Goerres, Johanx Joseph von, an eminent Ger- man Roman Catholic writer, was born Jan. 25, 1776, at Coblentz, and educated at the gymnasium at that place. In early life he was involved in politics, and in 1798 he set up a Repultlican newspaper, the '' Rothe Blatt." Being sent on a deputation to Paris in 1799, he saw French "freedom" under Bonaparte, and became dis- gusted with It. In that year he gave up his journal, and devoted himself to the study of medicine, and af- terwards to philosophy and natural science. In 1802 appeared his Aphorismen ilber Kunst (Aphorisms on Art); in 1805, Exposition der Physiologie (Physiolo- gy) and Glauhe und Wissen (Faith and Knowledge). In 1806 he went to Heidelberg, and lectured on Phys- ics there till 1808, when ho returned to Coblentz. l''^10 he published MijthengescMchte der Asintixchen Welt (Mytliology of the Asiatic World, Heidelberg, 8vo). In 1814 he again entered the political field against the French as editor of the Rhdnischer Mer- lur (The Kheiiish Mercury), a journal which stirred the whole public mind of Germany. It was prohib- ited ))y the Prussian government in 1816— a strange reward for the services it had rendered. ' In 1819 he ; had to take refuge in Strasburg, in consequence of i
publishing Deutschlaml und die Revolution, in which he pleaded for the liberal party of Germany. He after- wards published a number of political works of the same vein, and tinged with mysticism. In Strasburg he was surrounded with Roman Catholic influences, and began to despair of reforming societj' by politics. In 1825 he accepted the professorship of history in the new University of Munich, and there he spent the re- mainder of his daj's. In 1880-42 appeared his Christ- liche M'/stik (Christian Mysticism, Ratisbon, 4 vols. 8vo). During the conflict of the Prussian government and the archbishop of Cologne he wrote, in the interest of the ultramontane part}', -KAawasjws (Ratisbon, 1837, 4 editions), and Triarier (Ratisbon, 1838). He wrote several other works in the interest of Roman Cathol- icism, and died January 27, 1848. Goerres was a prominent adherent of tlie first philosophic system of Schelling, but he found in the abstruse speculations of German philosophy no elements adequate to con- tent his restless spirit of investigation. He was then swept away bv that current of conservative Roman- Catholic restorationism, which, in the early part of the present centurj', carried a number of German politi- cians, historians, and poets into the bosom of the Church of Rome. Like most of them, Goerres never regarded Romanism as it appears in the light of history, but in- vested it with all the brilliant features and colors of the ideal religio-political society which he had prevt ously conceived in his own mind. Still, under the in- fluence of his former studies, he went down to the deep grounds of mysticism to discover there a light in the darkness, which he had found besetting the sources of all sciences. He persuaded himself that he had made there a great discovery in finding new and wonderful relations between the fiibles and mj'ths of paganism as a shadow, and Roman-Catholic Christianity as the full truth ; between the myriads of mysteries in all sciences, and the Roman-Catholic doctrine as a kej' to disclose them. At the beginning and end of every science he posted a Roman Catholic dogma as a watch- man ; by it he measured all the manifold inventions of our age, boldly pretending that everything true in them came from and pointed to a " Catholic" truth ; and then he called upon the youths of his Church to rewrite from this stand-point the historj' of every sci- ence, since it had been too long monopolized and dis- figured by Protestant erudition. All this, set forth in mystic, self-confident, and passionate language, could not fail to attract general attention on the part of his coreligionists. The influence of Goerres was so much the greater, as he made himself, at a critical moment, also the political champion of the Roman Catholic in- terests, principally through the '■'■ Historische-politische Blatter''' of Munich, a periodical edited, although not under his name, yet under his guidance and con- trolling superintendence. In one thing, however, Goerres was greatly disappointed. Se found many readers, hearers, and admirers, but only a very few disciples. They could not master the sense of their teacher's words ; a bad omen, indeed, for his anticipa- ted dominion over the literature of the world. The first volume of his collected works (Gesammelte Werke, herausg. von Marie Goerres) appeared at Ratisbon in 1854. See Meth. Quart. Rev. Jan. 1855, p. 146 ; Sepp, .Joseph von Goerres, cine Skizze, etc. (Ratisbon, 1848); Haneberg, Zur Erinnerung an J. v. G. (Munich, 1848) ; Heinrich, J. v. G., ein Lehenshild (Frankf. 1867) ; Ilist. Polit. Blatter, t. xxvii ; Briihl, Geschichfe d. kathol. Lit- eratur Dentschlands (Leips. 1854); Iloefer, Nouv. Biog. Generale, xx, 957; Ilerzog, Real-Enr>/J,lop. v, 224 sq.
Goertner, John Petek, a minister of the Luther- an Church, was born April 26, 1797, at Canajoharie, N. Y. He was graduated at Union College in 1822, the Reformation _of Luther being his commencement exercise. For a time he prosecuted his studies at Hartwick Seminary under the direction of professor Hagelius, and then received private instruction from
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Dr. Christian SchaefFer, of New York City, wliom he aided in his pastoral work. He was licensed to preach by the New Yorli Ministerium in 1824, and, after per- forming extensive missionary labor among the desti- tute Lutherans in the northern and western counties of the state and in Canada, he accepted a call to Johns- town, N. Y. He was loved and venerated not only by his own people, but by all who witnessed the results of his earnest labors, and the salutarj' influence he was exercising. His career was a brief one. He died when onh'' thirty-two years of age of pulmonary dis- ease. The impress of his life and efforts in the sanc- tified members of believing and loving hearts will de- scend to children and children's children. He left a valuable MS. Journal of six Months' Residence at Rome, and Visit to interesting Cities in Uurope. (M. L. S.)