Theodor Zahn or Theodor von Zahn (10 October 1838 in

Moers Moers (; older form: ''Mörs''; Dutch language, Dutch: ''Murse'', ''Murs'' or ''Meurs'') is a German List of cities and towns in Germany, city on the western bank of the Rhine, close to Duisburg. Moers belongs to the district of Wesel (distric ...

– 5 March 1933 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 ...

) was a German

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

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 ...

, a

biblical The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) biblical languages ...

scholar A scholar is a person who is a researcher or has expertise in an academic discipline. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researcher at a university. An academic usually holds an advanced degree or a termina ...

. He was nominated for the

Nobel Prize in Literature The Nobel Prize in Literature, here meaning ''for'' Literature (), is a Swedish literature prize that is awarded annually, since 1901, to an author from any country who has, in the words of the will of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, "in ...

three times.

Career

Zahn was born in

of the

Rhineland The Rhineland ( ; ; ; ) is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly Middle Rhine, its middle section. It is the main industrial heartland of Germany because of its many factories, and it has historic ties to the Holy ...

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

(now

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

). After studying at Basel, Erlangen and Berlin, he became professor of theology in the

University of Göttingen The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen (, commonly referred to as Georgia Augusta), is a Public university, public research university in the city of Göttingen, Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1734 ...

in 1871. He filled a similar chair at

Kiel Kiel ( ; ) is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of around 250,000, it is Germany's largest city on the Baltic Sea. It is located on the Kieler Förde inlet of the Ba ...

in 1877, at

in 1878, at

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

in 1888 and in 1892 returned to Erlangen. He was distinguished for his eminent scholarship, especially in connection with the

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

canon. He stood at the head of the conservative

scholarship of his time. He was nominated for the

in 1902, 1904 and 1908. Theologically, Zahn was conservative and approached New Testament theology from the perspective of a theological emphasis called ''Heilsgeschichte'' (usually translated into English as " Salvation History").

Works

Some of his more important writings are: * ''Marcellus of Ancyra'' (1867) * ''Der Hirt des Hermas untersucht'' ("The Shepherd of Hermas examined", 1868)
''Ignatius von Antiochien''
(1873) * ''Patrum Apostolicorum Opera'' (1875–78; fifth edition, 1905) * ''The Acts of Saint John'' (1880) * ''Forschungen zur Geschichte des neutestamentlichen Kanons und der altkirchlichen Litteratur'' (eight volumes, 1881–1908) * ''Cyprian of Antioch and the German Story of Faust'' (1882) * ''Geschichte des neutestamentlichen Kanons'' ("Researches into the history of the New Testament canon", two volumes, 1889–92) * ''Das apostolische Symbolum'' (1892; English translation, ''The Apostles' Creed'', 1899) * ''The Gospel of Peter'' (1893) * ''Einleitung in das neue Testament'' (two volumes, 1897–1900; third edition, 1906–07; English translation, ''Introduction to the New Testament'', three volumes, 1909) * ''Brot und Salz aus Gottes Wort'', 20 sermons, (1901; English translation, ''Bread and Salt from the Word of God'', 1905) * ''Grundriss der Geschichte des neutestamentlichen Kanons'' ("Outline of the history of the New Testament canon", 1901; second edition, 1904) * ''Das Evangelium des Lucas'' (1912)

References

Notes

External links

Zahn's New Testament Commentary series in Dr. B. A. Zuiddam's Tasmanian study. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zahn, Theodor 1838 births 1933 deaths People from Moers People from Erlangen 19th-century German Protestant theologians 20th-century German Protestant theologians German biblical scholars New Testament scholars Academic staff of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg Academic staff of the University of Göttingen Academic staff of the University of Kiel Academic staff of Leipzig University 19th-century German male writers German male non-fiction writers