Peter Spaak (6 June 1696 - 2 December 1769) was a Swedish

Protestant Reformer Protestant Reformers were those theologians whose careers, works and actions brought about the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. In the context of the Reformation, Martin Luther was the first reformer (sharing his views publicly in 15 ...

. Challenging the

Lutheran orthodoxy Lutheran orthodoxy was an era in the history of Lutheranism, which began in 1580 from the writing of the ''Book of Concord'' and ended at the Age of Enlightenment. Lutheran orthodoxy was paralleled by similar eras in Calvinism and tridentine Ro ...

as an early proponent of

freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freed ...

in Sweden, he founded the society of Pietists based in the Diocese of Gothenburg, a society part of which was later integrated into the

Church of Sweden The Church of Sweden ( sv, Svenska kyrkan) is an Evangelical Lutheran national church in Sweden. A former state church, headquartered in Uppsala, with around 5.6 million members at year end 2021, it is the largest Christian denomination in Sw ...

Biography

Peter Spaak was born 1696 in

Uddevalla Uddevalla (old no, Oddevold) is a town and the seat of Uddevalla Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. In 2015, it had a population of 34 781. It is located at a bay of the south-eastern part of Skagerrak. The beaches of Uddevalla ar ...

, Bohuslän, Sweden. His father Elias Jonæ Spaak served as the local Postmaster and Deputy

Custom Custom, customary, or consuetudinary may refer to: Traditions, laws, and religion * Convention (norm), a set of agreed, stipulated or generally accepted rules, norms, standards or criteria, often taking the form of a custom * Norm (social), a r ...

Chief Inspector Chief inspector (Ch Insp) is a rank used in police forces which follow the British model. In countries outside Britain, it is sometimes referred to as chief inspector of police (CIP). Usage by country Australia The rank of chief inspector is us ...

, and his maternal grandfather was the

Chief Judge A chief judge (also known as presiding judge, president judge or principal judge) is the highest-ranking or most senior member of a lower court or circuit court with more than one judge. According to the Federal judiciary of the United States, th ...

Johan Larsson Crantzberg. Peter Spaak's brother Magnus Spaak (1699–1768) emigrated to

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, becoming the primogenitor of the family cadet branch there, including his nephew :fr:Jacques Joseph Spaak (1742-1825). Peter Spaak was married twice. The first time was to Clara Charlotta Esberg, daughter of Zacharias Esberg the older,

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

electus Electus was a production company founded by Ben Silverman in 2009. It was financed by IAC. The company had development deals with NBC, ABC, MTV, VH1, Facebook, Yahoo!, and AOL. In 2018, IAC sold Electus to Propagate Content. History and par ...

of the Diocese of Växjö and sister of Zacharias Esberg the Younger,

vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...

of Uddevalla. His second marriage was to Ingrid Maria Bagge, daughter of Eva Christina Radhe Palmencrona, and great granddaughter of Nils Fredriksson Bagge,

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

Marstrand Marstrand () is a seaside locality situated in Kungälv Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 1,320 inhabitants in 2010. The town got its name from its location on the island of Marstrand. Despite its small population, for histori ...

. Professionally, Spaak served as

of the Customs service, and Postmaster in Uddevalla. Influenced by the

pietism Pietism (), also known as Pietistic Lutheranism, is a movement within Lutheranism that combines its emphasis on biblical doctrine with an emphasis on individual piety and living a holy Christian life, including a social concern for the needy an ...

of the

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 **Ge ...

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 ...

Johann Konrad Dippel Johann Konrad Dippel, also spelled Johann Conrad Dippel (10 August 1673 – 25 April 1734), was a German Pietist theologian, physician, alchemist and occultist. Life Dippel was born at Castle Frankenstein near Mühltal and Darmstadt, and ther ...

, along with Thomas Leopold and Johan Stendahl, Peter Spaak became one of the most prominent early proponents of the movement in Sweden. Originally, the new ideas were met with much opposition, culminating in the Conventicle Act in 1726. Like Leopold and Stendahl, at one time Spaak was threatened with

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sentence for

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...

