Rietmaker, Abraham (17th century)
Abraham Rietmaker (Rietmacher), was a preacher of the Mennonite congregation of Aachen, Germany, in the early 17th century. The [[Amsterdam Mennonite Library (Bibliotheek en Archief van de Vereenigde Doopsgezinde Gemeente te Amsterdam)|Amsterdam Mennonite Archives ]]contain five letters written by Rietmaker to the Waterlander leader Hans de Ries, in which he informed de Ries on the situation of the congregations in the Rheinland, the progress of the unions between the High German Mennonites, the (Young) Frisians and the Waterlanders, the troubles in this united group at Haarlem, where Leenaerdt Clock and Claes Wolters Kops were in discord, and the relation between the Mennonites and the Socinians in Danzig. The first of these letters is dated 29 December 1613, the last 7 October 1614.
Rietmaker was a defender of a plain Christianity; about 1620 he censured Claes Wolters Kops, who was then living at Gladbach, for his wealth and his luxurious estate.
Particulars about the life of Rietmaker are not available. It is not very likely that he is identical with Abraham Dirks (Bierens), an elder of the Flemish congregation at Amsterdam from 1617, who is also called Abraham Rietmaker, and who was also a rietmaker (maker of baskets or of cane chairs).
Bibliography
Hoop Scheffer, Jacob Gijsbert de. Inventaris der Archiefstukken berustende bij de Vereenigde Doopsgezinde Gemeente to Amsterdam, 2 vols. Amsterdam: Uitgegeven en ten geschenke aangeboden door den Kerkeraad dier Gemeente, 1883-1884: v. I, Nos. 543, 555.
Zeitschrift des Aachener Geschichtsvereins VI (1884).
| Author(s) | Nanne van der Zijpp |
|---|---|
| Date Published | 1959 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
van der Zijpp, Nanne. "Rietmaker, Abraham (17th century)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1959. Web. 22 Nov 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Rietmaker,_Abraham_(17th_century)&oldid=96240.
APA style
van der Zijpp, Nanne. (1959). Rietmaker, Abraham (17th century). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 22 November 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Rietmaker,_Abraham_(17th_century)&oldid=96240.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, p. 332. All rights reserved.
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