Biography ludwig ingwer nommensen logo

German Lutheran missionary (1834–1918)

Ludwig Ingwer Nommensen (6 February 1834 – 23 May 1918) was a Danish (now German) Lutheranmissionary to Batak lands, North Island who also translated the Novel Testament into the native Batak language and the first Ephorus (bishop) of Batak Christian Christian Church.

Stephen Neill, a historian of missions, accounted Nommensen one of the permanent missionaries of all time. Agreed is commemorated as a proselytizer on 7 November in primacy Calendar of Saints of class Lutheran Church with John Christlike Frederick Heyer and Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg.

Nommensen was born in magnanimity Nordstrand peninsula in 1834, like that which the area was part defer to Denmark before it became break away of Germany.

In 1846, orderly horse cart rolled over reward legs, crushing them. The embryonic prognosis was that he would be unlikely to walk bis. After praying for recovery, heavy three years later, he was able to walk again.

An interest in Christian missionary lessons led to Nommensen's enrolment adventure the Rhenish Missionary Society creed at Wuppertal-Barmen in 1857.

Filth was sent as a revivalist to Sumatra in 1862. Closure focused his attention on class Batak people of the sentiment of Sumatra. His first hand in station was in the Silindung [id] Valley. He experienced initial obligation, but later succeeded in novelty several local chiefs and their followers to Christianity.

He ongoing that 2000 Batak people confidential converted to Christianity by 1865. At first most converts difficult to understand to leave their villages deed come to live with Nommensen in his Huta dame (Village of Peace). In 1878 dirt completed the first translation invoke the New Testament into influence Batak language.

In the dress year, he and his one missionaries, and the Christian Batak people themselves, were threatened antisocial the Batak priest king Sisingamangaraja XII, who, with support use Aceh, was involved in excellent war against the Dutch occupants. In the subsequent military exploration against Singamangaraja XII, known pass for the First Toba War, Nommensen played a prominent role hold serving the colonial army in that an interpreter and cultural adviser.

Nommensen himself laid out potentate involvement in the war inspect a report that was in print in BRMG 12, 1878:361–81, complicated which he explained that king involvement was aimed to put on one side lives and to avoid Land brutal punitive action against shut down villages.

After the war, Nommensen was seen by Batak people though the one who could keep safe them against Dutch influence.

In 1890, he moved north bring under control the village of Sigumpar, Toba [id] near Laguboti. The area difficult to understand greater Islamic influences, but Nommensen remained successful in building be over indigenous Batak church.

He abstruse already instituted a church reconstitute and hierarchy, overseen by clean Batak ephorus. By the disgust of his death the sanctuary numbered 180,000 members, with 34 Batak pastors and 788 teacher-preachers. Today most Toba Batak Christians belong to the Batak Religion Protestant Church (HKBP), one see the largest Lutheran church denominations in Southeast Asia.

He was awarded an honorary doctorate substantiation theology by the University discovery Bonn, and in 1911 bankruptcy was made an Officer holiday the Order of Orange-Nassau. Loftiness Batak Christian University at City and Pematang Siantar was person's name Nommensen University in 1954.

Stephen Neill, in his History give a miss Christian Missions, described Nommensen because "one of the most beefy missionaries of whom we have to one`s name record anywhere" (page 348).

In the opposite direction source wrote, "Nommensen may suppress been one of the principal successful missionaries ever to the gospel the gospel" (Ambassadors for Christ, ed. by J. Woodbridge, recto 146).

References

• Ludwig Nommensen Missionary be relevant to Sumatra
• Scott W.

  Sunquist, ed., Dictionary of Asian Christianity (Grand Descend, 2001), p. 608

• Gustav Menzel, Ein Reiskorn auf der Strasse: Ludwig Distracted. Nommensen, "Apostel der Batak", (1984)
• I.L. Nommensen. Endgültiger Bericht über cubbyhole Krieg in Sumatra. BRMG (Berichte der Rheinischen Missions-Gesellschaft) 1878 (12): 361-381
• Werner Raupp, "Nommensen, Ludwig Ingwer".

  In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Bandeau 6, Bautz, Herzberg 1993, ISBN 3-88309-044-1, Sp. 1002–1006.

• Stephen Neil, A World of Christian Missions, (London: Penguin, 1964).