Daniel Sennert, Chymistry, and Theological Debates

Abstract

Daniel Sennert (1572–1637) of Wittenberg is known as one of the earliest university professors of medicine, who advanced the study of “chymistry” (alchemy/chemistry) through his influential writings. This article first explores his treatise On the Agreement and Disagreement of the Chymists with the Aristotelians and Galenists (Wittenberg, 1619) so as to understand his view of chymistry in its detailed historical and intellectual context. Following that is a brief analysis of some theological aspects of the polemic in which Sennert was involved. While criticising the Paracelsians, Sennert adopted their idea of the three principles (Salt, Sulphur and Mercury) and placed their origin in the divine act of Creation. It is exactly for this reason that Johannes Freitag (1581–1641) of Groningen and his students tried to associate Sennert with the Paracelsians and denounced them as heretics. The interpretation of the Biblical Creation story occupied an important place in this polemic. Among Freitag's students, Jacobus Homodaeus (1612–1693) of Elbing excelled for his unusually wide knowledge of theological sources not only Christian (both Catholic and Protestant) but also Jewish.