Hans Nielsen Hauge (3 April 1771 – 29 March 1824) was a 19th-century Norwegian Lutheran lay minister, spiritual leader, business entrepreneur, social reformer and author. He led a noted Pietism revival known as the Haugean movement. Hauge is also considered to have been influential in the early industrialization of Norway.
Biography
Hans Nielsen Hauge was born the fifth of ten children in his ancestral farm of Hauge at Rolvsøy (Hauge på Rolvsøy) in the county of Østfold. His father was Niels Mikkelsen Evenrød (1732–1813) and mother Maria Olsdatter Hauge (1735–1811).
He had a poor and otherwise ordinary youth until 5 April 1796, when he received his "spiritual baptism" in a field near his farm. Within two months, he had founded a revival movement in his own community, written a book, and decided to take his mission on the road. He wrote a series of books in his lifetime. In a total of 18 years, he published 33 books. Estimates are that 100,000 Norwegians read one or more of them, at a time when the population was 900,000 more-or-less literate individuals.
In the next several years, Hauge traveled – mostly by foot – throughout much of Norway. He held countless revival meetings, often after church services. In addition to his religious work, he offered practical advice, encouraging such things as settlements in Northern Norway. He and his followers were persecuted, though their teachings were in keeping with Lutheran doctrine. He began preaching about "the living faith" in Norway and Denmark after a mystical experience that he believed called him to share the assurance of salvation with others. At the time, itinerant preaching and religious gatherings held without the supervision of a pastor were illegal, and Hauge was arrested several times.
Hauge faced great personal suffering and state persecution. He was imprisoned no less than 14 times between 1794 and 1811, accused of witchcraft and adultery, and of violating the Conventicle Act of 1741 () at a time in which Norwegians did not have the right of religious assembly without a Church of Norway minister present. The law "was not created to be used against Hauge, but it is almost only against Hauge that it was attempted to be used."
His time in prison broke his health and led to his premature death. Upon his release from prison in 1811, he took up work as a farmer and industrialist at Bakkehaugen near Christiania (now Oslo).
In 1815, he married Andrea Andersdatter, who later died in childbirth that same year. In 1817, he married Ingeborg Marie Olsdatter (1791–1872) and bought the Bredtvet farm (now the site of Bredtvet Church in Oslo), where he died. Three of his four children died in infancy. His surviving son, Andreas Hauge, became a priest in the Church of Norway and Member of the Norwegian Parliament.
Haugean movement
It is generally agreed that Hauge had a profound influence on both secular and religious history in Norway. Hauge's message emphasized the type of spirituality he felt originated with Martin Luther. He led charismatic meetings, and his organization became an informal network that in many ways challenged the establishment of the state church. As a result, he and his followers were persecuted in various ways. Hauge was imprisoned on several occasions, spending a total of nine years in prison.
Over time the Haugean movement increased its influence throughout the country. Some figures might illustrate that fact. In the late eighteenth century a normal service at a church in Christiania would be attended by fewer than 20 people – of a population of nearly 10,000. Christianity in Norway was nearly becoming a framework for traditions, and ethics (from a Christian perspective) and spiritual life were nearly non-existent. It is not an exaggeration to state that he revived the faith in most of Norway. Both men women played a central role in this revival. The first female preacher of the Haugean movement was Sara Oust, who was active from the year 1799.