Johan Henrik Thomander (16 June 1798 – 9 July 1865) was a Swedish professor, bishop, translator and author. He received his doctorate in theology in 1836 and was elected to the eighteenth chair of the

Swedish Academy The Swedish Academy ( sv, Svenska Akademien), founded in 1786 by King Gustav III, is one of the Royal Academies of Sweden. Its 18 members, who are elected for life, comprise the highest Swedish language authority. Outside Scandinavia, it is b ...

in 1856. After his father's death, Thomander's daughters bequeathed a house on Sandgatan in Lund to

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion Fjälkinge, Kristianstad County, in 1798, the

illegitimate Legitimacy, in traditional Western common law, is the status of a child born to parents who are legally married to each other, and of a child conceived before the parents obtain a legal divorce. Conversely, ''illegitimacy'', also known as ...

son of vice pastor Albrecht Johan Pisarski and Maria Sophia Thomaeus (1776–1851). His parents met when his father was serving at his maternal grandfather, Thomas Thomander's, parish in Fjälkinge. The mother's family, also spelled Thomé and Thomée and related to the nobility Adelsköld, descended, according to tradition, from a Scottish nobleman who was stranded at

Torekov Torekov () is a locality situated in Båstad Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 863 inhabitants in 2010. It is still a fishing village but it is today known as a summer resort. In August, 1971 Torekov hosted a meeting in which it was decided ...

around 1615 and was later admitted as a master mason in

Helsingborg Helsingborg (, , , ) is a city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edit ...

, and called himself Hans. Johan Henrik Thomander was the nephew of the writer, hymnwriter and priest . His mother later married printing works supervisor Thomas Bond. Born to unmarried parents, Thomander grew up with his grandmother, Elsa Sophia Mandorff. He began studying at

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion Karlshamn Karlshamn () is a locality and the seat of Karlshamn Municipality in Blekinge County, Sweden. It had 13,576 inhabitants in 2015, out of 31,846 in the municipality. Karlshamn received a Royal Charter and city privileges in 1664, when King Charle ...

. However, he studied in his spare time, passed his exams and was ordained a priest in 1821. First appointed as a preacher at Karlshamn Fortress, Thomander was appointed

docent The title of docent is conferred by some European universities to denote a specific academic appointment within a set structure of academic ranks at or below the full professor rank, similar to a British readership, a French " ''maître de con ...

at the theological seminary in Lund in 1826, became adjunct assistant priest in 1831, was passed over for the position of dean in 1831, but became professor of

pastoral theology Pastoral theology is the branch of practical theology concerned with the application of the study of religion in the context of regular church ministry. This approach to theology seeks to give practical expression to theology. Normally viewed as a ...

in 1833 and was awarded a doctorate in theology at

Copenhagen University The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in ...

in 1836.

Further in his career

He became professor of dogmatics and

moral theology Ethics involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior.''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy''"Ethics"/ref> A central aspect of ethics is "the good life", the life worth living or life that is simply sati ...

in 1845, 2nd professor of theology in 1847, and in 1850 dean of Gothenburg, which position he assumed in 1851. In 1856 he succeeded

Henrik Reuterdahl Henrik Reuterdahl (11 September 1795 in Malmö – 28 June 1870 in Uppsala) was a Swedish Lutheran clergyman who served as the Church of Sweden archbishop of Uppsala from 1856 to his death. Biography Born in Malmö, he was orphaned at an early ...

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

of the

diocese of Lund The Diocese of Lund ( sv, Lunds stift) is a diocese within the Church of Sweden which corresponds to the provinces of Blekinge and Skåne. There are 217 parishes within the diocese, the most significant number in any of the dioceses of the Chu ...

. In 1840 he entered political life as a member of the clergy in the

Riksdag of the Estates Riksdag of the Estates ( sv, Riksens ständer; informally sv, Ståndsriksdagen) was the name used for the Estates of Sweden when they were assembled. Until its dissolution in 1866, the institution was the highest authority in Sweden next to ...

, and in 1855 he was elected after Per Daniel Amadeus Atterbom to the

, which in 1849 awarded him its great prize for

rhetoric Rhetoric () is the art of persuasion, which along with grammar and logic (or dialectic), is one of the three ancient arts of discourse. Rhetoric aims to study the techniques writers or speakers utilize to inform, persuade, or motivate par ...

on the occasion of his collection of sermons published the same year. Johan_Henrik_Thomanders_grav

Thomander was a man of genius and highly versatile. When he applied for the post of dean in Lund in 1830,

Carl Adolph Agardh Carl Adolph Agardh (23 January 1785 in Båstad, Sweden – 28 January 1859 in Karlstad) was a Sweden, Swedish botanist specializing in algae, who was eventually appointed bishop of Karlstad. Biography In 1807 he was appointed teacher of mathe ...

