Neumeister, Erdmann (1671-1756)
Erdmann Neumeister was a Lutheran clergyman at the church of St. Jakob in Hamburg, Germany, a noted author of church hymns and violent opponent of Mennonites and Pietists, and author of a booklet against Jakob Denner: Anmerckungen über Jacob Denners Postille, betitult Einfältige und christliche Betrachtungen über die Jährlichen und Heiligen Evangelia . . . nebst treumeynender Warnung für derselben (Hamburg, 1731).
Erdmann was born on 2 May 1671 at Uichteritz near Weißenfels in the province Saxonia of Germany, and died on 18 August 1756 in Hamburg.
Neumeister's polemic against Denner is one of the worst of the writings of the 18th century. He disposes of his opponent with a tone of superiority; he denies Denner, a dyer without scholarly training, any right to preach and teach the Word of God. In 73 paragraphs he refutes the supposed errors in Denner's book, setting up the Lutheran Church as the true church and treating the Mennonites and Calvinists as ruinous sects. In all of Denner's words he scents self-contradiction, which he triumphantly exposes by manipulating the words. The entire presentation reveals his annoyance at the great audiences Denner's sermons attracted. He expressly warns the readers and his own congregation for the sake of their souls not to attend Denner's meetings, on the basis of 2 Peter 3:16-17.
Two of Neumeister's hymns have been adopted into the South German Mennonite hymnal: "Jesus nimmt die Sünder an" and "Jesu grosser Wunderstern."
Bibliography
Hege, Christian and Christian Neff. Mennonitisches Lexikon, 4 vols. Frankfurt & Weierhof: Hege; Karlsruhe: Schneider, 1913-1967: v. III, 214.
Mennonitische Blätter (1880): 71; (1881): 23, 29, 37.
Wikipedia. "ERdmann Neumeister." 23 December 2011. Web. 6 February 2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erdmann_Neumeister.
| Author(s) | Christian Neff |
|---|---|
| Date Published | 1957 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Neff, Christian. "Neumeister, Erdmann (1671-1756)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1957. Web. 18 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Neumeister,_Erdmann_(1671-1756)&oldid=93068.
APA style
Neff, Christian. (1957). Neumeister, Erdmann (1671-1756). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 18 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Neumeister,_Erdmann_(1671-1756)&oldid=93068.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, p. 854. All rights reserved.
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