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Nineteenth-Century of

Graham Oppy, N. N. Trakakis

Friedrich Schleiermacher

Publication details https://www.routledgehandbooks.com/doi/10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 Theodore Vial Published online on: 31 Jul 2013

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His father disowned to hisfather eighteen- the year- old confessed that hecould not bring himself to into forbidden the and school the discussed works of Kant). In apainful letter it” (1996:8).He had, however, asceptical streak (heand smuggled some friends darkness my young life wasnourished and prepared for theworld still closed to , writes, Schleiermacher “Religion maternal wasthe womb holy inwhose to mark of of beginning the history theology liberal inthe taken eraof the modern opposed to hisfamous philosophical contemporary at the of , countries for two reasons: far inso asheisidentifi endeavour. His work hastended under- to be appreciated inEnglish- speaking naturethe of religion and and relation their theology to other spheres of human ment, and fi hewas the tifi . Anextended version of thisaccount can be 1. to its Cultured Despisers (hereaft in aMoravian boarding raised asapietist. to school be In his rationalistshad been but hadundergone aspiritual awakening and enrolled him asasubject wasborn ofSchleiermacher Prussian the monarch to afamily that political and educational at history of beginning the nineteenth the century. refl In many ways of personal the history Friedrich (1768–1834) Schleiermacher c epistemologies andof rise historical the consciousness during Enlighten- the themostimportantects changes inEuropean philosophical, theological, Th us Schleiermacher lived usSchleiermacher through occasioned West inthe crisis the by scien- and mostaccessible introduction to Schleiermacher’s in English. theology friedrich schleiermacher rst major theologian to respond and tocrisis this rethink Th er eodore Vial Speeches 31 3 found (1984),which isstill inGerrish thebest ), published in1799and commonly ed primarily asatheologian (as On Religion: Speeches 1 Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 and nature are dynamic both powers (Kräft Enlightenment,in the including inKant. Expressivists argued that human beings Schleiermacher), Schleiermacher wasavoided. Schleiermacher Schleiermacher), aft Calvin neo- orthodox inthetwentieth theology century (the‘neo’ indicates areturn to fell schools farin so asthese towering underthe infl Hegel), scholarship confi hasbeen 2. Gerrish (1984)reports that Gerrish mid- inthe 2. twentieth centuryhisown teacher, H.Farmer, attempt to overcome rift the categorythis go from Taylor back through Isaiah to ), Berlin is an ofschema post- Enlightenment thinkers. Expressivism, for Taylor roots (the of expressivist, along with Herder, Humboldt and Hegel, using Charles Taylor’s (2004)hasdemonstrated classifi Sockness isbest that Schleiermacher expresser.) famously claimed that on occasion interpreter the can know better this than the what expresser the meant tosay tohisor herintended audience. (Schleiermacher standing reverse isthe of expression, goal the to being understand act inaspeech vidual of use thislanguage by aperson (the‘technical’ part). Proper under- callsthisthe‘grammatical’(Schleiermacher part), and theparticular and indi- written or thought) involves two language the parts: that possible makes act this are conceived linguistically. Producing and understanding any (oral, act speech thought 1998:7).Even (Schleiermacher unexpressed thoughts of an individual For Schleiermacher, thought inside isthe of language, language outside the of ofthan asaset specifi as ageneral discipline, one involved human of act inevery communication, rather (1977) identifi frequently cited father asthe Paul of intextbooks. modern Ricoeur A convenient way into Schleiermacher’s thought isthrough hermeneutics. He is (Kritische Gesamtausgabe cation beginning inthe1980s of aCritical Edition of Schleiermacher’s works gious studies, to agreat extent occasioned and supported by ongoing the publi- academy, inand and beyond seminaries divinity and schools departments of reli- philosophy and education. Enlightenment, Schleiermacher’s thought isfoundational theology, inmodern to English- scholars thatspeaking inmanaging toabsorb and come through the In each speech act the very personality ofIn very the actor the act eachspeech isexpressed. Brent W. Schleiermacher every night before every