, comparing him with Reuterdahl, gave the following opinion: : Agardh's simultaneously flattering and reproachful characterization of Thomander was formed during the battle for the position of dean in Lund. It was certainly fair that Thomander did not obtain this position, which he sought along with some older, well qualified men. Thomander had the dubious merit of making this dispute infamous. Through his work , directed especially against his co-applicant , and in the journal ''Gefion'', which he published together with , he had ample opportunity to demonstrate his superior ability as a

polemic Polemic () is contentious rhetoric intended to support a specific position by forthright claims and to undermine the opposing position. The practice of such argumentation is called ''polemics'', which are seen in arguments on controversial topics ...

ist and satirist. This ability never left him. But with age it mellowed and lost something of the irreverence of youth. In earlier years he gave it free rein. It is characteristically encountered in his correspondence with K. F. Dahlgren. These letters also provide a good insight into Thomander's wide-ranging literary interests. During his time in the army he acquired a rare erudition, not least in recent European literature. In his younger years, aesthetic interests seem to have dominated. A professorship in aesthetics then seemed the dream of the future.

Literary output

His literary output at this time also took an aesthetic turn. It was then that he gave brilliant proof of his outstanding talent for translation. Thus in 1825 appeared Shakespeare's ''

The Merry Wives of Windsor ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' or ''Sir John Falstaff and the Merry Wives of Windsor'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare first published in 1602, though believed to have been written in or before 1597. The Windsor of the play's title is a ref ...

'', ''

As You Like It ''As You Like It'' is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 and first published in the First Folio in 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 has ...

'', ''

Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night'', or ''What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night's entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins V ...

'', ''

Antony and Cleopatra ''Antony and Cleopatra'' ( First Folio title: ''The Tragedie of Anthonie, and Cleopatra'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. The play was first performed, by the King's Men, at either the Blackfriars Theatre or the Globe Theatre in arou ...

'', and ''

Richard II Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father d ...

'', interpretations which were also endorsed by Carl August Hagberg as excellent, and also ''

The Clouds ''The Clouds'' ( grc, Νεφέλαι ''Nephelai'') is a Greek comedy play written by the playwright Aristophanes. A lampooning of intellectual fashions in classical Athens, it was originally produced at the City Dionysia in 423BC and was not ...

'' by

Aristophanes Aristophanes (; grc, Ἀριστοφάνης, ; c. 446 – c. 386 BC), son of Philippus, of the deme Kydathenaion ( la, Cydathenaeum), was a comic playwright or comedy-writer of ancient Athens and a poet of Old Attic Comedy. Eleven of his fo ...

in 1826, ''

Manfred ''Manfred: A dramatic poem'' is a closet drama written in 1816–1817 by Lord Byron. It contains supernatural elements, in keeping with the popularity of the ghost story in England at the time. It is a typical example of a Gothic fiction. Byr ...

'' by

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and Peerage of the United Kingdom, peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and h ...

, and ''

Brutus Marcus Junius Brutus (; ; 85 BC – 23 October 42 BC), often referred to simply as Brutus, was a Roman politician, orator, and the most famous of the assassins of Julius Caesar. After being adopted by a relative, he used the name Quintus Ser ...

'' by

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his '' nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his criticism of Christianity—es ...

in 1830. In manuscript, too, he produced at the same time several such works, as ''Amanda'' by Moreto (performed in 1831), Shakespeare's ''

Macbeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...

'', by Gensoul, and '' Thesmophoriazusae'' and ''

The Frogs ''The Frogs'' ( grc-gre, Βάτραχοι, Bátrakhoi, Frogs; la, Ranae, often abbreviated ''Ran.'' or ''Ra.'') is a comedy written by the Ancient Greek playwright Aristophanes. It was performed at the Lenaia, one of the Festivals of Dionysus i ...

'' by Aristophanes, the last three first printed in his .

Theological works

He began his theological writing with the treatise (1826). Together with Henrik Reuterdahl, he published ('Theological Quarterly') from 1828 to 1832 and 1836 to 1840, which forms an epoch in the history of Swedish theology. Among Thomander's contributions is his review of Sweden's recent

homiletical In religious studies, homiletics ( grc, ὁμιλητικός ''homilētikós'', from ''homilos'', "assembled crowd, throng") is the application of the general principles of rhetoric to the specific art of public preaching. One who practices or ...

literature, a collection of reviews which retains its value to this day. Remarkable here is the high esteem in which he held Henric Schartau, who otherwise had no great name in the educated and literary world. In 1835 Thomander published a translation of the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

(new edition 1860). The intention was to break with the principles of the Bible Commission of the time. However, Thomander's attempt did not succeed.

