Ritschl
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
ALBRECHT, a German theologian; born in Berlin, Germany, March 25, 1822. His university studies were carried on at Bonn, Halle, Heidelberg, and Tübingen. In 1846 he "habilitated" at Bonn, the subject of his thesis being the relation between the gospel of 1919 there were 250 students and 21 in-Marcion and the canonical gospel of Luke. Ritschl, who had become Professor extraordinarius of Theology at Bonn in 1853, was promoted to an ordinary professorship in 1859, and in 1864 was transferred to Göttingen, where the rest of his life was spent. His lectures, especially those on Christian ethics, soon became famous for their originality and vigor. Ritschl is usually classified as an "eclectic mediating theologian"; perhaps "intermediate" would be a better word, ord, for his theology is uncompromisingly opposed alike by the "rationalists" and by the "orthodox" parties. The Ritschlians now form a large and important school in Germany, the most prominent among them being Kaftan, Herrmann, and Bender. His principal work, on the Christian doctrine of justification and reconciliation, was published in three volumes (1870-1874); the first of which traces the history of the doctrine, the second discusses its Biblical premises, and the third its theological meaning. An English translation of the first volume appeared in 1871. The distinguishing feature of the Ritschlian theology is perhaps the prominence it gives to the practical, ethical, social side of Christianity. Among his works are "A Treatise on Christian Perfection," "A Tract on Conscience," "A Tract on Theology and Metaphysics," etc. He died in Göttingen, March 20, 1889.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
When Collier's wrote this in 1921 it reported that "the Ritschlians now form a large and important school in Germany," naming Kaftan, Herrmann and Bender. Within a few years that school had been swept aside: Karl Barth — a pupil of Ritschl's own disciple Wilhelm Herrmann — launched his dialectical theology with the commentary on Romans of 1919/1922, and later dismissed Ritschl as the embodiment of the national-liberal German bourgeois of the Bismarck era. Ritschl is now read chiefly as a historical figure, the peak of nineteenth-century liberal Protestantism, rather than as a living school; his stress on the ethical and social side of Christianity, which Collier's singled out, is credited with shaping the Social Gospel movement in America. The three volumes on justification and reconciliation (1870–74) remain in print in English, the third volume having been translated in 1900.
Written for this edition, 2026.