Abraham von Franckenberg (24 June 1593 – 25 June 1652) was a

German mystic The Friends of God (German: Gottesfreunde; or gotesvriunde) was a medieval mystical group of both ecclesiastical and lay persons within the Catholic Church (though it nearly became a separate sect) and a center of German mysticism. It was founde ...

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

and

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

-writer.

Life

Abraham von Franckenberg was born in 1593 into an old Silesian noble family in Ludwigsdorf bei Oels. He attended the Gymnasium in Brieg and the University of

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 wel ...

and looked set to become a lawyer; however, he abandoned his studies in 1617 and was drawn to more

ascetic Asceticism (; from the el, ἄσκησις, áskesis, exercise', 'training) is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from sensual pleasures, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their p ...

and

mystical 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 u ...

ideas. By 1622, he was familiar with the works of

Jakob Böhme Jakob Böhme (; ; 24 April 1575 – 17 November 1624) was a German philosopher, Christian mystic, and Lutheran Protestant theologian. He was considered an original thinker by many of his contemporaries within the Lutheran tradition, and his first ...

, and he met the mystic in person the following year. Franckenberg would continue to revere Böhme even after the latter's death in 1624, and was a friend to several of Böhme's other followers, such as the

Liegnitz Legnica (Polish: ; german: Liegnitz, szl, Lignica, cz, Lehnice, la, Lignitium) is a city in southwestern Poland, in the central part of Lower Silesia, on the Kaczawa River (left tributary of the Oder) and the Czarna Woda. Between 1 June 1975 a ...

physician Balthasar Walther. He inherited the family estate in Ludwigsdorf in 1623, but passed it on to his brother Balthasar in exchange for the right to keep a few small rooms in the family home. He lived a very reclusive life and rarely ventured forth from this room – only in 1634 to attend to those suffering from plague, and in 1640 to challenge the rhetoric of Georg Seidel, a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

preacher from Oels whom Franckenberg regarded as intolerant. Tired of this and other confrontations, and mindful of the fact that events of the

Thirty Years’ War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battle ...

were moving in the direction of Silesia, Franckenberg moved to Danzig via Breslau in 1641, where he lodged until 1649 with the astronomer

Johannes Hevelius Johannes Hevelius Some sources refer to Hevelius as Polish: * * * * * * * Some sources refer to Hevelius as German: * * * * *of the Royal Society * (in German also known as ''Hevel''; pl, Jan Heweliusz; – 28 January 1687) was a councillor ...

, who introduced him to Copernican

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies astronomical object, celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and chronology of the Universe, evolution. Objects of interest ...

. He spent the winter of 1642-43 in Holland, where he had several works by Böhme published. He returned home to Ludwigsdorf in 1649 and, the following year, met Daniel Czepko. He was to read Czepko's ''Monodisticha'' in 1652 and wrote two dedicatory poems for it. Around the same time, he met and began to influence

Angelus Silesius Angelus Silesius (9 July 1677), born Johann Scheffler and also known as Johann Angelus Silesius, was a German Catholic priest and physician, known as a mystic and religious poet. Born and raised a Lutheran, he adopted the name ''Angelus'' (Lati ...

. He died on 25 June 1652 and is buried in Oels; his gravestone is covered with as yet undeciphered mystical symbols.

Works

His works show ideas drawn from many sources: from the

Kabbalah Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and Jewish theology, school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "rece ...

Paracelsian Paracelsianism (also Paracelsism; German: ') was an early modern History of medicine, medical movement based on the theories and therapies of Paracelsus. It developed in the second half of the 16th century, during the decades following Paracelsu ...

alchemy Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in China, India, the Muslim world, ...

, medieval

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 u ...

, the medieval 'heretics' of the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

, Spanish sixteenth-century Quietism, Lutheran mysticism and

Pansophism Pansophism, in older usage often pansophy, is a concept in the educational system of universal knowledge proposed by John Amos Comenius, a Czech educator. " omenius'ssecond great interest was in furthering the Baconian attempt at the organization o ...