Thomander's environment

As a lecturer, Thomander was not very prominent, nor did he enjoy any particular popularity among students. However, he was one of the initiators of the formation of the

Academic Society A learned society (; also learned academy, scholarly society, or academic association) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and science. Membership ...

at Lund University and became its first president. He was also the university's rector in 1838–1839. Thomander was conservative in his religious and theological views and was equated by

Esaias Tegnér Esaias Tegnér (; – ) was a Swedish writer, professor of the Greek language, and bishop. He was during the 19th century regarded as the father of modern poetry in Sweden, mainly through the national romantic epic '' Frithjof's Saga''. He has b ...

with the orthodox Bergquist, disciple of Schartau. In church politics, however, he was liberal. It was also in the field of church politics that Thomander was to intervene most actively. He was devoted to public life; his talent also led him there. Thomander embraced the

temperance movement The temperance movement is a social movement promoting temperance or complete abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and its leaders emph ...

, which began in the 1830s, with great warmth. With great talent he defended the form of association against its detractors, in particular his colleague Reuterdahl. The temperance issue became a wedge between former dissenters. Two parties began to form: on one side Thomander, Peter Wieselgren, , and later ; on the other Reuterdahl and the majority of the clergy, a group which later was strengthened by the specifically Lundensian high church under the leadership of Ebbe Gustaf Bring.

Reform

The conviction of the necessity of timely reforms in the area of

church order Church order is the systematically organized set of rules drawn up by a qualified body of a local church. P. Coertzen. ''Church and Order''. Belgium: Peeters. From the point of view of civil law, the ''church order'' can be described as the inter ...

and the self-confident awareness of his own abilities led Thomander to apply for membership in the

canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

committee, which in the 1830s was being reorganized, since the canon law proposal published in 1828 had apparently proved impossible to adopt. Then Secretary of State did not reject the offer. When the committee was reorganized at the end of 1833, Thomander became one of the new members. He demonstrated his eminent abilities in the field by publishing a draft canon law a few years later, which he himself had written and which later became the basis for much of the committee's further work. Its final proposal could not, any more than the previous one, stand the fire of criticism, but some questions were nevertheless solved in the way of partial reforms, and some were carried forward towards their solution. In church politics, Thomander was opposed to clerical

episcopal polity An episcopal polity is a hierarchical form of church governance ("ecclesiastical polity") in which the chief local authorities are called bishops. (The word "bishop" derives, via the British Latin and Vulgar Latin term ''*ebiscopus''/''*bisc ...

and joined the ranks of those who desired greater freedom within the church and more room for the members of the congregation to decide the affairs of the church. He also wanted greater freedom of movement for the church against the state, and as a supporter of

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin word mea ...

al constitutional principles, he pushed for the institution of the church council to be included in the 1846 church constitution. Thomander's great importance in church politics was linked to the important political role he played in the parliamentary life of the 1840s. There he was decidedly on the liberal side and interacted lively with the liberal leaders. Thomander's masterly speech at the House of Nobility in 1840, at a joint meeting of all four estates on the question of representation, already established him as one of the country's leading parliamentary orators. He was a constant advocate for change in representation and personally intervened to advance the issue; it was Thomander who drafted the so-called Ekholm proposal in 1845.

Interest in public education

Thomander was greatly interested in issues of public education. He spoke in favor of appropriations for the education system at four parliamentary sessions (1840–1841, 1844–1845, 1847–1848 and 1856–1858) of the six Thomander proved he was a member of the State Committee. In the 1850s Thomander devoted less time to purely political life, having such a significant influence on the development of the church. The decade was a particularly difficult period of transition, brought about by the large revivalist movements and the triumph of

liberalism Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on the rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostility to autocracy, cultural distaste for ...

, in which the revivalists found political support for their demands for the removal of all barriers in the religious sphere. Thomander was as firmly opposed to the policy of ''

non possumus "Non possumus" is a Latin, Catholic, religious phrase that translates as "we cannot". It originated with the martyrdom of the Martyrs of Abitinae, who were murdered in AD 304 when Roman Emperor Diocletian prohibited Christians under penalty of de ...

'' as he was to radical subversion. He set out his position in a paper entitled ('On the affairs of the Swedish church and school') (1853), directed against a similarly titled paper by Reuterdahl.