Schleiermacher retiring. remarked that badthat thingsso hadbecome hefelt hehadto check for underhisbed er the‘wrong turn’ innineteenth- initiated theology century liberal by es hismostimportant contribution asconceiving of hermeneutics c techniques for dealing with problematic ancient texts. , published by deGruyter), to isbeginning make clear between nature between and human the subject that one fi hermeneutics theodore vialtheodore ned to and seminaries divinity and schools; 32 e 2 ). Authentic human (free) action Recent work inmany of parts the uence of and ed as an nds Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 standing and adiff improves. As one re- then reads texts, one approaches with them adiff asone one’s so reads further not everywhere, facility at grammatical interpretation Of course one can read only one text at atime, and one must somewhere, begin writtenreading by everything author, the aswell author’s asthe contemporaries. as well speaker, asthe Onecan or aspossible. accomplish asclose only this by speaker. or author an of human development (individual and communal), and to getting at meaning the each individual with grammatical the does resources at –iskey to disposal their speaks injust 1998:101–2).Th such awayspeaks (Schleiermacher act) in this general), and as“the completed structure of thoughts” (why act speech inthis one asan fl “indeterminate, both acts of technical One’s this task. personality or individuality infl the language available to that individual), thenwe two can diff see written) product asthe of an individual (rather than merely product asthe of oftask technical interpretation asawhole isto understand (oral act aspeech or logical part asan eff of technical, the rather than asan addition topsycho- the it, to see and further literature secondary inthe tendency psychological the to see as areplacement part psychological part of hermeneutics to thetechnical. Th from family to religious community to nation. customs ( beings. Th social for Schleiermacher, makes this human fundamentally, beings not secondarily, sions we can have, and viceversa. Note that sincethinking isalways inlanguage and facialexpressions) of others aff nical’ (and willinclude acts Schleiermacher here not just language but gestures waythis we are changed and shaped by our interactions with others. Th greater or extent lesser subtly shift marks of genius). inhisor speaker her(technical) of Each use language the to a to agreater or extent lesser (to profoundly alter of use the language isone of the and technical It parts). contains init personalities the of (styles) previous speakers, cumulative product of previous (acombination acts speech of thegrammatical famous hermeneutical circle. Th nature. In doing so make they determinate, or clarify, theirindividual subjectivity. human activities. Human realize beings or express themselves by transforming subject to develop. Language and art, especiallypoetry, become theparadigmatic already complete; rather, of act expressing thevery gives self- clarity and allows the expresses human the subject. Actions donot merely make manifest aform that is ekey terms are development (Bildung Th In Schleiermacher’s later lectures on hermeneutics he added what hecallsthe Th egrammatical of part interpretation means knowing speaker’s the language elanguage available to and speakers listeners grammatical (the isa part) Sitten) form. Language forms important basisof the every community, rough of history such the interactions groups with common erent of set questions, and reads diff them so ort mysteriously toget into of speaker. head the the If the friedrich schleiermacher s the (grammatical)s the tools available to others. In uid train of thoughts” way (the one in thinks ect the‘grammatical’ect range of ideasand expres- 33 ), freedom and self- clarity. Style –what ere has been an ere unfortunate hasbeen uences one’s speech erently. Th erent aspects erentaspects e fi erent under- rst aspect is is the isthe e ‘tech- Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 person and to tries understand individual the element directly” ( one,transforms which divinatory“in the to speak, so method oneself into other the educated about guesses how author’s this personality infl comparativethe (we have method of asense what people are like, and can so make of technical interpretation ingeneral). Technical interpretation isundertaken by Schleiermacher callspsychological, thesecond technical proper being (both part nity