Labadists
Encyclopedia
The Labadists were a 17th century Protestant religious community movement founded by Jean de Labadie
(1610–1674), a French pietist. The movement derived its name from that of its founder.
Jean de Labadie (1610–1674) came from an area near Bordeaux. In his early life he was a Roman Catholic and a Jesuit. However, at that time, the Jesuits were wary of overt spiritual manifestations , so Labadie, who himself experienced frequent visions and inner enlightenment, found himself dissatisfied and left the order in 1639.
He had fleeting links with the Oratoire, then Jansenism
(on occasions staying with the solitaries of Port-Royal
, who received him at the time but later sought to dissociate themselves from him). He was a parish priest and evangelist in the southern French dioceses of Toulouse and Bazas, preaching social righteousness, new birth, and separation from worldliness. His promotion of inner piety and personal spiritual experiences brought opposition and threats from the religious establishment.
Eventually, frustrated with Roman Catholicism, Labadie became a Calvinist at Montauban in 1650. In that city and then in the principality of Orange
he championed the rights of the Protestant minority in the face of increasing legislation against them by Louis XIV (which would culminate in 1685 with the Edict of Fontainebleau
). Labadie then moved to Geneva
, where he was hailed as ‘a second Calvin’ . Here he began to doubt the lasting validity of established Christianity. He held house groups for Bible-study and fellowship, for which he was censured.
In 1666 Labadie and several disciples moved to Holland, to the French-speaking Walloon congregation of Middelburg
. Here his pattern continued: seeking to promote active church renewal through practical discipleship, study of the Bible
, house meetings, and much else that was novel for the Reformed Church at that time. Here too he made contact with leading figures of the spiritual and reformatory circles of the day, such as Jan Amos Comenius, and Antoinette Bourignon
.
With a broad-mindedness unusual for the period, Labadie was gracious and cautiously welcoming towards the move of repentance and new zeal among many Jews in a Messianic movement around Sabbatai Sevi
in 1667
At length, in 1669, at 59 years of age, Labadie broke away from all established denominations
and began a Christian community at Amsterdam
. In three adjoining houses lived a core of some sixty adherents to Labadie’s teaching. They shared possessions after the pattern of the Church as described in the New Testament book of Acts . Persecution forced them to leave after only a year, and they moved to Herford
in Germany
. Here the community became more firmly established until war forced them to move to Altona
(then in Denmark
, now a suburb of Hamburg
), where Labadie died in 1674.
Labadie's most influential writing was La Réformation de l'Eglise par le Pastorat (1667).
In the Labadist community there were craftsmen, who generated income, although as many men as possible were sent on outreach to neighbouring towns. Children were tutored communally. The women had traditional roles as homemakers. A printing press was set up, disseminating many writings by Labadie and his colleagues. Curiously, the best known of all Labadist writings was not Labadie’s but Anna van Schurman’s, who wrote a justification of her renunciation of fame and reputation to live in Christian community . Van Schurman was noted in her day as ‘The Star of Utrecht’ and widely admired for her talents: she spoke and wrote five languages, produced an Ethiopic dictionary, played several instruments, engraved glass, painted, embroidered, and wrote poetry. At the age of 62 she gave up everything and joined the Labadists..
After Labadie’s death, his followers returned to Holland, where they set up a community in a stately home – Walta Castle – at Wieuwerd in Friesland
, which belonged to three sisters Van Aerssen van Sommelsdijck, who were his adherents. Here printing and many other occupations continued, including farming and milling. One member, Hendrik van Deventer, skilled in chemistry and medicine, set up a laboratory at the house and treated many people, including Christian V
, the King of Denmark. He is now remembered as one of Holland's pioneering obstetricians.
Several noted visitors have left their accounts of visits to the Labadist community. One was Sophie of Hanover
, mother of King George I of Great Britain; another was William Penn
, the Quaker pioneer, who gave his name to the US state of Pennsylvania
; a third was the English philosopher John Locke
.