. However, contrary to the fate of the former two he was eventually relieved of the allegations, attributed to his contacts with the authorities, including notably family connections to clerics such as Zacharias Esberg the older and Zacharias Esberg the Younger, as well as Jacob Benzelius and

Erik Benzelius the younger Erik Benzelius the younger (27 January 1675 in Uppsala – 23 September 1743) was a priest, theologian, librarian, bishop of Linköping, 1731–1742 and Archbishop of Uppsala, Sweden, 1742–1743. He was a highly learned man and one of Sweden' ...

, the latter both subsequent archbishops of Uppsala. The movement gained significant influence throughout the Diocese of Gothenburg. Spaak established a society based in Uddevalla. For a period from 1734 onwards, Spaak resided in Stockholm, where he came in contact with the Skevikare radicals on Värmdö. Around this time, Riksdag meetings evaluated the influences of

Pietism Pietism (), also known as Pietistic Lutheranism, is a movement within Lutheranism that combines its emphasis on biblical doctrine with an emphasis on individual piety and living a holy Christian life, including a social concern for the needy an ...

in the realm, having gained supporters also among mainline Protestant clergy, with Spaak, Sven Rosén, and others making early appeals to

in opposition to the staunch

. Peter Spaak died 1769 in Gothenburg. Soon after, the initial criticism by the state authorities against the perceived

cultural radicalism Cultural radicalism (Danish: ''Kulturradikalisme'') was a movement in first Danish, but later also Nordic culture in general. It was particularly strong in the Interwar Period, but its philosophy has its origin in the 1870s and a great deal of m ...

of the dissident Petists was relaxed, and the movement gained more popularity, right up to the

Royal court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word "court" may also be appl ...

. King

Gustav III Gustav III (29 March 1792), also called ''Gustavus III'', was King of Sweden from 1771 until his assassination in 1792. He was the eldest son of Adolf Frederick of Sweden and Queen Louisa Ulrika of Prussia. Gustav was a vocal opponent of what ...

visited the Skevikare

incognito Incognito is an English adjective meaning "in disguise", "having taken steps to conceal one's identity". Incognito may also refer to: Film and television * ''Incognito'' (1937 film), a Danish film * ''Incognito'' (1997 film), an American crime ...

in 1779. King

Gustav IV Adolf Gustav IV Adolf or Gustav IV Adolph (1 November 1778 – 7 February 1837) was King of Sweden from 1792 until he was deposed in a coup in 1809. He was also the last Swedish monarch to be the ruler of Finland. The occupation of Finland in 1808–09 ...

made an official visit in 1797 with "tokens of appreciation". With time, Pietism was eventually reevaluated as a legitimate expression of

Lutheranism 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 ...

. By consequence, following the increased acceptance by the mainstream Protestant society, in the mid-19th century, a part of the Pietist movement was fully integrated into the official

Evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

, although another part would persist in

Radical Pietist Radical Pietism are those Christian churches who decided to break with denominational Lutheranism in order to emphasize certain teachings regarding holy living. Radical Pietists contrast with Church Pietists, who chose to remain within their Lut ...

deference into a Uddevalla local predecessor of the

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

Uniting Church in Sweden Uniting Church in Sweden ( sv, Equmeniakyrkan) is a united Protestant denomination in Sweden. History It was established on 4 June 2011 by the merger of the United Methodist Church, Baptist Union of Sweden, and Mission Covenant Church of Swede ...

, independent of the state church. Subsequent to the great fire of Uddevalla in 1806, a stone house was erected for the Pietist adherents which gave the street block its name, ''Herrnhut''. The building, later purchased by the

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

, remained until another fire in the 1980s.Uddevalla Missionsförsamlings 100-årsskrift (1978)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spaak, Peter 1696 births 1769 deaths 17th-century Swedish people 18th-century Swedish people Age of Liberty people People from Uddevalla Municipality Postmasters Swedish Protestants Pietists 17th-century Lutheran theologians 18th-century Lutheran theologians

Biography

See also

References