Tuesday, Feburary 25, 2025

It is the 25th of February 2025. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

On today’s show, I get to introduce or re-introduce you to one of the more curious stories we’ve covered on this show (with a link in the transcript) with one of the more interesting characters in the 19th-century church.

He was Johann Christoph Blumhardt- a Lutheran pastor in South West Germany whose story is that of the Exorcism of Gottlieben Dittus- check the transcript for the link  https://www.1517.org/podcast-overview/2023-05-06.

To give you a picture of this fascinating character, I have to briefly talk through 2 hot potato words in church history: Pietism and Revival.

Ok- Pietism is a movement, initially in the Lutheran church, that sought to reinvigorate the church through an emphasis on justification AND sanctification- “how we are saved” and “how we live” (roughly).

Some were “extra” ecclesial- that is, the service of preached word and Sacrament is great, but they will also have services and events held outside of that. Later, pietists could be “anti” ecclesial, and this would cause more of a ruckus.

A “revival” is a reinvigorated interest in Christianity and the church, sparked by a time of prayer and worship that tends to last for an abbreviated time and specific location.

Johann Christoph Blumhardt was a Lutheran pastor and both a pietist and revivalist in the “extra,” not “anti-“ ecclesial way. That we know of him and his story at all is remarkable in light of the fact that while he took his theological studies and degrees and was ordained, he was sent to what appears to be something like a backwater village. Once there, he is told by the local doctor that there is a home of orphans, and one of them is struck with what seems to be something demonic. It’s a remarkable story- way better than the silly exorcist movies I was watching when I made that show linked in the transcript.

After years of prayer and SHOCKING events, the last girl possessed shouts aloud, “Jesus is Victor,” and all stops and goes back to “normal.” This story led to an interest in Blumhardt and his parish church, which more than doubled in size; people came from miles around, but more importantly, the fruit was people going into churches, being forgiven, and then forgiving one another. X This experience of Blumhardt and the thousands who benefited from his ministry seemed to overturn what they had believed about the possible work of the church. But, Blumhardt would teach that even the most remarkable healings and exorcisms are not “for themselves” they are rather picture images to people of the inbreaking of the Kingdom of God that will eventually break in fully, wipe every tear… and all the good stuff. And so, "the healing is central but not the point- it is to point to the world's ultimate redemption in Christ” is a fair way of understanding it.

But from this experience and fame, you might imagine there was concern- some perhaps appropriate- but it made staying in his parish impossible.

And so he, and later his son Christoph, who would extend the legacy and ministry of his father, would operate a faith healing ministry and eventually leave parish ministry to open a spa at Bad Boll- an early “Christian retreat center” that served the spiritual and physical needs of the tens of thousands who would make their way to the retreat for physical, emotional and spiritual reprieve.

Christoph would, in many ways, amplify the best of his father and downplay some of the more eccentric positions, but from Bad Boll came a vibrant ministry and place for the Blumhardts to write- many of their works have only recently been published in English thanks to our friends at Plough.

Johann would die on this, the 25th of February in 1880, having lived through the century, witnessed and prayed through one of the more remarkable exorcisms of the century, and then laid the foundations for later Lutheran revivalists (in the extra, not anti-sense). Johann was 74 years old.  

 

The Last word for today comes from Psalm 38- a few of the stanzas as a petition in the time of great need:

Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger
    or discipline me in your wrath.

Your arrows have pierced me,

    and your hand has come down on me.

Because of your wrath there is no health in my body;

    there is no soundness in my bones because of my sin.

My guilt has overwhelmed me

    like a burden too heavy to bear.

For I am about to fall,

    and my pain is ever with me.

I confess my iniquity;

    I am troubled by my sin.

Many have become my enemies without cause;

    those who hate me without reason are numerous.

Those who repay my good with evil

    lodge accusations against me,

    though I seek only to do what is good.

Lord, do not forsake me;

    do not be far from me, my God.

Come quickly to help me,

    my Lord and my Savior.

 

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 25th of February 2025 brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man who is extra-all things good and anti-bad stuff, he is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man whose chipotle order is extra-Guac and anti-rice. I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.