Otto Pfleiderer (1 September 1839 – 18 July 1908) was a German

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

. Through his writings and his lectures, he became known as one of the most influential representatives of

liberal theology Religious liberalism is a conception of religion (or of a particular religion) which emphasizes personal and group liberty and rationality. It is an attitude towards one's own religion (as opposed to criticism of religion from a secular position ...

Biography

Pfleiderer was born at

Stetten im Remstal Kernen im Remstal is a municipality in the Rems-Murr district of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It was formed in January 1975 by the union of the towns of Stetten im Remstal and Rommelshausen. Its name was initially Stetten-Rommelshausen, but a co ...

(now a part of

Kernen Kernen im Remstal is a municipality in the Rems-Murr district of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It was formed in January 1975 by the union of the towns of Stetten im Remstal and Rommelshausen. Its name was initially Stetten-Rommelshausen, but a com ...

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

) in

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Württ ...

. From 1857 to 1861 he studied at the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-W� ...

under

Ferdinand Christian Baur Ferdinand Christian Baur (21 June 1792 – 2 December 1860) was a German Protestant theologian and founder and leader of the (new) Tübingen School of theology (named for the University of Tübingen where Baur studied and taught). Following Hegel ...

, and afterwards in England and

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. He then entered the ministry, became tutor (german: Repetent) at Tübingen, and for a short time held a pastorate at

Heilbronn Heilbronn () is a city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, surrounded by Heilbronn District. With over 126,000 residents, it is the sixth-largest city in the state. From the late Middle Ages, it developed into an important trading centre. A ...

(1868). In 1870 he became chief pastor and superintendent at the

University of Jena The University of Jena, officially the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (german: Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, abbreviated FSU, shortened form ''Uni Jena''), is a public research university located in Jena, Thuringia, Germany. The ...

and soon afterwards professor ordinarius of theology, but in 1875 he was called to the chair of systematic theology at

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

, having made his name by a series of articles on

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chris ...

criticism and Johannine and Pauline theology, which appeared in

Adolf Hilgenfeld Adolf Bernhard Christoph Hilgenfeld (2 June 182312 January 1907) was a German Protestant theologian. Biography He was born at Stappenbeck near Salzwedel in the Province of Saxony. He studied at the Friedrich Wilhelm University in Berlin a ...

's ''Zeitschrift für wissenschaftliche Theologie'', and by his ''Der Paulinismus'', published in 1873. ''Das Urchristentum, seine Schriften und Lehren, in geschichtlichen Zusammenhang beschrieben'' was published in 1878 and considerably enlarged for a second edition in 1902. In 1890 appeared ''The Development of Theology since Kant, and its Progress in Great Britain since 1825'', which was written for publication in England. A more elaborate work was his ''Religionsphilosophie auf geschichtlichen Grundlage'' (1878). "The Influence of the Apostle Paul on the Development of Christianity" was the title of a course of Hibbert Lectures given in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in 1885. In 1894 he delivered the Gifford Lectures at

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, the subject being "The Philosophy and Development of Religion". His later publications included: * ''The Early Christian Conception of Christ'' (1905) * ''Die Entstehung des Christentums'' (1905) * ''Religion und Religionen'' (1906) * ''Die Entwicklung des Christentums'' (1907). He died at , near Berlin. In New Testament criticism, Pfleiderer belonged to the critical school, which grew out of the impulse given by F. C. Baur. However, like other modern German theologians, he showed a greater disposition to compromise. All his work shows a judicial tone of mind, and is remarkable for the charm of its style. Pfleiderer's younger brother

Edmund Pfleiderer Edmund Pfleiderer (October 12, 1842 in Stetten im Remstal (now a part of Kernen, Baden-Württemberg) – April 3, 1902 in Tübingen) was a German philosopher and theologian. He entered the ministry (1864) and during the Franco-Prussian War serve ...

distinguished himself both in philosophy and theology. Otto Pfleiderer

Works

''The Development of Theology since Kant''
– online text at the Internet Archive.
''Lectures on the influence of the apostle Paul on the development of Christianity''
delivered in London and Oxford in April and May, 1885 – online text at the Internet Archive. * ''Paulinism; a contribution to the history of primitive Christian theology'', 1877
Vol. 1Vol. 2
– online text at the Internet Archive. * ''The Philosophy of Religion: On the Basis of Its History''
Vol. 1, 1886Vol. 2, 1887Vol. 4, 1888Vol. 1, 1894Vol. 2, 1894Vol. 3, 1888Vol. 4, 1894
- online text at the Internet Archive.
''Religion and historic faiths''
1907 – online text at the Internet Archive.
''Primitive Christianity: Its Writings and Teachings in Their Historical Connections''
1906 – online text at the Internet Archive.
''Evolution and Theology and Other Essays''
1900 – online text at the Internet Archive.
''The development of Christianity''
1910 – online text at the Internet Archive.

Notes

References

* Attribution *

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pfleiderer, Otto 1839 births 1908 deaths People from Rems-Murr-Kreis People from the Kingdom of Württemberg 19th-century German Protestant theologians 20th-century German Protestant theologians 19th-century German male writers German male non-fiction writers University of Tübingen alumni University of Jena faculty Humboldt University of Berlin faculty