Jean-Frédéric Osterwald (or Ostervald) (25 November 1663 – 14 April 1747) was a

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

pastor from

Neuchâtel , neighboring_municipalities= Auvernier, Boudry, Chabrey (VD), Colombier, Cressier, Cudrefin (VD), Delley-Portalban (FR), Enges, Fenin-Vilars-Saules, Hauterive, Saint-Blaise, Savagnier , twintowns = Aarau (Switzerland), Besançon (France), ...

(now in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

Life

He was born at

in 1663 in a patrician family, a son of the Reformed pastor Johann Rudolf Ostervald. He was educated at

Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...

and at

Saumur Saumur () is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France. The town is located between the Loire and Thouet rivers, and is surrounded by the vineyards of Saumur itself, Chinon, Bourgueil, Coteaux du Layon, etc.. Saumur statio ...

(where he graduated), studied

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

Orléans Orléans (;"Orleans"
(US) and Claude Pajon Claude Pajon (1626 – September 27, 1685) was a 17th-century French theologian. He followed the teachings of John Cameron which was at odds with the dominant Calvinist views which led to the "Pajonist controversy" in 1668. After studying at Blo ...

, at

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

under

Jean Claude Jean Claude (1619 – 13 January 1687) was a French Protestant divine. He was born at La Sauvetat-du-Dropt near Agen. After studying at Montauban, Jean Claude entered the ministry in 1645. For eight years he was professor of theology in th ...

and at

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

under

Louis Tronchin Louis Tronchin (born at Geneva Dec. 4, 1629; died there Sept. 8, 1705) was a Genevan Calvinist theologian and the son of Théodore Tronchin. Life He studied at the Protestant Academy of Saumur under Moses Amyraut, whose "hypothetical universalis ...

( de), and was ordained to the ministry in his native place in 1683. He spent most of his life at Neuchâtel, first as a deacon, then from 1699 a pastor, and finally he was elected

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

. Besides this he gave lectures at the academy of theology. As preacher, pastor, lecturer and author, he attained a position of great influence in his day, he and his friends, J. A. Turretini of Geneva and S. Werenfels (1657-1740) of

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...

, forming what was once called the Swiss triumvirate.Encyclopédie des sciences religieuses
Paris, 1881, t. XI, p. 291. In matters of theology, Ostervald thought to show a leaning towards

Socinianism Socinianism () is a nontrinitarian belief system deemed heretical by the Catholic Church and other Christian traditions. Named after the Italian theologians Lelio Sozzini (Latin: Laelius Socinus) and Fausto Sozzini (Latin: Faustus Socinus), uncle ...

and embraced

Arminianism Arminianism is a branch of Protestantism based on the theological ideas of the Dutch Reformed theologian Jacobus Arminius (1560–1609) and his historic supporters known as Remonstrants. Dutch Arminianism was originally articulated in the ''Re ...

, emphasizing the freewill of the man. His innovative proposals embraced dogmatics,

exegesis Exegesis ( ; from the Ancient Greek, Greek , from , "to lead out") is a critical explanation or interpretation (logic), interpretation of a text. The term is traditionally applied to the interpretation of Bible, Biblical works. In modern usage, ...

(his important adaptation of a translation of, and commentary on the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

liturgy Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. ''Liturgy'' can also be used to refer specifically to public worship by Christians. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and partic ...

(Bible reading instead of preaching),

hymnology Hymnology (from Greek ὕμνος ''hymnos'', "song of praise" and -λογία ''-logia'', "study of") is the scholarly study of religious song, or the hymn, in its many aspects, with particular focus on choral and congregational song. It may be m ...

and moral theology (importance of good deeds and moral life). His writings had a great influence, bearing spiritual renewal among Waldensian, Dutch,

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

, Hungarian and

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...

n Protestants. Moreover, the English Royal Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts – of which he was a member – brought his teachings to the countries of the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and the West-Indian Islands. His highly influential oeuvre was later called "the second Reformation". In August 1746 he had a stroke in the pulpit. He died in Neuchâtel on 14 April 1747 after 61 years of service. His pastor's office was inherited by his son Jean Rodolphe (1687-1764).

Works

Ostervald's major works are: *''Traité des sources de la corruption qui regne aujourd'huy parmi les chrétiens'' (1700), translated into

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, Dutch and

, Hungarian practically a plea for a more ethical and less doctrinal type of

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

; *''Catéchisme ou instruction dans la religion chrétienne'' (1702), also translated into English, Dutch and German; *''Traité contre l'impureté'' (1707); *''Sermons sur divers textes'' (1722-1724); *''Theologiae compendium'' (1739); and *''Traduction de la Bible'' (1724). All his writings were popular among French Protestants; many were translated into various languages; Ostervald's

, a revision of the French translation, in particular, was well known in Great Britain.

Notes and references

Citations

Sources

* *

External links

La Sainte Bible, Lire l'Ostervald Frossard en ligne!
– online version of Ostervald's Bible, hosted on Ostervald-Frossard.net, complete with search engine and lite, efficient browsing The Archives of the State of Neuchâtel hold collections related to Jean-Frédéric Ostervald: * .
This collection contains the archives of the society of Neuchâtel pastors and ministers (from the 13th to the 19th century) including Jean-Frédéric Ostervald. *
This collection contains mainly particular acts, correspondence, and a small iconographic collection of Ostervald's family. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ostervald, Jean Frederic 1663 births 1747 deaths 18th-century Calvinist and Reformed ministers 18th-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians Arminian ministers Arminian theologians People from Neuchâtel