Johann Habermann, also Johannes Avenarius (10 August 1516 – 5 December 1590) was a German

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 ...

theologian.

Life

He was born at

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(92 m. w. of

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) on 10 August 1516. He went over to the

Lutheran Church 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 ...

about 1540, studied theology, and filled a number of pastorates. After a brief academic activity at

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and

Wittenberg Wittenberg ( , ; Low Saxon language, Low Saxon: ''Wittenbarg''; meaning ''White Mountain''; officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg (''Luther City Wittenberg'')), is the fourth largest town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Wittenberg is situated on the Ri ...

, in 1575, he accepted a call as

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of Naumburg-Zeitz. He died at

Zeitz Zeitz ( hsb, Žič) is a town in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the river White Elster, in the triangle of the federal states Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia and Saxony. History Zeitz was first recorded und ...

(23 m. s.w. of

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) on 5 December 1590.

Works

Though praised by his contemporaries as an ''

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated 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 writings by the Israelites. The ...

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

, his significance lies in the practical field. He published a number of sermons, a ''Trostbüchlein'', a life of

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, names and titles), was ...

, and above all the prayer-book, ''Christliche Gebet für alle Not und Stende der gantzen Christenheit'' (1565, 2. edition 1567), in which, for the first time, the prayers for various Christian needs were apportioned among the several days of the week. With a few exceptions the prayers are written in plain Biblical language, without ornament. The work was translated into Latin, English (as ''The Enimie of Securitie,'' London, 1580), and French, and was widely circulated in Protestant circles. Despite its occasional crudities of expression the book is still used; and some of the prayers have passed into church books.

References

* Jens Lyster: ''Johannes Avenarius (Habermann), Johannes Mathesius und Nicolaus Selnecker als Vorbilder für den dänischen Theologen und Liederdichter Hans Christensen Sthen'' (1999), in: 2012, page 222-233 * Jens Lyster (ed): Hans Christensen Sthens Skrifter II, ''Christelige og vdkaarne Bøner og En Liden Haandbog'', abermann's prayerbook in the Danish translation from 1571 by Hans Christensen Sthen, page 13-180, comments and postscript page 181-288edited by Jens Lyster assisted by Jens Højgård, 2003,

Society for Danish Language and Literature A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Socie ...

, Copenhagen * Jens Lyster: ''Avenarii bönner i Sthens oversättelse. Paa sporet af den danske bönnebogs 1. udgave 1571'' venarii Prayers in Sthens Translation. On the track of the first Edition of the Danish prayerbook 1571in: Kirkehistoriske Samlinger 1976, Akademisk Forlag, Copenhagen, page 67-83.

External links

* * *
Habermann's Prayerbook 1565 and 1567
{{DEFAULTSORT:Habermann, Johann 1516 births 1590 deaths People from Cheb German Bohemian people German Lutheran theologians Lutheran writers Lutheran sermon writers German male non-fiction writers