Impact

In ('The Ecclesiastical Questions') (1860), he looks back at what the decade had brought in the way of reform, and it was no small amount. '' Kyrkoplikt'', a form of punishment in which the condemned had to

confess A confession is a statement – made by a person or by a group of persons – acknowledging some personal fact that the person (or the group) would ostensibly prefer to keep hidden. The term presumes that the speaker is providing information th ...

and repent publicly in church, had been abolished; the Conventicle Act outlawing religious gatherings outside of the state church had been abolished, the requirement for each person to attend their own local parish () had been loosened, etc. However, several other things would be desirable. Thomander again spoke in favor of , the reorganization of cathedral chapters, a new system of selecting priests, and more. It is probably not too much to say that Thomander is primarily to be thanked for what was done. What he meant can best be seen by comparing the 1850s with another critical period, the 1870s, which showed a particularly sterile church policy. Thomander was not only of general ecclesiastical importance; he also made significant contributions as head of the diocese. Undoubtedly, it was a great fortune for the diocese that Thomander became its bishop. This softened the antagonism between the different parties. As bishop, Thomander was not entirely to the liking of his old followers, many of whom had begun to idolize the

Free Church of Scotland Free Church of Scotland may refer to: * Free Church of Scotland (1843–1900), seceded in 1843 from the Church of Scotland. The majority merged in 1900 into the United Free Church of Scotland; historical * Free Church of Scotland (since 1900), rema ...

and derived their constitutional ideals from it. Within his diocese, Thomander sought to achieve greater mobility by frequent visits and by organizing clerical society gatherings between the clergy meetings held every six years. In both cases, Thomander became a pioneer for the other dioceses. Thomander took a keen interest in

mission work A Christian mission is an organized effort for the propagation of the Christian faith. Missions involve sending individuals and groups across boundaries, most commonly geographical boundaries, to carry on evangelism or other activities, such as ...

. Together with Reuterdahl, Bring, Peter Wieselgren, Peter Fjellstedt and others, he had participated in the founding of the

Lund Missionary Society Lund (, , ) is a city in the southern Swedish province of Scania, across the Öresund strait from Copenhagen. The town had 91,940 inhabitants out of a municipal total of 121,510 . It is the seat of Lund Municipality, Scania County. The Öresu ...

in 1845, to which he was devoted from then on. In 1838 Thomander published a catechism; in 1849 he and Wieselgren published a revision of the in order to eliminate the complaints of the revivalists. In 1829 he published ('Sermons and Communion Discourses'), in 1849 ('Sermons on the Gospels of all the Sundays and Feast Days of the Year') (two parts, translated into Danish 1855–1857). The printed sermons do not give a true picture of Thomander's skill as an orator. His humor and irony could not make themselves felt in his sermons, but all the more in his occasional speeches. As a student speaker, he was unrivaled and extremely popular. The sharp contradictions in his being gave his

sermon A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. E ...

s a peculiar character. They were genuinely human, free from the restraint of the educated aristocracy, and therefore not unfavorably received by the popular revivalists. Thomander reaches his highest point when he contrasts human frailty with the merciful omnipotence of God, but overall it must be said that, at least judging from the printed sermons, he is not a deep preacher. Nor have his sermons been widely read, although the presentation has a rare stylistic fulfillment which is personal and original, without being strained or contrived.

Death and legacy

Thomander died in 1865 in Lund and is buried at Östra kyrkogården.''Begravda i Sverige'', CD-ROM, Version 1.0, Sveriges Släktforskarförbund: ''Thomander, Johan Henrik'' A characterization of Thomander is given by

Gustaf Ljunggren Gustaf Ljunggren may refer to: * Gustaf Ljunggren (academician) * Gustaf Ljunggren (chemist) * Gustaf Ljunggren (athlete) {{hndis, Ljunggren, Gustaf ...

, his biographer in the Swedish Academy, who emphasizes the enigmatic nature of his personality, the strange mixture of jokes and seriousness, which made him less appealing to many as a priest and bishop. A collection of his more important writings was published in three parts in 1878–1879, (collected and published by , with a biography) in 1876. See also G. Ljunggren, "" (in , d. 41, 1867) and

C. V. A. Strandberg Carl Vilhelm August Strandberg (16 January 1818– 5 February 1877), also known by his pen name ''Talis Qualis'', was a Swedish poet and journalist. He was member of the Swedish Academy from 1862. C.V.A. Strandberg was born in Stigtomta into a c ...

's (Talis Qualis) reply to this speech,

Harald Wieselgren Harald Ossian Wieselgren (2 November 1835 – 17 March 1906) was a Swedish librarian, biography author and publicist. Biography Wieselgren was born in 1835 in Västerstads socken, Scania, Sweden, to priest Peter Wieselgren, who also had a str ...

, (1880), , "Johan Henrik Thomander" (in , 1912), O. Hippel, (1914), and , "" (in ', 1918).

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomander, Johan Henrik 1798 births 1865 deaths Archbishops and bishops of Lund Rectors of Lund University Members of the Swedish Academy Swedish translators Translators of William Shakespeare Translators of Ancient Greek texts Translators from French Translators from English Swedish-language writers Writers from Scania Swedish temperance activists

Further in his career

Literary output

Theological works

Thomander's environment

Reform

Interest in public education

Impact

Death and legacy

See also

References

Further reading

External links