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[German Version] Life-of-Jesus Research, in the sense of the historical investigation of the words and history of Jesus (Jesus Christ: I, 1) and of related theologies, began in the second half of the 18th century in the context of the beginnings of historical biblical criticism. Contradictions in the Gospel accounts (Synoptic Question) raised the question of the difference between the biblical accounts and what actually happened. The orientalist H.S. Reimarus expanded the biblical criticism of the English Deists (Deism) and in his Fragments, edited posthumously by G.E. Lessin…

[German Version] (Nov 17, 1887, Bern – Mar 23, 1964, Bern) studied theology in Bern and Tübingen from 1910 to 1914. After several locum tenens positions, including filling in for K. Barth in Safenwil, he became a lecturer in New Testament at Bern in 1921; he was appointed professor of systematic theology there in 1928. In his analyses of the history of dogma, Werner, a friend of A. Schweitzer, described the Hellenization of Christianity (A. v. Harnack) as being rooted in the process of de-eschatologizing the originally…

[German Version] ( Jul 25, 1761, Stuttgart – Jul 5, 1826, Göttingen). After studying from 1779 to 1784 at the Stift in Tübingen, in 1790 he was appointed professor of theology at Göttingen, on the recommendation of his teacher G.C. Storr. In 1803 he was also appointed to the consistorial council. To the end of his life, he and the church historian G.J. Planck together shaped the life of the theological faculty. In numerous contributions in almost every theological discipline, he sought to present …

[German Version] (Mar 4, 1801, Basel – Jun 7, 1874, Basel) studied philosophy, then theology in Basel (1815–1818), Bonn, especially with F. Lücke, and Berlin with A. Neander and F.D.E Schleiermacher (1820–1823). W.M.L. De Wette invited him to obtain his habilitation in Basel in 1823. Already associate professor of church history and the history of dogma by 1824 (1829, full professor), Hagenbach shaped the faculty in Basel for more than 50 years (Basel: II). As a member of the church council and the educational authority, since 1848 of the Grand Council, and as editor of the Kirchenblatt fü…

[German Version] 1. Johann Gottlieb (May 19, 1762, Rammenau – Jan 29, 1814, Berlin). As the son of a ribbon-weaver, Fichte grew up in economically limited, rural conditions. With the support of Ernst Haubold v. Miltitz, Fichte was able to attend the Latin school in Meißen and from 1774 to 1780 the princes' school in Pforta near Naumburg. From 1780 to 1784, Fichte studied, principally theology, in Jena, Leipzig, and Wittenberg. Years as tutor in Zurich, Leipzig, and Krokowa near Gdansk followed. In 17…

[German Version] (Dec 11, 1797, Neustadt an der Dosse – Sep 19, 1859, Berlin). Jonas studied theology in Berlin from 1815 to 1819, notably with F.D.E. Schleiermacher, W.M.L. de Wette, and J.W.A. Neander. He became pastor in Schwerinsburg, Pomerania in 1823 and at the Nikolauskirche in Berlin in 1833. Jonas advocated individual freedom of conscience, the separation of church and state, and the preservation of the Gustav-Adolf-Verein (Gustav Adolph Werk). In 1848, Jonas was a member of the Prussian …

[German Version] (Nov 23, 1800, Berlin – Oct 23, 1882, Berlin), a student of F.D.E. Schleiermacher. Appointed lecturer at the cadet school in Berlin in 1822, he became the school’s pastor in 1827; in 1836 he was appointed court and Guards Division chaplain in Potsdam. During a study trip to England from 1841 to 1844, he was converted to the “Free church” principle; at the general synod in 1846 he supported freedom of religion and was appointed pastor of the Neue Kirche in Berlin. As a preacher, he…

[German Version] 1. Joachim Christian (May 26, 1766, Leopoldshagen, Pomerania – Feb 19, 1831, Wrocław [Ger. Breslau], Poland). The son of a pastor studied theology and literature in Halle (1785–1789) with J.S. Semler, among others. Beginning in 1795, he was a military chaplain in Stettin. From 1803 onward, Gaß entered an intense friendship, documented in many letters, with F.D.E. Schleiermacher. Gaß became preacher at the Marienkirche in Berlin in 1807 before he was called to Breslau as consistoral a…

[German Version] 1. Theodor Christian Heinrich Mar 18, 1847, Loit near Apenrade, North Schleswig – Nov 26, 1932, Baden-Baden). Rooted in the cultural and religious milieu of North Schleswig and marked by the German-Danish border conflict at an early age, Kaftan studied theology in Erlangen, Berlin, and Kiel, began working as a home tutor and assistant preacher, and became pastor of the Danish congregation in Apenrade in 1873. In 1880, Kaftan moved to Schleswig, where he became a senior ¶ executive officer and school inspector. He was appointed provost in Tondern in 1884 and…