Several Reformed pastors left their parishes to live in community at Wieuwerd. At its peak, the community numbered around 600 with many more adherents further afield. Visitors came from England, Italy, Poland and elsewhere, but not all approved of the strict discipline. Those of arrogant disposition were given the most menial of jobs. Fussiness in matters or food was overcome since all were expected to eat what was put in front of them.
Daughter communities were set up in the New World. La Providence, a daughter colony on the Commewijne River
in Surinam, proved unsuccessful. The Labadists were unable to cope with jungle diseases, and supplies from Holland were often intercepted by pirates . The noted entomological artist, Maria Sybilla Merian, who had lived in the Labadist colony in Friesland for some years, went to Surinam in 1700 and drew several plates for her classic Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium on the Labadist plantation of La Providence.
and Peter Schlüter (or Sluyter), to purchase land for a colony. Danckaerts, an experienced seafarer, kept a journal which has survived and has been published . It is a valuable early account of life in colonial New Netherland (later New York), on the Chesapeake and the Delaware in 1679-80 and includes several hand drawings and maps.
Danckaerts and Schlüter met the son of Augustine Herman
, a successful Maryland businessman, in New York and he introduced them to his father in 1679. Herman was impressed with the men and their group. Initially Herman did not want to grant land to them, only permit Labadist settlement, but in 1683, he conveyed a tract of 3,750 acres (15 km²) on his land Bohemia Manor in Cecil County, Maryland
to them because of legal issues. The group established a colony which grew rapidly to between 100-200 members.
In the 1690s a gradual decline set in and finally the practice of communal sharing was suspended. From that moment on the Labadists dwindled, both in Maryland, which ceased to exist after 1720, and in Friesland they had died out by 1730.
Hearing Labadie’s teachings, she was convinced of her need to be joined in community living with her fellow believers .
Labadie’s approach to Christian spirituality, but not his communitarian approach with its separation from mainstream churches, was paralleled in the Pietist movement in Germany. Many of its leaders, such as Philipp Jakob Spener
, approved Labadie’s stance but preferred for their own part to trust in the established structures.
Some Pietist community enterprises did, however, arise. August Francke, professor at Halle University, founded there an orphanage (the Waisenhaus) in 1696, to be run along Christian communitarian lines, with equality and sharing of goods. This caused a stir and was famed abroad. Its example inspired in George Whitefield
, the English preacher and revivalist, a yearning for a similar foundation which eventually came to being in America.
Jean de Labadie
Jean de Labadie was a 17th century French pietist. Originally a Roman Catholic Jesuit priest, he became a member of the Reformed Church in 1650, before founding the community which became known as the Labadists in 1669...
(1610–1674), a French pietist. The movement derived its name from that of its founder.
Jean de Labadie’s life
He had fleeting links with the Oratoire, then Jansenism
Jansenism
Jansenism was a Christian theological movement, primarily in France, that emphasized original sin, human depravity, the necessity of divine grace, and predestination. The movement originated from the posthumously published work of the Dutch theologian Cornelius Otto Jansen, who died in 1638...
(on occasions staying with the solitaries of Port-Royal
Port-Royal
Port-Royal-des-Champs was an abbey of Cistercian nuns in Magny-les-Hameaux, in the Vallée de Chevreuse southwest of Paris that launched a number of culturally important institutions.-History:...
, who received him at the time but later sought to dissociate themselves from him). He was a parish priest and evangelist in the southern French dioceses of Toulouse and Bazas, preaching social righteousness, new birth, and separation from worldliness. His promotion of inner piety and personal spiritual experiences brought opposition and threats from the religious establishment.
Eventually, frustrated with Roman Catholicism, Labadie became a Calvinist at Montauban in 1650. In that city and then in the principality of Orange
Principality of Orange
The Principality of Orange was a feudal state in Provence, in the south of modern-day France, on the left bank of the River Rhone north of the city of Avignon....
he championed the rights of the Protestant minority in the face of increasing legislation against them by Louis XIV (which would culminate in 1685 with the Edict of Fontainebleau
Edict of Fontainebleau
The Edict of Fontainebleau was an edict issued by Louis XIV of France, also known as the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes. The Edict of Nantes of 1598, had granted the Huguenots the right to practice their religion without persecution from the state...
