Joachim Neander

Joachim Neander (165031 May 1680) was a German Calvinist teacher, theologian and hymnwriter whose most famous hymn is Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of Creation (). The hymn has been described by John Julian in his A Dictionary of Hymnology as “a magnificent hymn of praise to God, perhaps the finest creation of its author, and of the first rank in its class.” Due to its popularity it has been translated several times into English – Catherine Winkworth being one of the translators in the 19th century – and the hymn has appeared in most major hymnals. He regarded as the first hymnwriter in German of the Reformed Church as well as the most notable. The family had changed the family name from the original German Neumann (‘New man’ in English) to the Graeco-Roman form Neander, following the fashion of the time. After the death of his father, he could not afford to study at a famous university. He therefore studied theology in his hometown from 1666 to 1670. At first, his heart was not in it. It was only when he heard a sermon of Theodor Undereyk (shortly before the end of his course) that his beliefs became serious. In 1671 he became a private tutor in Heidelberg, and in 167