Simon Themstrup Michelet (8 February 1863 – 15 October 1942) was a Norwegian theologian. He was Professor of Theology at the
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo (; ) is a public university, public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation#Europe, oldest university in Norway. Originally named the Royal Frederick Univ ...
.
Background
He was born in
Trondhjem
Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is t ...
(now spelled ''Trondheim''), Norway. He was a son of customs officer Joseph Frantz Oscar Michelet (1832–1913) and Caroline Julie Laache (1833–1915). His grandfather was a brother of
Christian Frederik Michelet
Christian Frederik Michelet (7 December 1792 – 13 May 1874) was a Norwegian military officer.
He was born at Moland in Fyresdal as a son of vicar Johan Wilhelm Michelet (1753–1805) and Sophie Amalie Tuchsen. He was named after his paternal gra ...
and father of
Carl Johan Michelet
Carl Johan Michelet (25 July 1826 - 30 January 1902) was a Norwegian lawyer and civil servant. He served as Mayor of Oslo and was elected as a member of the Norwegian Parliament (''Storting'').
Biography
He was born at Blaker in Aurskog in Ak ...
. On the paternal side he was a second cousin of major
Christian Fredrik Michelet and politician
Christian Fredrik Michelet. On the maternal side he was a first cousin of doctor and professor of medicine,
Søren Bloch Laache (1854-1941).
He grew up in
Hitra Hitra may refer to:
Places
* Hitra Municipality, a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway
* Hitra (island), an island within Hitra Municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway
* Hitra Church, a church in Hitra Municipality in Trøndelag county, Nor ...
and Trondhjem. He
finished his secondary education in 1881, and decided to study theology. He was taken into the home of priest
Johan Storjohann
Johan Storjohann (15 August 1832 – 23 April 1914) was a Norwegian priest, educator and non-fiction writer. He is most associated with the establishment of the Norwegian Seamen’s Mission ().
Biography
Storjohann was born in Bergen, Norw ...
, where he met his future wife
Marie Storjohann (1866–1951). They married in September 1888.
[ Simon's sister was named Marie as well, and she married Elling Holst.
]
Career
He graduated with the cand.theol.
Candidate ( or ) is the name of various academic degrees, which are today mainly awarded in Scandinavia. The degree title was phased out in much of Europe through the 1999 Bologna Process, which has re-formatted academic degrees in Europe.
The de ...
degree in 1887 at the University of Kristiania and took the practical priest education in 1888. He also taught at Aars og Voss skole and Trondhjem Cathedral School from 1887 to 1888. In 1890, he continued his studies at German universities. He studied in Leipzig
Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...
; first history of religion
The history of religion is the written record of human religious feelings, thoughts, and ideas. This period of religious history begins with the invention of writing about 5,200 years ago (3200 BCE). The Prehistoric religion, prehistory of reli ...
and Indian languages, then the theology of the New Testament
The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...
. In 1894, he took the D.Theol. degree with the thesis ''Amos, oversat og fortolket'' on the ''Book of Amos
The Book of Amos is the third of the Twelve Minor Prophets in the Christian Old Testament and Jewish Hebrew Bible, Tanakh and the second in the Greek Septuagint. The Book of Amos has nine chapters. According to the Bible, Amos (prophet), Amos was ...
''.
He worked as a teacher and priest until being appointed as a professor of theology at the University of Kristiania in 1896. He was also a dean
Dean may refer to:
People
* Dean (given name)
* Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin
* Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk
* Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean
* Dean Sw ...
of the Faculty of Theology, and finally retired in 1933. He was also an editorial board member of ''Norsk Teologisk Tidsskrift'' from 1900 to 1926. He was a fellow of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters
The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters (, DNVA) is a learned society based in Oslo, Norway. Its purpose is to support the advancement of science and scholarship in Norway.
History
The Royal Frederick University in Christiania was establis ...
. Publications include ''Fra Moses til profetene'' (1915), ''Fra profetene til Jesus Kristus'' (1919) and ''Kristendom og rationalisme'' (1927). He also participated in a translation of the Old Testament
The Old Testament (OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew and occasionally Aramaic writings by the Isr ...
.
He also chaired the Student Christian Movement in Norway from 1899 to 1903 and 1914 to 1924. He edited their magazine ''Excelsior'' from 1904 to 1917. He was also involved in social work. He was decorated as a Knight, First Class of the Order of St. Olav
The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav (; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav II, known to posterity as St. Olav.
Just be ...
in 1911, and died in October 1942 in Bærum Municipality
Bærum () is a municipality in the Greater Oslo Region in Akershus County, Norway. It forms an affluent suburb of Oslo on the west coast of the city. Bærum is Norway's fifth largest municipality with a population of 128,760 (2021). The administr ...
.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Michelet, Simon
1863 births
1942 deaths
Clergy from Trondheim
University of Oslo alumni
Academic staff of the University of Oslo
Norwegian theologians
19th-century Norwegian Lutheran clergy
Bible translators
Norwegian magazine editors
Norwegian people of French descent
Norwegian expatriates in Germany
Members of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters
20th-century Protestant theologians
20th-century Norwegian translators
Lutheran biblical scholars
People from Hitra
20th-century Norwegian Lutheran clergy