). Labadie then moved to Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, where he was hailed as ‘a second Calvin’ . Here he began to doubt the lasting validity of established Christianity. He held house groups for Bible-study and fellowship, for which he was censured.
In 1666 Labadie and several disciples moved to Holland, to the French-speaking Walloon congregation of Middelburg
Middelburg
Middelburg is a municipality and a city in the south-western Netherlands and the capital of the province of Zeeland. It is situated in the Midden-Zeeland region. It has a population of about 48,000.- History of Middelburg :...
. Here his pattern continued: seeking to promote active church renewal through practical discipleship, study of the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
, house meetings, and much else that was novel for the Reformed Church at that time. Here too he made contact with leading figures of the spiritual and reformatory circles of the day, such as Jan Amos Comenius, and Antoinette Bourignon
Antoinette Bourignon
Antoinette Bourignon de la Porte was a Flemish mystic. From an early age she was under the influence of religion, which took in course of time a mystical turn.-Biography:...
.
With a broad-mindedness unusual for the period, Labadie was gracious and cautiously welcoming towards the move of repentance and new zeal among many Jews in a Messianic movement around Sabbatai Sevi
Sabbatai Zevi
Sabbatai Zevi, , was a Sephardic Rabbi and kabbalist who claimed to be the long-awaited Jewish Messiah. He was the founder of the Jewish Sabbatean movement...
in 1667
At length, in 1669, at 59 years of age, Labadie broke away from all established denominations
Christian denomination
A Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a common name, structure, and doctrine within Christianity. In the Orthodox tradition, Churches are divided often along ethnic and linguistic lines, into separate churches and traditions. Technically, divisions between one group and...
and began a Christian community at Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
. In three adjoining houses lived a core of some sixty adherents to Labadie’s teaching. They shared possessions after the pattern of the Church as described in the New Testament book of Acts . Persecution forced them to leave after only a year, and they moved to Herford
Herford
Herford is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, located in the lowlands between the hill chains of the Wiehen Hills and the Teutoburg Forest. It is the capital of the district of Herford.- Geographic location :...
in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Here the community became more firmly established until war forced them to move to Altona
Altona, Hamburg
Altona is the westernmost urban borough of the German city state of Hamburg, on the right bank of the Elbe river. From 1640 to 1864 Altona was under the administration of the Danish monarchy. Altona was an independent city until 1937...
(then in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, now a suburb of Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
), where Labadie died in 1674.
Labadie's most influential writing was La Réformation de l'Eglise par le Pastorat (1667).
The Labadist community
After Labadie’s death, his followers returned to Holland, where they set up a community in a stately home – Walta Castle – at Wieuwerd in Friesland
Friesland
Friesland is a province in the north of the Netherlands and part of the ancient region of Frisia.Until the end of 1996, the province bore Friesland as its official name. In 1997 this Dutch name lost its official status to the Frisian Fryslân...
, which belonged to three sisters Van Aerssen van Sommelsdijck, who were his adherents. Here printing and many other occupations continued, including farming and milling. One member, Hendrik van Deventer, skilled in chemistry and medicine, set up a laboratory at the house and treated many people, including Christian V
Christian V of Denmark
Christian V , was king of Denmark and Norway from 1670 to 1699, the son of Frederick III of Denmark and Sophie Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
, the King of Denmark. He is now remembered as one of Holland's pioneering obstetricians.
Several noted visitors have left their accounts of visits to the Labadist community. One was Sophie of Hanover
Sophia of Hanover
Sophia of the Palatinate was an heiress to the crowns of England and Ireland and later the crown of Great Britain. She was declared heiress presumptive by the Act of Settlement 1701...
, mother of King George I of Great Britain; another was William Penn
William Penn
William Penn was an English real estate entrepreneur, philosopher, and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He was an early champion of democracy and religious freedom, notable for his good relations and successful...
, the Quaker pioneer, who gave his name to the US state of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
; a third was the English philosopher John Locke
John Locke
John Locke FRS , widely known as the Father of Liberalism, was an English philosopher and physician regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers. Considered one of the first of the British empiricists, following the tradition of Francis Bacon, he is equally important to social...
