concerned, without g I works. The second step which
thej took iu order to give efficacj to their plans of ref- ormation was to form new rules of lite and manners, much more rigorous and austere than those that had formerly been practiced; and to place in the class of
sinful and unlawful gratifications Beveral kinds of pleas- ure and amusement which had hitherto been looked
upon as innocent in themselves, and which could only
bet good or evil in consequence of the respective
Characters of those who used them with prudence or
abused Lhem with intemperance. Thus dancing, pan- tomimes, public sports, theatrical diver-ions, the reading of humorous and comical books, with sev< ral other kinds
of pleasure and entertainment, were prohibited by the Pietists as unlawful and unseemly, ami therefore by no means of an indifferent nature. The third thing on which the Pietists in-i-t<d was that, besides the stated meetings tor public worship, private assemblies should he held for prayer and other religious exercises. I he University of Halle, which had been founded for the avowed purpose of promoting the pietistic movement, finally became its home and centre: and the ( trplian- house established in that town by A. H. Francke, and renowned all over Europe, one of its most effective agencies. Besides, ji became a living proof that pie- tism wa^ not only able to combat the religious errors oi the times, hut al>o to grapple with the grave wants of common lite. Is not that a good and sate theology which, in addition to teaching truth, can also clothe the naked and Iced the hungrj ? Ii has hi en charged
against the Pietists that they wrote hut little. Writ- ing was not their mission. It was theirs to act, to reform the practical life and faith of the people, not to waste their Btrength in a war of hooks. They wrote what they needed to carry out their lolly aim; and this was perhaps sufficient. They did lack pro- fundity of thought; hut let it be remembered that their work was restorative, not initial. Yel we would not leave the impression that pietism did not exert any influence as a literary light. The theological instruc- tion of Francke .and his coadjutors in the University of Halle was very influential. During the tirst thirty years of its history six thousand and thirty-four theolo- gians were trained within its walls, not to speak ofthe multitudes who received a thorough academic .and re- ligious instruction in the < Irphan-house. The < triental Theological College, established in connection with the university, promoted the study of Biblical languages, and originated the first critical edition of the Hebrew Bible. Moreover, it founded missions to the .lews and .Mohammedans, [•'rout Halle streams of the new life flowed out until there were traces of reawakening throughout Europe. First, the larger cities gave si^ns of returning faith; .and the universities which were most bitter against Spener were influenced by t lie power of the teachings of his immediate successors. Pietism propagated its influence by means of Bengi 1 in WUrtemberg and the University of Tubingen, and in Moravia through Zinzendorf. Arnold and Thomasius belonged to this party at the beginning of the 18th century, Oettinger ai Tubingen, Crusius ai Leipsic, and. to a certain extent. Buddeus also, partook <>f the spirit of pietism. The opposition ofthe old Lutheran party of other parts of Germany produced controver- sies u hicb continued till about 17-J'i (for an account, see Weismann, l/.»/. Eccl. Hist Sacr, | 1745], p. 1018 sip). Zurich, Basle, Heme, and all the larger towns received it with gladness. Ii penetrated as far east as the prov- inces bordering on the Baltic Sea. and as far north as Denmark. Norway, and Sweden. Many of the conti- nental courts welcomed it. and orphan-houses, after the model of Francke'sj became the fashion ofthe day. The Reformed Church was influenced ami impelled by it, and even England ami the Netherlands indi strong sympathy for its practical and evangelical feat- urea. No higher tribute can he paid it than that of Tholuck, who avers -thai the Pro test an I < hurch of ( iermany has never possessed so many zealous < Ihristian ministers and laymen as iu the first fortj years ofthe 18th century."
With a new generation of professors at Halle among i hem < '. B. Michaelis, the younger Francke, Frciling- hausen, the elder Knapp, Callenberg, and Baumgarten
taking the place of their more vigorous predecessors, pietism began to lose its first power and earnest spirit The persistent inquiry into scriptural truth passed over into a tacit acquiescence ofthe understanding. Reli- ance xv as placed on the convictions, more than mi the
fruits of siudy. Spener had blended the emotions of
I he mind and heart, reason and faith, harmonious!} : hut
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195
PIETISM
the later Pietists cast off the former and blindly fol- lowed the latter. Hence they soon found themselves indulging in superstition, and repeating many of the errors of some of the most deluded Mystics. Science was frowned upon, because of its supposed conflict with the letter of Scripture. The language of Spener and Francke, which was full of' practical earnestness, came into disuse. Definitions became loose and vague. The " Collegia," which had done so much good, now grew formal, cold, and disputatious. The missions, which had begun very auspiciously, dwindled from want of means and men. External life became pharisaical. Great weight was attached to long prayers. The duke of Coburg required the masters of schools to utter a long prayer in his presence, as a test of fitness for advancement. Pie- tism grew mystical, ascetic, and superstitious. Some of its advocates and votaries made great pretensions to holiness and unusual gifts. This had a tendency to bring the system into disrepute in certain quarters, though the good influences that it had exerted still ex- isted and increased. It might disappear, but the good achieved by it would live after it. Pietism, though it ceased its aggressive power after Francke and Tho- masius, was destined to exert a reproductive power long afterwards. From their day to the present, whenever there has arisen a great religious want, the heart of the people has been directed towards this same agency as a ground of hope. Whatever be said against it, it can- not be denied that it has succeeded in finding a safe lodgment in the affections of the evangelical portion of the German Church. Even in our own century the Church has had recourse to pietism as its only relief from a devastating rationalism ; not the pietism of Spener and Francke, we acknowledge, but the same general current belonging to both. Its organ was the Evang< l- ical Church Gazette, in 1827, and among the celebrities who attached themselves to it we find the names of Heinroth,Von Meyer, Schubert, Von Raumer, Steffens. Schnorr, and Olivier. Pietism lacked a homogeneous race of teachers. Here lay the secret of its overthrow. Had the founders been succeeded by men of much the same spirit, and equally strong inlellect, its existence would have been guaranteed, so far as anything relig- ious can be promised in a country where there is a state Church to control the individual conscience. The great mistake of Lutheranism was in its failure to adopt it as its child. The sceptical germ which soon afterwards took root, gave evidence that it could cause its over- throw for a time, at least; but the evils of rationalism were partially anticipated by the practical teachings of the Pietists.