Olof Palmgren (18 July 1783 – 14 July 1814) was a Swedish farmer and one of the leaders of the Christian
''läsare'' (Reader) movement starting around 1810, of which his sect was known as the "Palmgren awakening".
Biography
Palmgren was born in Överluleå socken, Sweden, in 1783, to farmer Olof Persson. He took over his father's farm in
Svartbyn at the age of seventeen. In 1803, he married Brita Stina Pehrsdotter.
The
Pietist New Reader movement came to
Piteå
Piteå () is a locality and the seat of Piteå Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden. Piteå is Sweden's 58th largest city, with a population of 23,326.
Geography
Piteå is located at the mouth of the Pite River ( sv, Piteälven), at th ...
around 1810 through one of Palmgren's relatives, who had read
Herrnhuter (Moravian Church)
David Hollatz' work. Under the influence of
Martin Luther's writings and the movement, Palmgren underwent a conversion or "awakening", after which he began preaching in his home village as well as in other villages. His preaching came to
Harads and
Svartlå by 1811.
Accused by the vicar of the parish of violating the
Conventicle Act, banning all preaching and services outside the
Church of Sweden, he was questioned in 1812 both by the diocesan chapter and before the district court, which sentenced him to a fine for unlawful gatherings and having spoken slanderously about the clergy.
After private instruction in his hometown and from 1813 in Stockholm, Palmgren became a student in
Uppsala in 1814 and enrolled at the seminary there led by . Palmgren had planned to be ordained in the state church.
Palmgren seems to have gained Ödmann's confidence and was allowed to preach several times in the cathedral. Palmgren's preaching represented a return to Luther and a critique of the moralism of the time – he emphasized
grace and faith over works. In the last years of his life, under the influence of Ödmann, he seems to have moved closer to ecclesiastical preaching. In 1813 he published a new edition of Luther's ''Commentary on Galatians''.
After falling ill with tuberculosis, Palmgren was forced to interrupt his studies to return home, but died on the journey in 1814 in Nätra socken, Sweden.
See also
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Radical Pietism
References
Notes
Sources
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Further reading
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{{Authority control
1783 births
1814 deaths
19th-century Swedish farmers
Swedish religious leaders
Founders of new religious movements
Pietism
Radical Pietism