.
Several Reformed pastors left their parishes to live in community at Wieuwerd. At its peak, the community numbered around 600 with many more adherents further afield. Visitors came from England, Italy, Poland and elsewhere, but not all approved of the strict discipline. Those of arrogant disposition were given the most menial of jobs. Fussiness in matters or food was overcome since all were expected to eat what was put in front of them.
Daughter communities were set up in the New World. La Providence, a daughter colony on the Commewijne River
Commewijne River
Commewijne River is a river in northern Suriname .It originates in the hills of the Commewijne District and flows northwards until it receives the meandering Cottica River from the right and then runs westward until it unites with the south-north running Suriname River at Nieuw Amsterdam...
in Surinam, proved unsuccessful. The Labadists were unable to cope with jungle diseases, and supplies from Holland were often intercepted by pirates . The noted entomological artist, Maria Sybilla Merian, who had lived in the Labadist colony in Friesland for some years, went to Surinam in 1700 and drew several plates for her classic Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium on the Labadist plantation of La Providence.
Bohemia Manor
The mother colony in Friesland sent two envoys, Jasper DanckaertsJasper Danckaerts
Jasper Danckaerts is the author of a Journal Of A Voyage To New York In 1679-80.Danckaerts was born at Flushing in Zeeland May 7, 1639, the sonof Pieter Danckaerts and Janneke Schilders. He became a...
and Peter Schlüter (or Sluyter), to purchase land for a colony. Danckaerts, an experienced seafarer, kept a journal which has survived and has been published . It is a valuable early account of life in colonial New Netherland (later New York), on the Chesapeake and the Delaware in 1679-80 and includes several hand drawings and maps.
Danckaerts and Schlüter met the son of Augustine Herman
Augustine Herman
Augustine Herman, First Lord of Bohemia Manor was a Bohemian explorer, merchant, and cartographer who lived in New Amsterdam and Cecil County, Maryland...
, a successful Maryland businessman, in New York and he introduced them to his father in 1679. Herman was impressed with the men and their group. Initially Herman did not want to grant land to them, only permit Labadist settlement, but in 1683, he conveyed a tract of 3,750 acres (15 km²) on his land Bohemia Manor in Cecil County, Maryland
Cecil County, Maryland
Cecil County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. It is part of the Delaware Valley. It was named for Cæcilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore , who was the first Proprietary Governor of the colony of Maryland from 1632 until his death in 1675. The county seat is Elkton. The newspaper...
to them because of legal issues. The group established a colony which grew rapidly to between 100-200 members.
In the 1690s a gradual decline set in and finally the practice of communal sharing was suspended. From that moment on the Labadists dwindled, both in Maryland, which ceased to exist after 1720, and in Friesland they had died out by 1730.
Key beliefs of the Labadists
The Labadists held to the beliefs and traditions of their founder, Labadie. Chiefly these were:- The true Church of Jesus ChristChristian ChurchThe Christian Church is the assembly or association of followers of Jesus Christ. The Greek term ἐκκλησία that in its appearances in the New Testament is usually translated as "church" basically means "assembly"...
is composed solely of those ‘born again’ or ‘elect’; habitual churchgoing while not knowing God personally is nugatory - The true Church is also ‘not of this world’; this affects all of life, including clothing (Labadists had their own dress for women, known in Dutch as a ‘borstrok’ similar to a nun’s habit).
- Even so, the Church is always in need of reform, and this should start at the top, with the priests or pastors.
- Knowing God is not through set religious laws but through personal prayerPrayerPrayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional rapport to a deity through deliberate practice. Prayer may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of...
and mystical devotionMysticismMysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
; the heart should be warmed through contact with divine loveLove of GodLove of God are central notions in monotheistic and polytheistic religions, and are important in one's personal relationship with God and one's conception of God ....