that must yield. of Jesus, and ifsuch came into confl vicarious inthe most especially atonement eff is simply unfortunate for times.Christian modern requires just such belief, harder timesto inthe be recounted believe inmodern Bible, in the that otherthe sidewere confessionalists the maintained who that, although it might of phenomena that follow did, infact, what we now know natural to be law. On resultthe of deliberate manipulation by enterprising disciples, or asnaive reports non- asthe stood literal enthusiasm of an unsophisticated group of followers, or as not by . Stories of resurrections and walking on water under- hadto be Jesus wasagreat moral teacher, ateacher taught who by word and example, but only way to remain within Christian the fold wassome version of claim the that conscience miraculous inthe accounts believe found Bible. inthe For the them one sidewere Enlightenment the intellectuals could who nolonger ingood Schleiermacher found himself facing two equally unappealing options. Onthe by traditional world. modern inthe Christian belief In Christology, for example, Schleiermacher) allowed himto avoid or reshape some of thechallenges faced mustwhich counted be among mostbrilliant the and infl of George Lindbeck’s ‘experiential expressivism’ in Schleiermacher’s expressivism here (used always inTaylor’s not sense, sense inthe ation, are always intandem used with grammatical interpretation. aremethods comparative, are both together, used and astechnical both, interpret- comparing an author to what we know about others by knowing ourselves. Both an author to what we know of on other people; divinatoryisbased the method isquiteSchleiermacher clear that comparative the on isbased comparing method thoughts simply omit important the qualifi ofscholars Schleiermacher attempting accuse who direct accessto other people’s proposed a third alternative between thefi advances of human the intellect. argued Schleiermacher that wasthe a condition of salvation a sacrifi dation for avibrant religion, and thesecond, ‘magical’ group, required who as way of thinking of continuing the presence of and Christ left In In Th eChristian Faith (1st edn 1820/21; 2nd edn 1830/31), Schleiermacher (1stedn1820/21;2nd1830/31),Schleiermacher ceof theintellect and adenial of recent thebest theodore vialtheodore christology 34 ict with modern knowledge, with modern ict it ismoder- rst, ‘empirical’ group, cut who off er “so tospeak” inciting passage. this ected byected thedeath and resurrection Th eNature of Doctrine uenced this text),uenced this and by uential misreadings of smallafoun- too ibid .: 92–3).Most [1984], any Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 infl and reason wasthe elsewhere, inChristology thatChristian belief, heand those a third way theological the between options at hand, between natural and science wewhen turn to Jesus’ - perfect consciousness. Schleiermacher’s ability to fi tion and redemption mean inSchleiermacher’s system clearer willbecome below present inways that require aviolation of laws the of nature. What, precisely, salva- group, and present inways that redeem; but Jesus isnot, pace were. Th confronted by personality this inprecisely same the way that Jesus’ contemporaries (Bild are born into it. In its interactions theChristian community carries thepicture communities continues, although some members leave or die, and others join or no longer physically present, injust same the way that language inother human many of mostimportant the eighteenth- and nineteenth- century intellectual for guidance or inspiration. inbiblical crisis this One can authority see behind a chasm of meaning literal the between and sense amodern- day reader looking ofeyewitness one’s Th own senses. barbarous accounts witnesses, whose were inany self- case promoting, than on the asked why one would put more weight on testimony the of relatively uneducated during Enlightenment. the ( Th God. of convincedof God believers that of set writings revealed this the word wasinfact Scripture wasself- authenticating. Th (see Calvin principle the of Scripture alone means asthe to salvation, and John nity, of biblical authority. ( allows himto asophisticated take stance on question, the pressing so inmoder- Th interactions of community the that wasshaped by personality the of its founder. in language, isat which same the timearevolution inconsciousness, found inthe and therefore think,insimilar ways. Onecan thinkof Christianity asarevolution gathering around