Papers on Modern Religious Thought by Johannes Zachhuber
Religions, 2024
In this article, I consider F.C. Baur’s conception of religion. This has not yet been done becaus... more In this article, I consider F.C. Baur’s conception of religion. This has not yet been done because Baur is generally regarded as a historical theologian rather than a theorist of religion. Yet I argue that, if we observe Baur’s own historical work, we discover there a remarkably original conceptual work on the notion of religion. For Baur, I argue, religion was a key concept, in that it aided him in his attempt to bring together theological, historical, and philosophical work. Yet the concept of religion had to be of a particular kind in order to suit his agenda. Therefore, the identification of Baur’s concept of religion will also help ascertain the coherence of his intellectual activity. In the article, I focus on two of Baur’s works, his first monograph, Symbolik und Mythologie (1824/5) and his magisterial Die christliche Gnosis (1835). I show that fundamental ideas across these two books should be seen as Baur’s own (rather than merely borrowed from Schleiermacher and Hegel), and that there is more continuity between them than readers have often found. In a final section, I discuss briefly an essay Baur devoted to the Begriff der Religionsphilosophie (1837).
Toronto Journal of Theology, 2023
Albrecht Ritschl (1822-1889) is a key representative of 19th century German theology. As such, he... more Albrecht Ritschl (1822-1889) is a key representative of 19th century German theology. As such, he is emphatic that dogmatics has to be presented in systematic form. This article will analyse in detail the meaning and significance of this demand in Ritschl's work. It will be shown that the systematic shape of theology was for Ritschl a wedge issue that permitted him to subject some individuals and traditions to a sharp critique while aligning himself with others. Among those singled out for criticism are Philipp Melanchthon and Friedrich Schleiermacher. Yet Schleiermacher, perhaps ironically, also emerges as perhaps the most important influence on Ritschl’s concept of the theological system. The paper will conclude with reflections on advantages and disadvantages of developing theology as a system in the tradition Ritschl represented and shaped.
The Oxford History of Modern German Theology, vol. 1, 2023
This chapter explores the historical turn in German intellectual life at the turn of the nineteen... more This chapter explores the historical turn in German intellectual life at the turn of the nineteenth century and its impact on theology. Two aspects are pivotal: the revolutionary social changes of the time create a sense of rupture between past and present; and radical criticism calls into question the reliability of historical sources. Historicization seeks to address both through a transformation of history into a rigorously methodical science while drawing on contemporaneous philosophy for models of reintegrating past reality into the contemporary horizon. Theologians played an active part in this development, but their work cannot be understood without their wider context. The chapter discusses Lessing and the Fragment Controversy; philosophies of history in Kant and Schelling; and the theological adaptation of these ideas in Schleiermacher, Marheineke, and de Wette.
Oxford History of Modern German Theology, vol. 2
This chapter charts the intellectual development of Albrecht Ritschl (1822-1889) and his school. ... more This chapter charts the intellectual development of Albrecht Ritschl (1822-1889) and his school. It thus covers the time from the 1840s to the end of the nineteenth century. Initially, Ritschl's early work in the context of the Tübingen School is described, followed by an account of Ritschl's break from this group. A second part gives an outline of Ritschl's key ideas as expressed in his main work, The Christian Doctrine of Justification and Reconciliation. Beginning with some comments on Ritschl's reconstruction of the history of atonement theories, the account is focussed on his biblical theology, his philosophical foundations, and his remarkable views on Christian life and practice. Ritschl's relationship to Kant and Schleiermacher is considered as well as his indebtedness to mid-century philosophers, Adolf Trendelenburg and Hermann Lotze. A final part of the chapter gives an account of main developments in the academic school founded on the basis of Ritschl's theology. Wilhelm Herrmann, Julius Kaftan, and Adolf Harnack are discussed in their relationship to Ritschl's theology. A brief account is given of the importance of the Ritschl School for broader debates in late nineteenth-century German Protestantism.
Reading the Church Fathers, eds. M. Ludlow, S. Douglass, 2011
This text discussed Jean-Luc Marion's reading of the ps.-Dionysius in the context of his receptio... more This text discussed Jean-Luc Marion's reading of the ps.-Dionysius in the context of his reception history. The text begins with some reflections on the ambiguity of modern reading and from the goes on to consider the specific case of Marion's engagement with the texts of the late ancient author. This approach permits an appreciation of this engagement despite its many problems.
