User:Flod logic/Maja Lisa Söderlund

Maja Lisa Söderlund (19 January 1794 – 31 July 1851) was a Swedish laywoman preacher who was a spiritual guide to and great influence on Christian revivalist leader Carl Olof Rosenius.

Biography
Söderlund was born Maria Elisabeth Nilsdotter to Nils Nilsson and Christina Olofsdotter in Frostkåge, Sweden, near Skellefteå. Around that time, a Pietist revival was sweeping through the Norrland region, starting in Piteå and reaching a peak between 1810 and 1850. from Norrlångträsk was one of the leaders of the Nyläsare (New Reader) movement, which often emphasized lay preaching, justification by faith, and reading edifying devotional material such as the writings of Martin Luther. Despite the 1726 Conventicle Act forbidding private religious gatherings, the movement continued to grow. By the 1810s, it had reached the Skellefteå area. In this environment of religious fervor, Söderlund was converted by Larsson in her mid-twenties.

After her conversion, Söderlund soon began preaching in Kusmark. She was known to go about in a plain wadmal dress and a hat. In 1820, she co-signed a letter from a number of Readers to King Charles XIV John. In 1824, she moved to Storkåge, where she would live the rest of her life. She traveled from town to town to preach, however, stopping for several days. Söderlund often recited Luther's sermons from memory and in a lively way, as well as eventually adding her own interpretation of the Scripture. Rosenius first met Söderlund while visiting his parents in the Burträsk area in 1834. He spent time with her on several occasions and, while helping his father, used the opportunity to visit her. Söderlund's preaching soon drew the attention of the church. She was told by a local priest to stop preaching; she argued that there was clearly a demand in the towns for her to preach and interpret God's word. In 1835, farmers in the area were warned about her activity by Bishop Frans Michael Franzén. Later, the authorities got involved. She was reported in 1842 and 1843 to the County Governor for holding meetings at the same as church services.

Rosenius referred to her as the "prophetess of Storkåge".

Söderlund is described as likely having the greatest impact of anyone on Rosenius' beliefs. A number of spiritual sayings and advice in his book Nytt och Gammalt från Nådens Rike, eller Några Guds ord och Wishetens goda ordspråk Samlade af C. O. Rosenius 1838 are attributed to her, as well as an excerpt printed in the February 1844 edition of his publication Pietisten.