Jean de Labadie facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jean de Labadie
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Jean de Labadie
13 February 1610 |
| Died | 13 February 1674 (aged 64) |
Jean de Labadie (born February 13, 1610 – died February 13, 1674) was a French religious leader from the 1600s. He was a Pietist, which means he focused on a very personal and deeply spiritual way of living Christianity.
Jean de Labadie first became a Jesuit priest. But in 1650, he decided to join the Reformed Church. Later, in 1669, he started his own religious community. This group became known as the Labadists.
At its biggest, the Labadist movement had about 600 members. Thousands more people supported their ideas. Some famous women joined his movement. These included the well-known poet and scholar, Anna Maria van Schurman. Another was the artist Maria Sibylla Merian, who drew insects.
Labadie's ideas mixed different Christian beliefs. He combined parts of Jansenism, Precicianism, and Reformed Pietism. He taught a strong form of Christianity that focused on being very holy. He also believed in Christians living together in communities. His teachings became very popular in the Netherlands.
Life of Jean de Labadie
Jean de Labadie was the son of an army officer. He joined the Jesuit Order in 1625 when he was 15 years old. He became a priest in 1635. But in 1639, he left the Jesuits. This was because he had poor health and disagreed with other members.
After leaving, he worked as a priest in different cities in France. These included Bordeaux, Paris, and Amiens. During this time, he became interested in Jansenism. He also studied the Bible very closely. He started to feel drawn to Calvinism, another type of Protestantism. Labadie believed that God was guiding him directly.
In 1646, a powerful leader named Cardinal Mazarin had him moved. Labadie was seen as someone who caused trouble. So, he was sent to southern France. In 1650, in a town called Montauban, he officially joined the Reformed Church.
From 1652 to 1657, he worked as a pastor and a theology teacher in Montauban. In 1659, he became a pastor in Geneva. There, he gathered many followers around him. Some of his important students were Pierre Yvon and Anna Maria van Schurman.
In 1666, he became a preacher in Middelburg, in the Netherlands. But in 1669, he was fired because of his religious views. He then started a church in a house in Amsterdam. This house church became a model for his later communities. However, his group faced difficulties and was treated badly.
In 1670, he moved again with his followers. They went to a house in Herford, Germany. Elisabeth of the Palatinate helped them. She was a Calvinist abbess who offered a safe place for religious groups facing problems.
Even in Herford, Labadie and his group were pressured. So, in 1672, he left and traveled to Altona. This city was in Germany but belonged to Denmark at the time. Jean de Labadie died in Altona in 1674. His movement continued for some time in Europe and America. However, it slowly faded away by 1732.
Works
Jean de Labadie wrote many books and essays. His most important writing was The Reform of the Church Through the Pastorate. He published it in 1667.
See also
In Spanish: Jean de Labadie para niños