P. Ziegler/D. Nelson (eds.), T&T Clark Companion to Modern Theology
This text, intended for the T&T Clark Companion to Modern Theology, discusses the controversial r... more This text, intended for the T&T Clark Companion to Modern Theology, discusses the controversial relationship between theology and the modern university. It begins with an analysis of Schleiermacher's reflection on the modern university and theology's place in this institution. I then move on to consider later changes of the concept of Wissenschaft or science which had far-reaching consequences for theology in particular. One reaction to this later development can be found in J. H. Newman who proposed a solution consciously different from Schleiermacher's in The Idea of a University. The remainder of the chapter offers a brief discussion of crucial texts that can be consulted on the topic.
The Oxford Handbook of Friedrich Schleiermacher, eds. A. Dole, S. Poe, K. Vander Schel
This chapter analyses the unique connection between Schleiermacher and the University of Berlin b... more This chapter analyses the unique connection between Schleiermacher and the University of Berlin by considering two interlocking aspects of this relationship. On the one hand, Schleiermacher played a major part in the foundation of this institution, on the other hand his work from 1810 was inextricably intertwined with his professional role as a university teacher and administrator. Beginning from a description of the context in which the foundation of the university took place, the chapter considers Schleiermacher’s contribution both to the wider debate about university reform and the more specific question of the future of university theology. It then turns to the ways in which Schleiermacher’s activity from 1810 was shaped by his professional duties as a university teacher. It is argued that Schleiermacher strove to embody the professorial ideal envisioned in his theoretical writings about the university.
In this article, I argue that the roughly ten years following the publication of D.F. Strauss' Li... more In this article, I argue that the roughly ten years following the publication of D.F. Strauss' Life of Jesus had far-reaching consequences for the German debate about theology as science. I suggest that Strauss modifies the previous status quaestionis by (1) making the scientific character of theology a matter of public concern; (2) aligning the Hegelian emphasis on science as knowledge with the emerging imperative of science as procedural research; and (3) indicating that this question was further connected with societal and political modernisation. The result was an explosive mixture as is evident from the passionate responses to Strauss' publication. His most extreme opponents, such as E.-W. Hengstenberg, were eager to accept his claim that modern theology = Hegelian 'pantheism' = political reform. Those closer to Strauss, on the other hand, notably other members of the Tübingen School, sought to moderate his claims by restricting the problem of theology's scientific character to an inner-university affair. On the other hand, more radical thinkers, such as Ludwig Feuerbach and Karl Marx, soon moved beyond Strauss' original proposal of a modern, philosophical Christianity. While Strauss' own position was thus repudiated on the right and the left, his main significance was as a catalyst for fundamental theological and intellectual transformations.
Kirchengeschichte: Historisches Spezialgebiet und/oder theologische Disziplin, 2020
This article investigates F. C. Baur's book Die Epoch der kirchlichen Geschichtsschreibung publis... more This article investigates F. C. Baur's book Die Epoch der kirchlichen Geschichtsschreibung published in 1852 arguing that it is a key text for a specific form of theological historicism according to which Church History is, so to speak, responsible for its own prolegomena. A close reading of this late text reveals its dependence on much earlier research conducted by Baur in preparation of his first lecture courses in the 1820s. This link makes evident who strongly Baur remained committed to the ideal of a theology of history in the spirit of F.J.W. Schelling and the early Philipp Marheineke.
Religious Responses to Modernity, ed. Y. Friedmann, C. Markschies, 2021
It is conventional to see individualisation or privatisation as one of the chief responses to rel... more It is conventional to see individualisation or privatisation as one of the chief responses to religion in modernity. In this paper, I explore a different line of argument, the attempt to align religion with the cohesion of communities. I take my starting point in antiquity, specifically Varro's idea of political theology and its critique in Augustine's City of God. I then show how these ideas were picked up and transformed by various thinkers since the seventeenth century: Rousseau, de Maistre, Boland, Comte, and Durkheim. It becomes clear that both liberal and conservative thinkers during these centuries found the notion attractive that religion is needed as a bond holding societies together. This created a problematic relationship between religious and political dynamics.
Differenz und Wahrheit, ed. Markus Wriedt, 2021
My article offers a critical review of current strands and problems in the historiography of nine... more My article offers a critical review of current strands and problems in the historiography of nineteenth century theology. This history is usually written by systematic theologians and has thus often been rather disconnected from the wider developments in the historiography of the period. The article suggests that the current crisis of 19th century historiography (as diagnosed by Nolte, Marchand and others) offers an opportunity for the theological historiography which can, however, only be grasped if a number of issues are successfully tackled. I discuss three such issues: (1) the coincidence of crisis and vitality in 19th century theology; (2) the occurrence of theological reflection outside of institutionalised theology; (3) the global range of theology in the 19th century.
