Weigel, Valentin

WEIGEL, vai'gel, VALENTIN.

Life (§ 1).
Writings (§ 2).
Doctrine of Space and Time (§ 3).
Theory of Knowledge (§ 4).
Doctrine of God (§ 5).
Relations with Christianity (§ 6).

Valentin Weigel, the German mystic and pantheist, was born at Naundorf (near Grossenhain, 50 m. e. of Leipsic) in 1533, and died at Zschopau (51 m. s.e. of Leipsic) June 10, 1588. He studied at

Leipsic and also at Wittenberg in 1564, z. Life. where he appears to have given in-

struction to students. In 1567 he was called as pastor to the town of Zschopau, and, while engaged in the visitations incidental to his superintendency, often officiated as adjunct pastor in several parishes. In this work he acquired an enviable repute by his preaching, cure of souls, administration, and care of the poor. Though he was charged in 1572 with holding impure doctrine, he cleared himself promptly and successfully, and subscribed the Formula of Concord without hesitation. It transpired only after his death that he was wholly at variance with the doctrine of his church,-an attitude which developed during his pastoral office, the logical consequences of which he strenuously denied.

The first impressions of Weigel's writings appeared at Halle, 1609-14; additional writings and new editions were issued at "Neustadt," 1618 (Neustadt

may be either Magdeburg or Halle), and z. Writings. again at the close of the seventeenth

century at Amsterdam and Frankfort. , It is possible that Weigel's writings have undergone alterations in even their manuscript stage, and that particular portions among the printed works ascribed to him may have been derived from other hands. The following writings may be pronounced genuine: (1) Gnothe Seauton (Neustadt, 1615; only the first part; the second and third parts are spurious); (2) Ein schon Gebetbiichleizz (1613); (3) Ein niitzliches Tractktlein vom Ort der Welt (1613); (4) Der Güldene tariff (Halle, 16I3); (5) Dialogus de Christianismo (Neustadt, 1616; his most important and best work). The following are not genuine: Studiunz universale, hitherto much in vogue for knowledge of Weigel's theories; Von der Gelassenheit (contains a slightly altered edition of a writing by Carlstadt; cf. Wernle in ZKG, 1903, p. 319); the so-called Theologia Weigelii. On the other hand, a work cited with notable frequency, Kirchen- oder HausPostill Uber die Sontags uczd fiernembsten Fest/ Evangelien durchs gantze Jahr (1609), probably embodies genuine sermons of Weigel's. Notwithstanding these uncertainties of authorship, the number of the genuine and printed writings of Weigel's is ample enough to afford a truthful picture of his views in all principal questions. In accord with his maxim of deriving everything from the "inner light," and his contempt for all books, Weigel

effaced, almost beyond recovery, the historical sources and points of contact for his reflections. Moreover, he possessed the faculty of largely recasting what he acquired, imparting to the same an air of originality. What dependency he acknowledges is toward ancient and medieval writingsPlatd, Dionysius the Areopagite, Thomas b, Kempis, Tauter, Eekart, and Theolagia Germanica (q.v.); the last is by far the most frequently cited. With reference to the Reformers'and the earliest confessional documents his pronouncements are generally quite unfriendly. Osiander, Schwenckfeld, Münzer, and others, he declines to know and likewise disclaims all affinity with them; but he adverts to S. Frank's Weltbuch. While he frequently cites Paracelsus, it is mostly upon astronomical and astrological speculations, medicine, and natural philosophy (cf. e.g., Libell. dispnt., p. 26).

Weigel cultivated both philosophy and theology, and placed the two in very intimate connection. His fundamental trend in philosophy might be styled subjective idealism, treating his subjects with a lucidity far in advance of his time. 3. Doctrine His real significance for the history of

of Space philosophy has not yet been fully real- and Time. ized. He examined the problems of space and time, and furnished a sub jectively idealistic solution. He treats of space in Yom Ort der Welt, chap. x. (Hall, Saxony, 1613); and his conclusion is comprehended in the proposi tion: " for outside the world is no place, with (mite dimensions, . . hence it is certain that the world stands at no local site; the world itself is a place and concept of all places and bounded things. Therefore it is only according to their contained bounds within the world that places are indicated, but never outside the world." The theological de duction drawn is that " neither heaven nor hell is a bounding physical place," but that " every one bears hell about in himself among the damned; like wise every one bears heaven about in himself among the saints " (chap. xiv.). In the same way, the local conception of Christ's descending into hell and his ascension to heaven must logically lapse (chap. xvi.). Weigel also contests, though not quite so decidedly and clearly, the reality of the time idea; for al though the point is not certainly resolvable, how far genuine Weigelian thoughts exist in the treatise de voted to this question, Scholasterium Christianum, still the negative opinion appears implied. His most incisive speculation dealt repeatedly with the question of the practical entity of knowl edge, and emphasized the subjective root thereof. For " the natural discernment passing 4. Theory from the eye to the object is active, of and not passive; and therefore all Knowledge. judgment is exercised in the act of dis cerning or knowing, and rests not in the thing discerned " (Kurtzer Bericht vom Wege and Weise all Dinge zu erkennen, B iii. 2 v.). " All knowledge emanates from the knower " (ib. B 1 v.). Everything inheres latently in man, in his person ality and subjectivity. " Hence man is also every thing himself; what he can and knows, to know and control his art, is his `spirit' (Geist), or spiritual, intellectual faculty; and this `spirit' or faculty

