The voice of a popular German Capuchin preacher: The Weeg-Weiser gen Himmel (1668-1679) of Geminianus von Mainz

This essay wants to provide a preliminary introduction to, and initial contextualization of the sermons of the seventeenth-century Capuchin preacher Geminianus von Mainz (Geminianus Monacensis, ca. 16061672). To my knowledge, his literary production has never been a subject of exhaustive scholarship, even though it has been portrayed by some as a typical example of Bavarian baroque preaching from the later seventeenth century.1 More recently, his metaphorical approach to marriage has been commented upon in passing by Ulrike Strasser and Merry Wiesner-Hanks,2 whereas several culinary remarks in his sermons drew the attention of the late German gastrosopher Christoph Wagner, as can be read in the chapter on ‘Barocke Lebensfreude im Spiegel österreichischer Barockpredigten’ in his Universität der Genüsse, a modern encyclopedia of culinary taste.3 Beyond that, the sermons of Geminianus do not seem to have drawn much attention from specialists in Capuchin preaching. His works were probably overshadowed by the massive homiletic and poetic output of his near exact contemporary and fellow Capuchin friar, Prokopius Templinus. The latter’s conversion to Catholicism, as well as his literary talents and his relatively well-documented preaching career made him from the outset a much more enticing figure.4