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2. PIETISM IN SWEDEN. 323
whole Church, to be sent back to the devotional study of
Scripture, to be reminded of the duties of individual piety
and corporate missionary activity, and to have the idea of
self-denial restored to its proper place in Christian life.
Sweden profited not less than Germany by its endeavours
to attain these objects.
At first Pietism was rather favourably received in
Sweden. Light is thrown upon it
by a study of Bishop
Svedberg s life, to which I have already referred, and,
although he did not work directly with it, he recognized
what was good in it. It entered Sweden in force about
1702. Its new hymn-book,
"
Songs of Moses and the
Lamb," first printed in 1717, and often since republished,
gave the Pietists a bond of union which was very useful to
them, though it excited some contempt from the simplicity
of its language. A new element was introduced into the
movement on the return of the Swedish prisoners of war
taken in Charles XII. s unsuccessful war in Russia, especi
ally from Siberia, about 1721. Francke, personally, had
done much to soften their painful existence in captivity,
and his spirit had taken great hold of the troops, though
even there it was not wholly welcome to the military chap
lains who were among them. In Sweden itself, however,
it was at first rather encouraged by the two greatest re
ligious leaders of the age, Eric Benzelius, junior (1675
1743), Bishop of Linkoping, and then archbishop, and
Professor Andreas Rydelius (1671 1738),
10
the first inde
pendent philosopher of Sweden, who died after a four
years episcopate as Bishop of Lund. Rydelius was
particularly friendly to Peter Murbeck in Skane (1708
1766), who has been called "the Francke of Sweden,"
though he was a harder man than Francke.11
At the same
time Eric Tollstadius was working effectually in Upper
10
There is a short and interesting biography of Rydelius, by
J. A. Eklund (Bishop of Carlstad), Stockholm, 1899.
1
There is a sketch of Murbeck s life and work in Hjalmar
Lyth s Ropande Roster, Stockholm, 1908. A fuller treatment
of the life is published by Rydberg.
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