Friedrich Myconius (originally named Friedrich Mekum and also Friedrich Mykonius) (26 December 1490 – 7 April 1546) was a German Lutheran theologian and Protestant reformer. He was a colleague of Martin Luther.
He was born in Lichtenfels, Bavaria. A friend and co-worker of Martin Luther, he preached Luther's message to the people of Leipzig and Gotha, where he founded the Gotha Gymnasium. He was sent to England to discuss the details of the Augsburg Confession, and later wrote a history of the reformation.
In 1540 Myconius became sick and was expected to die within a short time. On his bed he wrote a loving farewell note to Luther with a trembling hand. Luther received the letter and sent back a reply: "I command thee in the name of God to live because I still have need of thee in the work of reforming the church.… The Lord will never let me hear that thou art dead, but will permit thee to survive me. For this I am praying, this is my will, and may my will be done, because I seek only to glorify the name of God." Although Myconius had already lost the ability to speak when Luther's letter came, he recovered completely and lived six more years to survive Luther himself by two months.
References
- Gross, Ernie. This Day in Religion. New York:Neal-Schuman, 1990. ISBN 1-55570-045-4.
External links
- . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.