Andrzej Towianski (1799-1878)

Andrzej Towianski, der sich selbst als Erneuerer und Vollender des Christentums verstand, war bislang vor allem für polnische Literaturhistoriker von Interesse, die seinen Einfluss auf die größten Dichter der polnischen Romantik untersuchten. Der vorliegende Band zeigt diese strittige Persönlichkeit in neuem Licht und stellt ihn aus religionshistorischer Perspektive in einen gesamteuropäischen Kontext. Dabei finden neben polnischen Quellentexten auch deutsche, französische, italienische und russische Quellentexte Berücksichtigung, die im Anhang teilweise erstmals zugänglich gemacht werden. Der Ausgangspunkt der Analysen ist die posthume umfangreiche Turiner Ausgabe von Towianskis Schriften, die als kollektives Werk seines engsten Schülerkreises gezeigt wird. Die Autorin arbeitet Bezüge auf Bewegungen wie jene des Frühsozialisten Henri Saint-Simon, der jüdischen Mystik und den Mesmerismus heraus. Sie rekonstruiert mithilfe von Archivmaterial Towianskis Praktiken.

Towianski considered himself a reviver of the Christian faith who strove to lead Christianity to a higher level of perfection. Traditionally, literary research in Poland has focussed almost exclusively on Towianski's influence on romantic poetry. He also had an impact on thinkers, theologians, philosophers and politicians in Belgium, France, Italy, Switzerland as well as parts of Russia. This book investigates Towianski's writings taking into consideration findings from various research traditions. For the first time the extensive Turin edition of Towianski's Works [1882] is studied in-depth in a systematic fashion. This exploration of Towianski's thought in the context of religious studies allows a more distinct picture of his teachings to emerge at the interface of mystical practices, including Jewish mysticism, and prophecy. The contrastive analysis of the texts reveals this edition to be a collective work. Then special emphasis is placed on the concealed narrative units created by the editors. Selected units dealing with decisive turning points in Towianski's activities (1840/41, 1863 und 1870) are contextualized with modern concepts of the study of mysticism including Jewish Kabbala and Hassidism as well as with Towianski's mesmeristic background. Additionally, the basic terminology of Towianism is explored against the backdrop of the religious currents of his time. As an outcome a more comprehensive contextualisation of Towianski's thought within religious currents of his time can be achieved. Primary sources and German translations are presented in an extensive appendix.