Lucas Bacmeister (18 October 15309 July 1608) was 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 ...
theologian
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 ...
and church music composer.
Alternative spellings of Bacmeister which may be encountered in sources include Backmeister and Bacmeisterus. Lucas Bacmeister (15301608) is sometimes identified as Lucas Bacmeister the elder in order to differentiate him from his younger son, Lucas Bacmeister the younger (15701638) who was also a Lutheran Theologian of note.
Life
Lucas Bacmeister was born in
Lüneburg
Lüneburg (officially the ''Hanseatic City of Lüneburg'', German: ''Hansestadt Lüneburg'', , Low German ''Lümborg'', Latin ''Luneburgum'' or ''Lunaburgum'', Old High German ''Luneburc'', Old Saxon ''Hliuni'', Polabian ''Glain''), also called ...
, a short distance inland/up
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of ...
from
Hamburg
Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...
. Johannes Bacmeister, his father, was a master brewer. His mother, born Anna Lübbing, also came from a prominent family in the town. In 1548 he enrolled at the
Leucorea University in
Wittenberg
Wittenberg ( , ; 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 River Elbe, north of ...
.
[ In order to avoid the plague which was lingering in Wittenberg he moved again in 1552, this time to the court of King Christian of ]Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
where he was employed till 1555 as a tutor to the king's children, the princes Magnus
Magnus, meaning "Great" in Latin, was used as cognomen of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus in the first century BC. The best-known use of the name during the Roman Empire is for the fourth-century Western Roman Emperor Magnus Maximus. The name gained wid ...
and Johann
Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name ''Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning " Yahweh is Gracio ...
.[ In 1555 he returned to Wittenberg and resumed his own studies, obtaining a ]Magister degree
A magister degree (also magistar, female form: magistra; from la, magister, "teacher") is an academic degree used in various systems of higher education.
The magister degree arose in medieval universities in Europe and was originally equal to th ...
in 1557. In 1558 he was accepted as an Adjunct to the Philosophy
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. ...
faculty and switched to the study of Jurisprudence
Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning ...
and then 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 th ...
.[
In 1559 he relocated to ]Kolding
Kolding () is a Danish seaport located at the head of Kolding Fjord in the Region of Southern Denmark. It is the seat of Kolding Municipality. It is a transportation, commercial, and manufacturing centre, and has numerous industrial companie ...
where he was employed by the widowed Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg as court preacher. On the recommendation of Philip Melanchthon
Philip Melanchthon. (born Philipp Schwartzerdt; 16 February 1497 – 19 April 1560) was a German Lutheran reformer, collaborator with Martin Luther, the first systematic theologian of the Protestant Reformation, intellectual leader of the L ...
he then went on to Rostock
Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state ...
where at Easter 1562 he took over the post of Superintendent
Superintendent may refer to:
*Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank
*Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator
*Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...
, simultaneously also becoming a Teacher/Professor of Theology at the university. To validate his appointment as a professor he was required to achieve a doctorate, which he did in 1564. In 1574 he was in Lübeck on account of the Saliger Conflicts (''"... wegen des Saligerschen Streites "'').[
In 1581 the Protestant authorities (''"evangelischen Stände"'') in ]Lower Austria
Lower Austria (german: Niederösterreich; Austro-Bavarian: ''Niedaöstareich'', ''Niedaestareich'') is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Since 1986, the capital of Lower Austria has been Sankt P ...
appointed Bacmeister to lead a visitation during the course of which he examined the preaching in four synodical assemblies: for the Manhartisberg region in Horn, for the Wienerwald region in Schallaburg, for the "unter dem Wienerwald" region in Castle Rodaun and for the "unter dem Manhartsberg" region in Feldsberg
Valtice (; german: Feldsberg) is a town in Břeclav District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 3,600 inhabitants. It is known as part of Lednice–Valtice Cultural Landscape, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The town c ...
and Enzersdorf.[ In the context of the intensification of the political tensions arising from the Reformation, the exercise can be seen as part of a larger push to counter the rise of Flacian fundamentalism. Later in 1581 he visited ]Bremen
Bremen ( Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state cons ...
in connection with issues involving the Sacrament
A sacrament is a Christian rite that is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol of the rea ...