. The works themselves are a mixture of ascetic-mystical treatises, such as ''Schlussreden der Wahrheit'' (1625), ''Mir nach!'' and ''Vita veterum sapientium'' (both 1637); others, such as ''Jordanssteine'' (1636) challenge orthodox Lutheranism or, as in ''Oculus siderius'', discuss astronomical questions. He had a reputation as an insightful teacher, and the crux of his teachings was the unity with God based on the denial of all things worldly and of the self; particular emphasis was placed on the significance of Christ for the attainment of salvation. Like

, he juxtaposed the Fall of

Lucifer Lucifer is one of various figures in folklore associated with the planet Venus. The entity's name was subsequently absorbed into Christianity as a name for the devil. Modern scholarship generally translates the term in the relevant Bible passage ...

and Adam with attaining his salvation. ''Grundlicher und wahrhafter Bericht von dem Leben und dem Abschied des in Gott selig ruhenden Jacob Boehmes''.

''Raphael''

Perhaps Franckenberg's most famous work - and certainly his most unusual - is ''Raphael, Oder Arzt-Engel'', first published posthumously in Amsterdam 1676. The Hebrew name 'Raphael' means 'God has healed'. The

archangel Raphael Raphael (, "God has healed"), ''Rəfāʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Răp̄āʾēl''; lit. 'God has healed'; grc, Ραφαήλ, ''Raphaḗl''; cop, ⲣⲁⲫⲁⲏⲗ, ''Rafaêl''; ar, رافائيل, ''Rāfā’īl'', or , ''Isrāfīl''; am, ሩፋ� ...

has traditionally been linked with healing and restoration, and it is clear that Franckenberg, in subtitling his manuscript ''Arzt-Engel'' ('doctor-angel', a play on ''Erzengel'', 'archangel'), is aware of this fact and wishes to make it clear to his readers. The work, ostensibly a medical tract, draws on both Paracelsian alchemy and Böhmian mysticism. There is also evidence pointing to Franckenberg's interest in the

and of links with

Rosicrucianism Rosicrucianism is a spiritual and cultural movement that arose in Europe in the early 17th century after the publication of several texts purported to announce the existence of a hitherto unknown esoteric order to the world and made seeking its ...

and the ideas of

Joachim of Fiore Joachim of Fiore, also known as Joachim of Flora and in Italian Gioacchino da Fiore (c. 1135 – 30 March 1202), was an Italian Christian theologian, Catholic abbot, and the founder of the monastic order of San Giovanni in Fiore. According to the ...

Ancestry

Sources: This website, which is focused on the Frankenberg family history, says that Abraham's father was Dietrich von Frankenberg (1565–1622).

Notes

References

*Bruckner, J., ''Abraham von Franckenberg: A bibliographical catalogue with a shortlist of his library'', Wiesbaden: Harrasowitz, 1988. *Butzmann, H., ''Die Blanckenburger Handschriften (Kataloge der Herzog-August-Bibliothek Wolfenbüttel)'', Frankfurt/Main: Klostermann, 1966. *Peuckert, W.-E., ''Die Rosenkreuzer: Zur Geschichte einer Reformation'', Jena: Diederichs, 1928. *Reeves, M., ''Joachim of Fiore and the prophetic future'', London: SPCK, 1976. *Reeves, M. and B. Hirsch-Reich, ''The'' Figurae ''of Joachim of Fiore'', Oxford: Clarendon, 1972. *Stockum, T.C. von, ''Zwischen Jakob Böhme und Johannes Scheffler: Abraham von Franckenberg (1593-1652) und Daniel Czepko von Reigersfeld (1605-1660)'', Amsterdam: Mededelingen der Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie von Wetenschappen, 1967. *Digital edition of "Raphael": https://web.archive.org/web/20110605025508/http://diglib.hab.de/wdb.php?dir=drucke%2Fxb-2820

External links

The Life and Death of Jacob Boehme by Abraham von Franckenberg

The Correspondence of Abraham von Franckenberg
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Franckenberg, Abraham von 1593 births 1652 deaths 17th-century Christian mystics People from Austrian Silesia Christian hymnwriters Christian poets German poets German Lutherans German untitled nobility German Protestant hymnwriters Protestant mystics