G. Westhaver, R. Vince (eds.), Christ Unabridged: Knowing and Loving the Son of Man (London:SCM), 2020
In this paper, I investigate the understanding of Christ's human nature in a group of 19th centur... more In this paper, I investigate the understanding of Christ's human nature in a group of 19th century philosophers and theologians, including F.W.J. Schelling, F.C. Baur, and I.A. Dorner. I show that their interpretation of Christology in a historicist paradigm permitted them to integrate in an innovative way a major dimension of Patristic Christology. Their difficulties in squaring this tenet with Christ's human individuality in turn mirrors analogous problems evident in Patristic Christologies.
Rationalisations in Religion: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, 2019
The paper considers the famous notion that theology is 'faith seeking understanding' or the 'rati... more The paper considers the famous notion that theology is 'faith seeking understanding' or the 'rationality of faith' in light of the Weberian concept of rationalisation. It asks how theology disciplines and restrains as part of its rational character. the paper's particular focus is the theology that became institutionalised in the 19th century research university. Three different theories based on different understandings of religion and of rationality are discussed: Friedrich Schleiermacher's view of theology within a broad concept of practical rationality; David Strauss' critical reconstruction of theology on the basis of scientific rationality, and F.C. Baur's historicist version, based on the concept of historical reason. The three versions combine in strikingly different ways theology as the faith's rationality with an instrumentalist form of rationalisation. Ultimately, I argue that theological rationalisation is good when and insofar as it contributes to the practice of the Christian religion.
N. Adams/G. Pattison/G. Ward (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Theology and Modern European Thought, Oxford 2013, 479–98.
This handbook chapter offers an overview of discussions in nineteenth-century theology about the ... more This handbook chapter offers an overview of discussions in nineteenth-century theology about the concept of theology as science or Wissenschaft. I sketch the origin of that debate as lying partly in the rise of modern theology and partly in the institutional setting of theology in the university. I then discuss in more detail concepts developed by Schleiermacher, Fichte, Newman, Baur, Strauss, and Ritschl.
This article gauges the significance of Schelling's thought for the emergence of nineteenth centu... more This article gauges the significance of Schelling's thought for the emergence of nineteenth century German, Protestant historical theology. The article first considers Schelling's relevant texts, mostly the System of Transcendental Idealism and the Lectures on University Studies. A second part looks at their theological readers considering in depth the early Philipp Marheineke and F. C. Baur. It becomes apparent that this reception occurs within intellectual networks consisting of individuals who are nowadays considered philosophers, historians, theologians or classicists, but who at the time participated in the same debates about history, mythology, speculation, and religion.
Critical History of 19th Century Theology, 2017
In this paper I sketch the emergence of transcendence and immanence to the binary pair of opposit... more In this paper I sketch the emergence of transcendence and immanence to the binary pair of opposites we know today. I show that such usage doesn't stretch back beyond Kant and that its real career only takes off in the 1830s. Major influences on this development are the debate about Spinoza's 'pantheism', Hegel's idealism, and the place of religion in the modern world. In a second part, I look at some historical scholarship of the time to illustrate how the duality of transcendence and immanence began to inform the reading of earlier religious history. I end by pointing to some new contexts that are beginning to emerge at the turn of the 20th century, notably Catholic thought, and which ensured that the popularity of that duality continued to grow.
This is a chapter for the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Nineteenth Century Christian Thought. It... more This is a chapter for the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Nineteenth Century Christian Thought. It sketches historicisation as a major intellectual paradigm shift at the turn of the nineteenth century. The chapter focuses specifically on its relation to and significance for Christian thought. After a section describing the specifics of this transformation, I go on to discuss the contributions by Joseph Schelling and Friedrich Schleiermacher. Subsequently, the work of F.C. Baur is considered as a prime example of nineteenth-century historicist theology. Finally, I consider the critique of historicism in the works of Friedrich Nietzsche and Franz Overbeck.
"This draft handbook chapter offers an overview about the reception history of Christian theology... more "This draft handbook chapter offers an overview about the reception history of Christian theology as found among major 19th century German theologians who are influenced by Kantian and idealist philosophies. I argue that their historicist theologies are 'reception history' in a very specific sense in that a historical understanding of Christianity is the very foundation of their entire enterprise.
The text will be published in the Oxford Handbook for the Reception History of Christian Theology, ed. S. Coakley/R. Cross."
The paper traces the internal links between ways of conceptualising religion and history in two o... more The paper traces the internal links between ways of conceptualising religion and history in two of the most influential theological schools of 19th century Germany. It is argued that in many ways the latter of those sought to achieve the same goals as the former albeit with different means. The ensuing polemical tone has misled scholars to neglect the close relationship between the two.
Uploads
Papers on Modern Religious Thought by Johannes Zachhuber
The text will be published in the Oxford Handbook for the Reception History of Christian Theology, ed. S. Coakley/R. Cross."