Poltergeists, and Folk Magic
In 1838, 33 year old Johann Christoph Blumhardt and his young wife, Doris, took on the pastorate in the town of Mottlingen as well as the nearby associated parish of Haugstett-located at the northern end of the Black Forest in Germany. A jovial, kind man, with a child-like faith and a love for his fellow man, Blumhardt looked forward with eager expectation to assume the duties of his new pastorate. Little did he know what awaited him. As author, Gunter Kruger puts it:
Both villages were among the poorest in the region. When Blumhardt arrived, a crippling lethargy lay over the whole congregation. Pastor Barth, Blumhardt’s immediate predecessor, and a brilliant preacher, complained bitterly to him that the church had been preached to death; people were fed up with the Gospel, and if some still attended church, most of them slept in their seats. The entire town seemed to be held in a sleepy thrall.
Over the course of his first year at Mottlingen, rumors gradually made their way to Blumhardt hinting that inexplicable things were happening in the home of four of his parishioners the Dittus’: three sisters and a brother. On the very first day they moved into their new residence in Mottlingen, the siblings sat down to eat their evening meal. The eldest sister, Gottlieben prayed, “Come, Lord Jesus, be our guest, and let all thou givest in mercy be blessed,” upon saying this, she immediately suffered an attack and fell unconscious to the floor. Then throughout the house banging and shuffling began to be heard in the living room, kitchen and bedroom, and strange lights were seen. Gottlieben, and then her sister Katharina began to exhibit disturbing behavior and terrifying convulsions. The doctor was called for, but confessed himself baffled and unable to help. Finally, in desperation, Blumhardt was called for. As Friedrich Zuendel, Blumhardt’s biographer narrates:
Sitting a little distance away, Blumhardt silently watched the horrible convulsions. Gottlieben twisted her arms and bent her whole body into a high curve, and foam issued from her mouth. Blumhardt recounts: After what had happened it was clear to me that something demonic was at work here. It pained me to think that no remedy or counsel was forthcoming in so horrible a matter. As I pondered pondered this, Blumhardt recounts, I was gripped by a kind of wrath; it suddenly came over me, and I can only confess: It was an inspiration from above, even though I was unaware of it then. With firm steps I went up to, grasped her cramped in order to hold them together if possible and loudly called the unconscious girl’s name into her ear, saying, “Put your hands together and pray: ‘Lord Jesus, help me!’ We have seen long enough what the devil does; now let us see what the Lord Jesus can do!”
Thus began for Blumhardt a two year spiritual journey in to a realm hitherto unknown to him. He’d never experienced anything like it before, nor had anyone he knew. He was repeatedly urged by his mentor and the other pastors in his denomination to have nothing to do with the whole situation. In ensuing months Blumhardt began to ******* widespread use among his parisioners of folk magic. Despite his dismay at discovering, Nevertheless, he persevered, and over a period of months, gradually, haltingly grew in both faith and understanding until through his prayers, they were freed from their spiritual oppression. As Zuendel describes it:
Finally there came that most shattering moment, of which none but the actual eye- and ear-witnesses can have an adequate idea. At two o’clock in the morning, while the girl bent her head and the upper part of her body far backwards over her chair, the purported angel of Satan, with a voice such as one would scarcely think a human throat capable of, bellowed out the words, “Jesus is victor! Jesus is victor!” Wherever these words could be heard, their significance was grasped too; they made an indelible impression on many. The strength and power of the demon now appeared to wane with every passing minute; he grew more and more loose. Until finally ****
The following morning villagers all up and down the valley reported having heard at the same instant in the air high above, mournful cries of “Into the Abyss, Into the Abyss!”
Almost immediately, in the following weeks, one after another of the youths in Blumhardt’s Confirmation class come to him in confidence to confess their sins and commit their life fully to Jesus. The movement of repentance then quickly spread to the adults, until what had started as a trickle became a raging flood and Blumhardt found himself spending 8 hours a day in his office hearing the confessions of parishioners- They began meeting in one another’s home’s for times of prayer and Bible study, and people in his parish, and the surrounding countryside began to flock to the Sunday service, until so many people came, the church members had to offer their houses and barns for them to spend the night in.
A spiritual awakening, a revival had broken out the ripples of which would swell throughout Germany, through Europe and eventually lap the very shores of America. Like Jonathan Edwards, another pastor who found himself in midst of spiritual awakening desperately trying to understand, Blumhardt put down his observations and thoughts. And like Edwards' own account The Surprising.....(whose fjdksfjksj Blumhardt's went on to have a profound impact on no less a figure than Karl Barth.
Liberal German Theologian, Bultmann (de-mythologizing) kjkjkjkjkj, kdjkdjfkj Famously spluttered in frustration, "I despise these Blumhardt stories!"
Great introduction to Blumhardt, The Awakening, published by Plough Publishing.
Pique interest, strongly encourage to read full biography-