compelling this man, hisfollowers and gesture, tospeak began forms were created, and old ones meanings on and took new connotations. In that Jesus’ personality wasexpressed ingesture and inlanguage. New linguistic consciousness, apoint Ishallreturn towhich below. For now it issuffi leaders. What compelling wasso about Jesus’ personality God- washisperfect nature of human it beings, isnatural for groups to form around charismatic group that formed around charismatic the personality of Jesus. Given social the e way that locates Schleiermacher salvation Christian inthe community uenced by himwere calledmediating theologians. Th islanguage continues Christian inthe community, evenaft ) of Jesus’ personality, and one when joins Christian the community one is isencounter issalvifi is pillar of Protestant authority became shaky very with the rise of Vol. 3,Ch.4)hadcemented principle this with hisargument that friedrich schleiermacher biblical authority c. Th c. isplaces Scripture squarely past,creating inthe usJesus isreally present, esame that produced revealed the word 35 see Vol. 3,Ch.3)hadformulated for themagicalgroup, pace see er its founder is Vol. 3,Ch.19) theempirical cient to note nd nd Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 shaped by Jesus. Anddespite real the contributions hemadetoNew Testament on Hebrew the Scriptures, asan cannot which expression seen be of experiences profoundly moved by encounters with personality the of Jesus. He rarely preached resultthe of it histaking expression asthe of religious the of those experiences diffi raise may reduce anxiety the of historical criticism for follow who those him,it does foundexperiences incontemporary churches. come tounderstanding early the community’s expression of same religious the about historical the circumstances that have given usScripture we closer the can source asthe sees ofSchleiermacher faith. contrary, Onthe more the we can learn not foundations the of does undermine this redactors everywhere, of what dating and authorship of various of parts Scripture, hands the see they when tions to critical scholarship on New the Testament. When scholars argue about ical criticism of Bible, the and hehimself makes lasting infact several contribu- wasthereforeSchleiermacher able to avoid much of angst the generated by histor- nities. But it of istheexperience theChristian communities that is foundational. expression left sole authority for Protestants, the Bible isstill normative because it isthe fi expression creeds inthe of Protestant the churches. of on Protestant isbased then, experience the communities, have which found Th (Schleiermacher calls them the peculiar modifi peculiar the callsthem (Schleiermacher Christians share Bible; the eachcommunity hasits own experiences particular refl of found Christ experience the inspecifi in Schleiermacher’s mediating above, Christology salvation isbrought about by and Lutheran creeds Wyman (see 2007).Andthat isprecisely because, aswe saw tions from thehistoric creeds of theChristian churches, inparticular Reformed Institutes of the Christian Religion in Schleiermacher’s great systematic with Calvin’s. theology page Every of Calvin’s community. It isquite instructive to compare citations the that confer authority rather, it rests on authority the of of redemption experience the found church inthe Schleiermacher’s not does rest on theology foundation the of biblical authority; meaning original the author intended to convey to hisor heroriginal audience. But ical document. Given hishermeneutics, literal the of sense atext for himisthe Scripture. but reason vehicle isthe that presents truths, found these only inpicture form in but inour moral sense. For Hegel, could still teach divine truths, movements. Kant, for example, to tried locate religious knowledge not inatext Th ese willoverlap, ese sure, to be but remain particular. AProtestant Systematics, enotes to Schleiermacher’s ection on and articulation of found theexperience communities. inthese All I ought to note here that theological move this while of Schleiermacher’s While replaced has,inasense, Schleiermacher Bible the with church the as Schleiermacher wasinagreementSchleiermacher that Bible the read should asahistor- be issues.Schleiermacher’scult for esteem high New the Testament was to usof religious the of early the experiences Christian commu- Th theodore vialtheodore eChristian Faith drips with scriptural quotation and allusion. c Christian communities. Th isthe eology 36 