Swiss NT scholar. Born in St. Gall, he studied theology at Basle and Tübingen. His later essay on J.T. Beck* suggests a primary influence on his thought. After a pastorate in Switzerland he taught at Bern (1880- 88) before becoming NT professor successively at Griefswald (1888), Berlin (1893), and Tübingen (1898) where he remained until retirement in 1922. He was allied with no school, ecumenical in outlook, and concerned to mediate between liberals and Pietists.
With A.H. Cremer* he edited from 1897 the Beiträge zur Förderung Christlicher Theologie, to which he frequently contributed and on whose origins and importance for his own theological work he bore witness. His theological writing from Der Glaube im Neuen Testament (1885) to his mature Theology of the NT in two volumes-Die Geschichte des Christus (1921) and Die Theologie der Apostel (1922)-puts the emphasis on the importance of Jesus, finding anchorage in the facts of faith rather than in speculative thought. Schlatter stressed that both theology and history must not forget God, and he wrote histories both of Israel from Alexander to Hadrian (1901) and of the early church (1926; ET 1955). His specific studies on NT books displayed similar independence; he was one of the few to break with the trend of his times to continue support for the priority of Matthew.
Adolf Schlatter (1852 - 1938)
Swiss NT scholar. Born in St. Gall, he studied theology at Basle and Tübingen. His later essay on J.T. Beck* suggests a primary influence on his thought. After a pastorate in Switzerland he taught at Bern (1880- 88) before becoming NT professor successively at Griefswald (1888), Berlin (1893), and Tübingen (1898) where he remained until retirement in 1922. He was allied with no school, ecumenical in outlook, and concerned to mediate between liberals and Pietists.With A.H. Cremer* he edited from 1897 the Beiträge zur Förderung Christlicher Theologie, to which he frequently contributed and on whose origins and importance for his own theological work he bore witness. His theological writing from Der Glaube im Neuen Testament (1885) to his mature Theology of the NT in two volumes-Die Geschichte des Christus (1921) and Die Theologie der Apostel (1922)-puts the emphasis on the importance of Jesus, finding anchorage in the facts of faith rather than in speculative thought. Schlatter stressed that both theology and history must not forget God, and he wrote histories both of Israel from Alexander to Hadrian (1901) and of the early church (1926; ET 1955). His specific studies on NT books displayed similar independence; he was one of the few to break with the trend of his times to continue support for the priority of Matthew.
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