. (The city was experiencing intense rivalries between different interpretations of protestantism at this time.) 1582 found Bacmeister in Güstrow in connection with the Apologetics
Apologetics (from Greek , "speaking in defense") is the religious discipline of defending religious doctrines through systematic argumentation and discourse. Early Christian writers (c. 120–220) who defended their beliefs against critics an ...
over the Book of Concord
''The Book of Concord'' (1580) or ''Concordia'' (often referred to as the ''Lutheran Confessions'') is the historic doctrinal standard of the Lutheran Church, consisting of ten credal documents recognized as authoritative in Lutheranism since ...
.[
Of particular significance for ]Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg (; nds, label= Low German, Mękel(n)borg ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schweri ...
church history was Bacmeister's "Bann", written for the Rostock church ministry, which retained canonical legal authority for a long time. Later he also controlled the final version of the Mecklenburg Church Ordinance of 1602, after its original author, David Chytraeus
David Chytraeus or Chyträus (26 February 1530 – 25 June 1600) was a German Lutheran theologian, reformer and historian. He was a disciple of Melancthon.
He was born at Ingelfingen. His real surname was Kochhafe, which in Classical Greek is χ ...
, left it incomplete when he died in 1600. Bacmeister had also produced, in 1577, the Rostock Hymnal which opened the way for Joachim Burmeister church music publications. Bacmeister's own hymn "Ach leue Her im höchsten thron" appeared in 1565 during the depths of the Rostock
Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state ...
plague outbreak.[
]
Patriarch
Through the fecundity of his first marriage Lucas Bacmeister became the ancestor of some distinguished branches of the Bacmeister family, several of which continue to flourish. His first marriage took place in Kolding
Kolding () is a Danish seaport located at the head of Kolding Fjord in the Region of Southern Denmark. It is the seat of Kolding Municipality. It is a transportation, commercial, and manufacturing centre, and has numerous industrial companie ...
in 1560. His bride was Johanna Bording (15441584), the daughter of the Rostock
Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state ...
Professor of Medicine Jacob Bording and his Avignon
Avignon (, ; ; oc, Avinhon, label= Provençal or , ; la, Avenio) is the prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the commune had ...
born wife, Francesca Negrone.
This first marriage produced ten recorded sons and one daughter.[ These included the Hebrew scholar and Lutheran theologiamn Jacob Bacmeister (15621591), the medical professor Johann Bacmeister (15631631), the theologian Lucas Bacmeister the younger (15701638)) and the physician Matthäus Bacmeister (15801626).][ Another son, Heinrich Bacmeister (15841628), became a lawyer and married Sara Dorothea Reiser (15991634) from Lübeck, becoming the progenitor of what became the Württemberg Bacmeister line.][ The daughter, Margaretha (15681641), married the Lübeck pastor Johann Stolterfoht, becoming the mother of Jacob Stolterfoht.][
After his first wife died Lucas Bacmeister married Katharina Beselin (1536–1593), widow of the Rostock municipal leader Johannes Herverden. When she died he married Anna Vischer (ca. 1560–1638) from Aalst in ]Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...
. As far as is known, however, the second and third marriages were childless.
Output (selection)
* ''Formae precationum piarum collectae ex scriptis Ph. Melanchthonis.'' Wittenberg 1559, 1560, 1588
* ''Von christlichen Bann, kurtzer und gründlicher Bericht aus Gottes Wort und aus Dr. M. Lutheri Schriften, durch die Diener der Kirche Christie zu Rostock zusammengetragen.'' Rostock 1565
* ''De modo concionandi.'' Rostock 1570, 1598
* ''Historia ecclesiarum Rostoch s. narratio de initio et progressu Lutheranismi Rostochio.'' (bei Westphalen vol. I., Sp. 1553)
* ''Verschiedene Disputationen über biblisch theologische Fragen'' (so 1569 üb. sacerdotium u. sacrificium Christi nach d. Hebräerbrief) ''und einige bibelkundliche Arhh.; Hist. ecclesiae et Ministerii Rostochiensis.'' herausgegeben von E. J. von Westphalen. In: ''Monumenta inedita rerum Germanicarum praecipue Cimbricarum et Megalopolitensium.'' vol. 1, Leipzig 1739, Sp.1553-1656.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bacmeister, Lucas
People from Lüneburg
16th-century German Protestant theologians
Sacred music composers
Academic staff of the University of Wittenberg
Academic staff of the University of Rostock
Heads of universities in Germany
1530 births
1608 deaths
16th-century German musicians
16th-century German composers
German Lutheran theologians
16th-century German male writers
16th-century Lutheran theologians
17th-century Lutheran theologians