Memoirs of the life, death, burial, and wonderful writings, of Jacob Behmen

But now we return to our Jacob Jacob Boehme (1575–1624), the German Christian mystic.. His parents, having observed that this son of theirs gave proofs of an excellent, good, and lively talent original: "Genius"; here meaning a natural aptitude or capacity., kept him in school. There, along with daily prayers and generally good behavior, both at the table and within the family, he learned to read reasonably well and also a little writing, until he left school to be apprenticed to a shoemaker. After serving his apprenticeship faithfully and with a good reputation, and then [as is customary in Germany] traveling for a while to practice his trade This refers to the Wanderjahre, the tradition of journeymen traveling to gain experience before becoming a master craftsman., he married Catherine, the daughter of John Kunschman (a butcher and respected citizen of Görlitz and a young woman of a virtuous character) in the year 1594. At the same time, he also established his own business as a shoemaker. He lived with her for thirty years in marriage with peace and quiet; and, by God's blessing, they had four sons. One of these was a goldsmith, the second a shoemaker, and the other two were apprenticed to other trades.

Because Jacob Boehme, the subject of these memoirs, had walked in the fear of God with all humility and simplicity from his youth and had taken special pleasure in attending sermons, he was eventually spiritually awakened in his own heart through the comforting promise of our Savior in Luke 11:13: "Your heavenly Father shall give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him." Through the many controversies and academic original: "scholastic"; referring to the formal, often pedantic theological debates between different Protestant factions in the late 16th century. wrangling about religion—which he could never understand or make sense of—he was so troubled and stirred up that, in order to know the truth with a simple spirit, he dedicated himself to fervent and constant praying, seeking, and knocking. Finally, while he was traveling with his master, he was, in spirit, brought into the Holy Sabbath and glorious day of rest for the soul through the Father's influence in the Son.