Gottfried Thomasius (; 26 June 1802 – 24 January 1875) was a German

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

. He was born in Egenhausen (in present-day Middle Franconia) and he died in

Erlangen Erlangen (; , ) is a Middle Franconian city in Bavaria, Germany. It is the seat of the administrative district Erlangen-Höchstadt (former administrative district Erlangen), and with 119,810 inhabitants (as of 30 September 2024), it is the smalle ...

Biography

He studied

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

and theology in Erlangen, Halle and Berlin, and as a student had renowned instructors that included

Friedrich Schleiermacher Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher (; ; 21 November 1768 – 12 February 1834) was a German Reformed Church, Reformed theology, theologian, philosopher, and biblical scholar known for his attempt to reconcile the criticisms of the Age o ...

, August Neander,

G. W. F. Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a 19th-century German idealism, German idealist. His influence extends across a wide range of topics from metaphysical issues in epistemology and ontology, to political phi ...

, Philip Marheineke and Friedrich Tholuck. In 1829 he began serving as a pastor in

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

, and in 1842 was appointed professor of dogmatics at the

University of Erlangen A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

. Thomasius was an important representative of the " Erlangen School" within the German Neo-Lutheranism movement and a major influence on, for instance, the

church historian Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritual side of th ...

Albert Hauck. He is credited for introducing the concept of Kenotic Christology into German theology, of which, his aim was to provide an understanding of the limited consciousness of

Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

, without denying the unity of deity and humanity in Christ.

Works

* ''Origen. Ein Beitrag zur Dogmengeschichte des dritten Jahrhunderts'' (

Origen Origen of Alexandria (), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an Early Christianity, early Christian scholar, Asceticism#Christianity, ascetic, and Christian theology, theologian who was born and spent the first half of his career in Early cent ...

, A contribution to dogmatic history of the third century), (1837). * ''Beiträge zur kirchlichen Christologie'', (Contributions to church-based

Christology In Christianity, Christology is a branch of Christian theology, theology that concerns Jesus. Different denominations have different opinions on questions such as whether Jesus was human, divine, or both, and as a messiah what his role would b ...

), (1845). * ''Christi Person und Werk'', (Christ's person and work), (1852-1861). * ''Das Bekenntnis der lutherischen Kirche von der Versöhnung'', (1857). * ''Die christliche Dogmengeschichte'', (History of Christian dogma), (1874-1876).

References

translated biography @

Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB; ) is one of the most important and comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language. It was published by the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences between 1875 and 1912 in 56 volumes, printed in Lei ...

Functional Christology in the Fourth Gospel, by George O. Folarin {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomasius, Gottfried 1802 births 1875 deaths People from Neustadt (Aisch)-Bad Windsheim German Lutheran theologians Academic staff of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg 19th-century German Lutheran clergy 19th-century German Protestant theologians German male non-fiction writers 19th-century German male writers