cations of thereligious aff , incontrast, are of full quota- ections). rst Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 that Schleiermacher’s defi nition islargely consistent over time, thatand the diff of words. In taking up each defi appropriate issuesof technical changes here todiscuss inSchleiermacher’s choice samethe thing, or Schleiermacher’s whether thought changes over time. It isnot on question the of or whether not two defi these knowing hadargued (as Calvin and Hegel would argue), soon nor of doing (as and nineteenth centuries, argues Schleiermacher that religion isnot amatter of Drawing on athreefold division of human faculties common eighteenth inthe ments of metaphysics and morals that are calledrational Christianity” (1996:12). is not “the superstition crude of our people [or] poorly stitched the together frag- not “the meaningless fables of barbarous nations [or] most refi the explain hisreligious Th views. educate asahouse tutor before challenged to hiscallto Berlin) Schleiermacher progressive Prussian inthe leader government whom had helped Schleiermacher , and Alexander Dohna (an aristocrat and ordained minister. At twenty- asurprise ninth birthday for party Schleiermacher, conversationalist, haddiffi yet they Kant’s leading students), found abrilliant they to be Schleiermacher and gift Henriette Herz, wife of Marcus one Herz, hadbeen of who adoctor in Berlin mostfamous salons (the and literary of intheir wasconvened which by weekly cultural avant- garde hadlittle offor use Berlin, religion. In work their together the Wilhelm and (Schleiermacher Friedrich Schlegelwere room- mates at time the RomanticsGerman gathered who around Schlegelbrothers, the Friedrich and Schleiermacher’s of waspart Schleiermacher circle the friends. closest of early Speeches languageences inthe are heuses accounted for by diff the Speeches his personality. In other words, mean what by Schleiermacher does ‘religion’? manifested strongly so inJesus that it forms community the of people attracted to What, hadinChristian tocommunities, be experience isthis then, an experience perhaps the least useful for useful informationperhaps least the on historical the Jesus. Moresynoptic Gospels. recent scholarship places John and latest asthe Gospel account an eyewitness tobe that of Gospel life the of Jesus, more reliable than the strongthe authorial voice and unifi scholarship, some of hisclaims have of testof notthe time.Because withstood Schleiermacher begins the Th Schleiermacher offSchleiermacher Speeches e Speeches ), one late (inTh and Th were written). Th eChristian Faith isawork of apologetic theology. Th ers two famous defi schleiermacher onreligion eChristian Faith friedrich schleiermacher e ese writers ese formed who and and literary the poets, Speeches nition making inturn, implicit the Ishallbe case Speeches . understandingculty how an hecould be also ed narrative of John, of Gospel the hetook by saying what religion isnot: religion is 37 are hisresponse. ). Agreat dealof scholarship hasfocused nitions of religion, one early (inthe nitions of religion amount to edespisers of title the are erent genres of the ned ”; it er- ed Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 be diately on presence the of an object” (2004:33).For Kant, an intuition can either For Kant, an intuition is“a representation of would which sort the imme- depend tion’ isatechnical term of philosophy. Th discursive Onthe to sense.) fi this ‘ word something that we could not really, rationally or sensibly, know. (Th it incontemporary connotation English the of or avaguesense knowledge of ‘Intuition’, translators which for use word German the ‘ a feeling” ( gious studies and philosophy. misreadings that continue to dominate literature secondary the intheology, reli- careful, for very be Schleiermacher’s of use word the ‘feeling’ hasledtoof allsorts foundationis thenew for theological refl Kant and hisfollowers hadargued withon focus their morals), but of feeling. Th infamous) epistemological passage, so- the called ‘nuptial embrace’ passage: to appeal Iquote to friends. hisartistic at length Schleiermacher’s mostfamous (or pretation by through arather fl use of language owery that isintended nothing more” (1996:26).Schleiermacher, nodoubt, opens himself up to misinter- is and always remains something individual, apart, set immediate the perception, is anything but simple). obvious rather than mysterious (although way the obvious this thingcomes about ology, Iwant