. - All members are priestsPriesthood of all believersThe universal priesthood or the priesthood of all believers, as it would come to be known in the present day, is a Christian doctrine believed to be derived from several passages of the New Testament...
and can bring words of edification in church gatherings, which Labadie equated with New TestamentNew TestamentThe New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
‘prophetic ministry’. To facilitate this, home groups are the best forum. - The Holy CommunionEucharistThe Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...
is only for the truly committed (in Labadist parlance the ‘elect’). - Self-denialAsceticismAsceticism describes a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from various sorts of worldly pleasures often with the aim of pursuing religious and spiritual goals...
, in particular fastingFastingFasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. An absolute fast is normally defined as abstinence from all food and liquid for a defined period, usually a single day , or several days. Other fasts may be only partially restrictive,...
, is good for the soulSoulA soul in certain spiritual, philosophical, and psychological traditions is the incorporeal essence of a person or living thing or object. Many philosophical and spiritual systems teach that humans have souls, and others teach that all living things and even inanimate objects have souls. The...
. - Worldly vanities are to be eschewed and personal wealth shared in the community brotherhood.
- An AugustinianAugustine of HippoAugustine of Hippo , also known as Augustine, St. Augustine, St. Austin, St. Augoustinos, Blessed Augustine, or St. Augustine the Blessed, was Bishop of Hippo Regius . He was a Latin-speaking philosopher and theologian who lived in the Roman Africa Province...
(specifically Jansenist) belief in predestinationPredestinationPredestination, in theology is the doctrine that all events have been willed by God. John Calvin interpreted biblical predestination to mean that God willed eternal damnation for some people and salvation for others...
. - MarriageMarriageMarriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
must be ‘in the Lord’; a believer can justifiably separate from an unconverted partner in order to follow God’s call to his work (in Labadist jargon, ‘the Lord’s work’ meant their own community lifestyle).
Legacy, influence and parallels
William Penn records in his journal a meeting with the Labadists in 1677, which gives an insight into the reasons why these people chose to live a communal lifestyle. Labadie’s widow, Lucia, testified to Penn about her younger days in which she had mourned the insipid state of the Christianity which she saw around her:If God would make known to me his way, I would trample upon all the pride and glory of the world. ...O the pride, O the lusts, O the vain pleasures in which Christians live! Can this be the way to Heaven? ...Are these the followers of Christ? O God, where is Thy little flock? Where is Thy little family, that will live entirely to Thee, that will follow Thee? Make me one of that number.
Hearing Labadie’s teachings, she was convinced of her need to be joined in community living with her fellow believers .
Labadie’s approach to Christian spirituality, but not his communitarian approach with its separation from mainstream churches, was paralleled in the Pietist movement in Germany. Many of its leaders, such as Philipp Jakob Spener
Philipp Jakob Spener
Philipp Jakob Spener was a German Christian theologian known as the "Father of Pietism."...
, approved Labadie’s stance but preferred for their own part to trust in the established structures.
Some Pietist community enterprises did, however, arise. August Francke, professor at Halle University, founded there an orphanage (the Waisenhaus) in 1696, to be run along Christian communitarian lines, with equality and sharing of goods. This caused a stir and was famed abroad. Its example inspired in George Whitefield
George Whitefield
George Whitefield , also known as George Whitfield, was an English Anglican priest who helped spread the Great Awakening in Britain, and especially in the British North American colonies. He was one of the founders of Methodism and of the evangelical movement generally...
, the English preacher and revivalist, a yearning for a similar foundation which eventually came to being in America.
See also
- Anna Maria van SchurmanAnna Maria van SchurmanAnna Maria van Schurman was a German-Dutch painter, engraver, poet and scholar. She was a highly educated woman by seventeenth century standards...
- Maria Sibylla MerianMaria Sibylla MerianMaria Sibylla Merian was a naturalist and scientific illustrator who studied plants and insects and made detailed paintings about them...
- Philipp Jakob SpenerPhilipp Jakob SpenerPhilipp Jakob Spener was a German Christian theologian known as the "Father of Pietism."...
- Radical PietismRadical PietismRadical Pietism refers to a movement within Protestantism, lasting from the late 17th century to the mid 18th century and later, which emphasized the need for a "religion of the heart" instead of the head, and was characterized by ethical purity, inward devotion, charity, asceticism, and even...