approximately 90,000, with roughly 37,000 univer ...

Rostock Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state, ...

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

Wittenberg Wittenberg ( , ; Low Saxon: ''Wittenbarg''; meaning ''White Mountain''; officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg (''Luther City Wittenberg'')), is the fourth largest town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Wittenberg is situated on the River Elbe, north o ...

and

Jena Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a po ...

. He studied with

Philipp Jakob Spener Philipp Jakob Spener (23 January 1635 – 5 February 1705), was a German Lutheran theologian who essentially founded what would become to be known as Pietism. He was later dubbed the "Father of Pietism". A prolific writer, his two main works, '' ...

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...

, and they became friends in 1675. Through his affiliation with Spener, Petersen became interested in

Pietism Pietism (), also known as Pietistic Lutheranism, is a movement within Lutheranism that combines its emphasis on biblical doctrine with an emphasis on individual piety and living a holy Christian life, including a social concern for the needy an ...

. As a student, Petersen wrote a 1668 wedding poem for

Dieterich Buxtehude Dieterich Buxtehude (; ; born Diderik Hansen Buxtehude; c. 1637 – 9 May 1707) was a Danish organist and composer of the Baroque period, whose works are typical of the North German organ school. As a composer who worked in various vocal a ...

. This poem was later composed as a cantata (''Oh blessed, to the Last Supper of the Lamb is appointed'' BuxWV 90). By 1677, Petersen was pastor of the church at

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

. He was the leader and superintendent of the diocese of

Eutin Eutin () is the district capital of Eastern Holstein county located in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein. As of 2020, the town had some 17,000 inhabitants. History The name Eutin (originally Utin) is of Slavic origin. Its meaning i ...

until 1688, and from 1688 to 1692 he was the superintendent in Aue. In 1680, he published ''Acquittal Catechism'', and fell out of favor with religious leaders and lost his position in the church because of his Chiliastic teachings. Together with his wife Johanna Eleonora, he developed an independent form of spirituality in affinity with forms of

pietism Pietism (), also known as Pietistic Lutheranism, is a movement within Lutheranism that combines its emphasis on biblical doctrine with an emphasis on individual piety and living a holy Christian life, including a social concern for the needy an ...

and

mysticism Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight in ...

. He spent the rest of his life on his property at low-Dodeleben, from 1724 to Thymern and

. Petersen wrote a book with the title '' Mysterion apokatastaseos panton'' to explain his lecture about the Origenes´s thesis: Apokatastasis. 'What fruit has the doctrine of eternal damnation born up till now? Has it made men more pious? On the contrary, when they have properly considered the cruel, frightful disproportion between the punishments and their own sins, they have begun to believe nothing at all...'' (Mysterion, p. 222) Leinbiz read and appreciated the book and in 1706 started exchanging letters with Petersen. He encouraged him to expose his views by composing a work in verse for which he provided ideas and guidelines. The poem appeared in 1720 with the title ''Uranias, qua opera Dei magna omnibus retro seculis et oeconomiis transisctis usque ad apocatastasim seculorum omnium'' and with a preface acknowledging the support.: Leibniz G., ''De l'horizond e la doctrine humaine..., textes inédits, traduits et annotés par M.l Fichant, Paris:vrin 1991,p.28 References {{DEFAULTSORT:Petersen, Johann Wilhelm 1649 births 1727 deaths 17th-century Christian mystics 18th-century Christian mystics Clergy from Osnabrück Clergy from Lübeck German Protestant clergy Radical Pietism Protestant mystics