Joachim Neander (165031 May 1680) was a German Reformed (

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 C ...

)

Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chri ...

teacher,

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

hymnwriter A hymnwriter (or hymn writer, hymnist, hymnodist, hymnographer, etc.) is someone who writes the text, music, or both of hymns. In the Judeo-Christian tradition, the composition of hymns dates back to before the time of David, who composed many of ...

whose most famous hymn, '' Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of Creation'' (german: Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren) has been described by John Julian in his '' A Dictionary of Hymnology'' as "a magnificent hymn of praise to God, perhaps the finest creation of its author, and of the first rank in its class." Due to its popularity it has been translated several times into English—

Catherine Winkworth Catherine Winkworth (13 September 1827 – 1 July 1878) was an English hymnwriter and educator. She translated the German chorale tradition of church hymns for English speakers, for which she is recognized in the calendar of the Evangelical Luth ...

being one of the translators in the 19th century—and the hymn has appeared in most major hymnals. Neander wrote about 60 hymns and provided tunes for many of them. He is considered by many to be the first important German hymnist after the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

and is regarded as the outstanding hymnwriter of the German Reformed Church.

Life

Joachim Neander was born in

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 ...

, the son of a

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

teacher. His grandfather, a musician, had changed the family name from the original German ''Neumann'' ('New man' in English) to the Graeco-Roman form ''Neander'', following the fashion of the time. After the death of his father, he could not afford to study at a famous university. He therefore 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 th ...

in his hometown from 1666 to 1670. At first, his heart was not in it. It was only when he heard a sermon of

Theodor Undereyk Theodor Undereyck (born 15 June 1635 in Duisburg, died 1 January 1693 in Bremen) was a Protestant pastor, spiritual writer and pioneer of pietism in the German Reformed Church. Theodor Undereyck was born in 1635, the son of businessman Gerhard ...

(shortly before the end of his course) that his beliefs became serious. In 1671 he became a private tutor in

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

, and in 1674 he became a teacher in a Latin school in

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in ...

, one step before becoming a minister. While living there, he liked to go to the nearby valley of the Düssel river, nature being the inspiration for his poems. He also held gatherings and services in the valley, at which he gave

sermon A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. ...

s. The

Neandertal Neanderthals (, also ''Homo neanderthalensis'' and erroneously ''Homo sapiens neanderthalensis''), also written as Neandertals, are an extinct species or subspecies of archaic humans who lived in Eurasia until about 40,000 years ago. While the ...

(originally ''Neanderthal'', from German ''Thal'' for "valley," now spelled ''Tal'', though both ''t'' and ''th'' represent a ''t''-sound) was renamed in his honor in the early 19th century. In 1679, Neander became a

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 ...

of St Martin’s church in

, as his popularity with the common people had caused problems with the church administration in Düsseldorf. One year later, at the age of 30, he died of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, ...

Notable works

Being the first important hymn-writer of the German Reformed Church, Neander wrote his creations mostly at Düsseldorf. The minister and elders of the Reformed Church had complete control of the school at Düsseldorf. About July 1673 to about May 1677 the minister was Sylvester Lürsen (a native of Bremen, and a few years older than Neander), a man of ability and earnestness, but jealous, and, in later times at least, quarrelsome. Neander worked harmoniously alongside him at first, frequently preaching in the church and assisting in the visitation of the sick. But he soon introduced practices which inevitably brought on a conflict. He began to hold prayer meetings of his own, without informing or consulting the minister or elders; he began to absent himself from Holy Communion, on the grounds that he could not conscientiously commune along with the unconverted, and also persuaded others to follow this example; and became less regular in his attendance at the ordinary services of the Church. Besides these causes of offence, he drew out a new timetable for the school, made alterations on the school buildings, held examinations and appointed holidays without consulting anyone. The result of all this was a Visitation of the school on Nov. 29, 1676, and then his suspension from school and pulpit on Feb. 3, 1677. On Feb. 17 he signed a full and definite declaration by which "without mental reservations" he bound himself not to repeat any of the acts complained of; and thereupon was permitted to resume his duties as rector but not as assistant minister. The suspension thus lasted only 14 days, and his salary was never actually stopped. The statements that he was banished from Düsseldorf, and that he lived for months in a cave in the Neanderthal near Mettmann are therefore without foundation. Still his having had to sign such a document was a humiliation which he must have felt keenly, and when, after Lürsen's departure, the second master of the Latin school was appointed permanent assistant pastor, this feeling would be renewed.

Creation of hymns

A number were circulated among his friends at Düsseldorf in MS., but they were first collected and published after his removal to Bremen, and appeared as: * A und Ώ, Joachimi Neandri Glaub-und Liebesübung: — auffgemuntert durch ein fällige Bundes Lieder und Danck-Psalmen, Bremen, Hermann Brauer, 1680. * Second edition, Bremen, 1683. * Third edition, Bremen, 1687. The so-called third edition at Wesel, 1686, also found in Berlin, was evidently pirated. Other editions rapidly followed until we find the complete set (i.e., 57 or 58) formally incorporated as part of a hymnbook, e.g. in the Marburg Reformed Gesang-Buch, 1722, where the first part consists of Lobwasser's Psalter, the second of Neander's Bundeslieder, and the third of other hymns. Neander's Bundeslieder also form a division of the Lemgo Reformed Gesang-Buch, 1722. * Fourth edition, Frankfurt, 1689. These editions contain 57 hymns. * Fifth edition, Frankfurt and Leipzig, 1691, edited by G. C. Strattner, eight hymns were added as being also by Neander. The whole of these editions are in the Royal Library, Berlin. One of his favourites book used in the meetings conducted by G. Tersteegen, which in the fifth edition, Solingen, 1760, has the title ''Gott-geheiligtes Harfen-Spiel der Kinder Zion; bestehend in Joachimi Neandri sämtlichen Bundes-Liedern''. In this way, especially in the district near Düsseldorf and on the Ruhr, Neander's name was honoured and beloved long after it had passed out of memory at Bremen.

References

External links

* * *
Hymnary entry for Joachim Neander
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neander, Joachim 1650 births 1680 deaths German Baroque composers Calvinist and Reformed hymnwriters German classical composers German male classical composers German Protestant hymnwriters German male writers 17th-century classical composers German-language poets People from Düsseldorf 17th-century male musicians

Life

Notable works

Creation of hymns

Further reading

References

External links