Samuel Rodigast (19 October 1649 – 19 March 1708) was a German teacher and hymnwriter. He is remembered as the author of the hymn " Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan".

Life

Rodigast was born in Gröben near

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 ...

. After attending the Gymnasium in

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state (Germany), state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany between Erfurt in the west and Jena in the east, approximately southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg an ...

, he studied at the

University of Jena The University of Jena, officially the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (german: Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, abbreviated FSU, shortened form ''Uni Jena''), is a public research university located in Jena, Thuringia, Germany. The un ...

, where was appointed to an adjunct position in the philosophy faculty in 1676. In 1680 he became vice-rector of the

Berlinisches Gymnasium zum Grauen Kloster The Evangelisches Gymnasium zum Grauen Kloster, located in suburban Schmargendorf, Berlin, is an independent school with a humanistic profile, known as one of the most prestigious schools in Germany. Founded by the Evangelical Church in West Berli ...

Berlin Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...

, serving as rector from 1698 until his death. Before becoming rector, he had been offered a professorship in metaphysics and logic in Jena. He is buried in the Franziskaner-Klosterkirche.

Hymn

Rodigast is remembered for the hymn " Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan" (What God does, that is done well). He may have written it to console his sick friend, the cantor

Severus Gastorius Severus Gastorius (1646-1682) was a cantor in Jena, Thuringia. The son of a Weimar school teacher, Severus was born with the family name Bauchspiess (later Latinised to Gastorius) in Oettern, near Weimar. In 1667, he started studying at the Univ ...

, who may have wished a song for his funeral. Gastorius is supposed to have composed the melody. Scholars disagree on the circumstances surrounding the creation of the song. It was the favourite hymn of King

Frederick William III of Prussia Frederick William III (german: Friedrich Wilhelm III.; 3 August 1770 – 7 June 1840) was King of Prussia from 16 November 1797 until his death in 1840. He was concurrently Elector of Brandenburg in the Holy Roman Empire until 6 August 1806, wh ...

and was sung at his funeral. In Germany, it is number 294 in the Catholic hymnal, and number 372 in the Protestant hymnal. The text is based thematically on . Johann Sebastian Bach used the song in several different cantatas. Three of his cantatas begin with the hymn. His 1724

chorale cantata A chorale cantata is a church cantata based on a chorale—in this context a Lutheran chorale. It is principally from the German Baroque era. The organizing principle is the words and music of a Lutheran hymn. Usually a chorale cantata includes mult ...

''Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan'', BWV 99, is based on the complete hymn, with paraphrases of the inner stanzas. In 1726, he composed the cantata ''Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan'', BWV 98, beginning with the first stanza. Between 1732 and 1735 he wrote the cantata ''Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan'', BWV 100, using all six stanzas unchanged. Bach used single stanzas of the hymn additionally in cantatas BWV 12, BWV 69a, BWV 75 and BWV 144, In

Theodor Fontane Theodor Fontane (; 30 December 1819 – 20 September 1898) was a German novelist and poet, regarded by many as the most important 19th-century German-language realist author. He published the first of his novels, for which he is best known tod ...

's novel ''

Frau Jenny Treibel ''Frau Jenny Treibel'' is a German novel published in 1892 by Theodor Fontane. Plot The primary subject of the novel revolves around two Berlin families. One is the upper-class Treibel family consisting of the Councillor of commerce and hi ...

'', Rodigast is mentioned as a devout poet and teacher.

References

Sources

* * Eduard Emil Koch: ''Geschichte des Kirchenliedes und Kirchengesanges''. 3rd edition., 8 volumes, 1866/76, III, 420 f. * Handbuch z. EKG II/1, 1957, 209; III/2, 1990, 299 ff.; Sonderband, 1958, 467 ff. * Reinhold Jauernig, Severus Gastorius, in: 8, 1963, 163 ff. * Siegfried Fornaçon, Werke von Severus Gastorius, in: Jahrbuch für Liturgik und Hymnologie 8, 1963, 165-170

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rodigast, Samuel German poets German Lutheran hymnwriters 1649 births 1708 deaths 17th-century German people