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is man himself " (Gnothe Seauton, p. 39). Therefore there is but one discerning principle and one corresponding task, viz., to know oneself. As main support for his theory, he adduces the proper distinction of knowledge: "for if discernment emanated and issued from the object, and not from the seeing eye, then there must also follow similar and equivalent perceptiveness or discernment from an object itself: be the matter of eyes howsoever it would " (p. 28). From this natural knowledge and its conscious, practical entity, Weigel distinguishes a "supernatural" knowledge by the fact that man's part in the inception and outcome is aroused by means of the object. Only here, in turn, the process rests in the subject's productivity: save that this now becomes identified with the indwelling Spirit of God. Consequently, Weigel affiliates with those men who define the principle of religious knowledge and spiritual potency as the inward natural possession of every man; and he advdcatea the theory of the inner word, or of the spirit in its naturalistic form. Weigel deduces all the negative consequences of this view, such as rejection of the word of Scripture, mediating office, or channels of grace, the preaching office, external church fellowship, learned theological study with all its pains, but most of all, the conditioning of religious notions and piety about a defined historical point of departure, like that in Christianity. In place of this, he elaborated a pantheistic and gnostic theosophy on vast lines, merely assimilating his vocabulary to Christian terminology. His main outlines are as follows:

God and the All are coincident in the present. Not every existence of God before the world is to be necessarily denied, but God comes to himself, to personal and active being, primarily

g. Doctrine in and with the world. "Absolutely of God. alone and for himself, apart from all creatures, God is and continues impersonal, detached from time and place, void of energy, will, and feeling; and so he is neither Father, nor Son, nor Holy Ghost. God is eternity itself, apart from time; he hovers and abides in himself about all places; neither works nor wills nor desires, save that in, with, and through the creature he becomes personally effectual, volitional, desirous; he acquires emotion, or suffers the attributes of persons and feeling to be assigned to him" (from the manuscript: Von der Seligmaehenden erkentnus Gottes). This immanency of God is differentiated only as the matter is one of good or of evil, of the outward world or of men, the kingdom of nature or that of grace. While ideas of chaos, or the negation of the cosmic order, as also the assumption of an eternity, or of a gradual emanation of the world through intermediate stages, do not appear sharply and consistently developed, evil is regarded as a necessary concomitant phenomenon of the creature state of being. The essence of sin is qualified, in one passage, as a " non-existent 11; and again, as the independent will of the creature. Therefore the goal and purpose of the "redemption" is also to complement and complete the nonexistent with the divine perfect existence, and to induct and restore the individual will back to the will of God (Vom Ort der Welt, chap. xvii.). More-

over, from the beginning God has implanted in man the requisite powers to this intent, so that the "redemption" simply fulfils itself in that process whereby the inner principle in man which is akin to God gains the ascendency over the creature element which is averse toward God. The necessary antecedent condition, and the best means of advancing the advent of this interior process of redemption is resignation, the suppression of the individual wills virtue which he extols and recommends in the usual formulas of medieval mysticism.

Nevertheless, this simple and consistent rational structure grows involved and confused by its assimilation to the central Christian ideas, the more so because these are stripped, as far as 6. Relations possible, of- their historic origin and

with Chris- external content. The divine principle tianity. in man, as imparted to every one by

nature, becomes identified with Christ, especially where fruitfully developed. Christ is an inward, natural factor, without historical import. Only Weigel allows the virtual existence of an ex ternal historic Christ, which, however, has no re demptive significance. The formulas of the doctrine of the dual nature were so reconatrued by Weigel that he distinguishes a double "body" of Christ, according to his composite origin; though this, in Weigel's view, virtually covers the total phenomenon of Christ. " ° The one only Christ has two bodies; the divine body from the Holy Ghost, and the other body from the Virgin Mary, which is visible and mortal " (Postille, i. 214 sqq., cf. p. 38). Christ has his true flesh and blood " not from the earth, but from heaven, not from Adam, but from the Holy Ghost " (Dialogus, p. 12). Thus Weigel is enabled to emphasize the presence of the " body and blood of Christ " in the Communion. What concerns him is the inner presence of the eternal divine. -principle of Christ. The same parallel applies to his applica tion of the several concepts of spirit, regeneration, and faith; these all are but new, somewhat modi fied or qualified formulas for the same topical, con sideration; that is, for the inner evolutionary proc ess of the divine element and its victory over the creature element. Thus in the moral.domain he ad vocates the fundamental tenets of enthusiasts (Dia logus, p. 76). All problems of a concrete phase in individual and social ethics are resolved on quietiatic lines with rigorous consistency. He. pronounces against all lawsuits, penalties, wars, trade, receiv ing of interest, and the like.

Weigel was not a renewer of Reformation ideas. With these, in fact, he had nothing to do; his few conceptions which are concordant with the Reformation explain themselves by their parallel relations in a mystical vein. Just as little does he belong to the line of adherents to historical Christianity, since of this he retained merely the husks. He belongs rather to the perpetual chain of thinkers along gnosticizing, mystic, and pantheistic lines; he also paved the way toward the modern elaboration and recasting of lines of thought in the direction of monistic idealism, and in terms of critical reasoning. Though his own times opposed him, his significance was not yet realized. Real opposition to him began

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Apparently he left no compacted school, though his opponents charged him with having that purpose. At any rate, "Weigelianism" soon united with the moat heterogeneous anti-ecclesiastical and "enthusiastic" trends of both older and younger date, as with the admirers of J. Bohme, and also with the movement comprehended under the term "Rosicrucian" (see Rosicrucians).

R. H. GRUTZMACHER.