Anton Praetorius (1560 – 6 December 1613) was a German

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

who spoke out against the persecution of witches (

witchhunt A witch-hunt, or a witch purge, is a search for people who have been labeled witches or a search for evidence of witchcraft. The classical period of witch-hunts in Early Modern Europe and Colonial America took place in the Early Modern per ...

s, witchcraft trials) and against

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogational torture, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. definitions of tortur ...

Life and writings

Praetorius was born in Lippstadt as the son of Matthes Schulze. He later changed his name to the Latin ''

Praetorius Praetorius, Prätorius, Prætorius was the name of several musicians and scholars in Germany. In 16th and 17th century Germany it became a fashion for educated people named " Schulze," " Schultheiß," or " Richter" (which means "judge"), to Latini ...

''. He studied theology and became principal of the humanistic Latin school in

Kamen Kamen () is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, in the district Unna. Geography Kamen is situated at the east end of the Ruhr area, approximately 10 km south-west of Hamm and 25 km north-east of Dortmund. Neighbouring cities ...

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. There, he married, but his wife Maria died of the plague. They had one child, Johannes. As the first Calvinist pastor in the parish of Dittelsheim, he undertook a trip to

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

, the centre of Calvinist theology in Germany. Praetorius was so impressed by the Great Wine Barrel in Heidelberg Castle that he published a poem with the title "Vas Heidelbergense" in October 1595, praising its size as an apparent proof of the superiority of the Calvinist religion. In his poem on Wolfgang Ernst, Count of Ysenburg, Büdingen and Birstein ("De pii magistratus officio"), he asked the Christian governments for a reformation of nation and church along the principles of the Bible and the Calvinist faith. Subsequently, the count called him as a princely preacher to his castle in Birstein near

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 ...

. In the town of Birstein, Praetorius published church songs, a catechism, and a book for families about Christian education in 1597. In 1602, he made a contribution to the discussion about the interpretation of the

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and the Sacraments in his book ''De Sacrosanctis novi foederis Jesu Christi''.

Fight against the persecution of witches

In 1597 Praetorius was appointed as pastor to the Count of Büdingen/ Ysenburg in Birstein and had to witness the torture of 4 women accused of witchcraft. According to the court records, Reverend Praetorius was so upset about the torture of the accused women that he pressed for a stop in the trial against the last surviving woman. His protest against the torture can be found in the record of the witch-trial of Birstein 1597: "As the pastor has violently protested against the torture of the women, it has therefore been stopped this time." As a consequence Anton Praetorius was dismissed by the count. In his new parochy in Laudenbach near Heidelberg he wrote the book ''Gründlicher Bericht über Zauberey und Zauberer'' (''Thorough Report about Witchcraft and Witches'') to protest against torture and the prosecution of witches. At first he published the book in 1598 under the name of his son Johannes Schulze ("Johannes Scultetus"). In 1602 he dared to publish the book under his own name. The book was published again in 1613 and posthumously in 1629. Praetorius was one of the first to describe the terrible situation of the

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, corre ...

ers and to protest against torture, and with his "Bericht" Praetorius publicly objected to the prevailing attitude in the church (a view held by

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

s as well as

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

s such as

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Lutherani ...

and John Calvin) on the torture and burning of witches. Praetorius died in Laudenbach.

Publications (German and Latin)

* Vas Heidelbergense, Heidelberg, October 1595 (Poem about the 1. Great Wine Barrel in the Castle of Heidelberg. Only one remaining print, translated into German by Burghard Schmanck) * (Poem on Wolfgang Ernst, Earl of Ysenburg, Büdingen and Birstein). Heidelberg, Printed by Christoph Löw, 1596 (Only one remaining print, translated into German by Burghard Schmanck) * Hauptstück (catechism) . Printed in Lich by Nicolaum Erbenium. 1597. Only one remaining print, fragment * , (conversation in the family about Christian education) Printed in Lich 1597 * . (Thorough Report about Witchcraft and Witches) By Joannem Scultetum Westphalo camensem. (Johannes Scultetum is a pseudonym of Anton Praetorius) printed in Lich by Nicolas Erbenis. 1598 * . Poem for the wedding of Jan Gruter, (translated into German by Burghard Schmanck) 1601 (Only one remaining print) * , (Thorough Report about Witchcraft and Witches) printed in Lich/ 1602 * ' (about the sacraments) printed by Wolgangus Kezelius and Conradus Nebenius, Lich 1602 * (Poem for a wedding of a pastor) Lancellotus Heidelberg (only one remaining print) * , (Thorough Report about Witchcraft and Witches) printed 1613 in Heidelberg by Johann Lancellot/ Andreae Cambier. * , (Thorough Report about Witchcraft and Witches) printed 1629 in Frankfurt am Main by Johann Niclas Stoltzenbergern/ Johann Carl Unckels * several handwritten letters

Tributes

Einweihung Anton Praetorius Weg Lippstadt 7

The church of Laudenbach displays a plaque in memory of Praetorius and on May 7, 2015 the city of Lippstadt named a path in his honor.

References

Bibliography (in German)

* Hartmut Hegeler: ''Anton Praetorius, Kämpfer gegen Hexenprozesse und Folter'', (fighter against the persecution of witches and against torture) Unna, 2002 * Hartmut Hegeler und Stefan Wiltschko: ''Anton Praetorius und das 1. Große Fass von Heidelberg'', (the 1. Great Wine Barrel in the Castle of Heidelberg) Unna, 2003 * Anton Praetorius, De Sacrosanctis Sacramentis novi foederis Jesu Christi, Eine reformatorische Sakramentenlehre von 1602 über die hochheiligen Sakramente des Neuen Bundes Jesu Christi (teachings about the sacraments) Lateinische Originalschrift (the original writing in Latin with a translation into German, translated by Burghard Schmanck), herausgegeben und übersetzt von Burghard Schmanck, Bautz Verlag, Nordhausen 2010,

External links

(Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon, Verlag Traugott Bautz)

biography and literature about Anton Praetorius

Praetorius as pastor in Dittelsheim (with pictures)

* ttp://www.schmanck.de/desacrFormat20Auszug.pdf De sacrosanctis, Homilia quinta: De infantibus ante baptismum mortuis Latin text {{DEFAULTSORT:Praetorius, Anton 1560 births 1613 deaths 16th-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians 16th-century German writers 16th-century German male writers 16th-century Latin-language writers 17th-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians 17th-century German Protestant theologians 17th-century German writers 17th-century German male writers 17th-century Latin-language writers Calvinist and Reformed hymnwriters German biographers German Calvinist and Reformed theologians German Calvinist and Reformed ministers German Protestant hymnwriters German Renaissance humanists German male non-fiction writers Male biographers Penologists People from Lippstadt Critics of witch hunting Witchcraft in Germany