simply to point out here that an intuition for Kant issomething fairly fi and form the of sensibility that makes of anthinginthe possible this experience acombination willbe (which of experience of of an athing- experience in- itself and thecategories), or infi intuition of infi the religion, “[latent] the spiritual material” of religious systems, is“an astonishing rst place). Without getting sidetracked into complexities the of Kant’s epistem- nite” (ibid Schleiermacher’s precise words inthe ‘Intuition’ for of same the set carries connotations: Schleiermacher “Intuition a priori is itself as holy asanuptial and fruitful embrace; indeed, not like caresses waking the fl Th fl express it, at indicate least it, without having to desecrate it! It isas is and how quickly it away passes …Would that Icould and might turn back to original their position –Iknow how indescribable it have, asit were, fl before intuition and feeling have separated, where and sense its objects Ahnung eeting and transparent asthefi at at fi (in which case it case is“the (inwhich form of sensibility”, namely, spaceand time ibid rst mysterious perception, moment sensory that inevery occurs allof these. .: 23). Every intuition,.: 23).Every heargues, is“by nature its very connected with ’, is which .: 29).Th nite”(ibid ekey terms are ‘intuition’, ‘infi owed into one another and one, become before both a posteriori a not owers, and asmodest delicate asamaiden’s kiss, an important termfor Schleiermacher, comes closer .: 13).Religion “sensibility isthe and taste for the theodore vialtheodore eld on isplaying, Schleiermacher which ‘intui- , in which case it case , inwhich isarepresentation of an object rst scent gently with dew the which 38 ection discussed above.ection discussed But here we must is fi Speeches eld is profoundly shaped by Kant. Kant. by shaped profoundly is eld are that “rudiment[s]” the of nite’ and ‘feeling’ (Gefühl Anschauung ( these, but these, it Ibid .: 31–2) ’, carries with e German is ). Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 receptivity and activity. argues that Schleiermacher of human history), self- consciousness contains both “borrowed from ” for (which means Schleiermacher from philosophy the Church Dogmatics infl atics fi asawork of very the universe. Th universe. world, the one27). In experiences experience action also the eachparticular of the a world, isassuch actually mostsuitable the and symbol highest of religion” ( later work, enced. Th tion, one and inexperiencing so object causal the nexusisitselfexperi- inasense other part. Th Absolute. It causal isthe of eachpart nexusinwhich universe the on acts every thing supernatural and human beyond reason, nor isit something like Hegel’s artists, cultivate and value highly. so religion isprecisely same the kindof intuitive, creative that experience they, as fundamentally amatter of and beliefs actions and stultifying institutions. Rather, with whom hefrequentlyfriends, Kant discusses salons, inthe that religion isnot that culminates inKant. In the split by imposed various the Enlightenments, not Enlightenment German the least post- Kantian generation to overcome struggled subject–object, the human–nature nature of human subjectivity and its relation to theworld” (1975: 3).Th facing thinkers the of Schleiermacher’s generation. Th on istaking Schleiermacher what Taylor identifi ordinary, . In arguing for intuition of infi the 32). For Schleiermacher, asfor Kant, intuition isamatter of ordinary, not extra- universe” (1996:26).“Th things. Religion is“the immediate of existence the experiences and action of the 3.Allcitations are to standard the English , (1984).Ifollow Schleiermacher now for fi the is immediate. “With slightest the trembling holy the embrace and isdispersed, know moment this of contact, application the because of our cognitive apparatus asubject–object pointbe of contact, infi wethe inwhich sense non- Kantian fashion, hewants there to arguemust experience that inevery he isasking, what are conditions the for possibility the In of very experience? pointthe of contact of asubject with an object world. inthe In Kantian fashion, uence, along with Aquinas’ Th Summa In the In of history theology the Th Behind the poetic language thepoetic Behind we that can to see describe Schleiermacher istrying e infi paragraph number and page. standard practice in citing text this by number, section followed where appropriate by isexpressed more clearly, but inSchleiermacher’s same sense, inthe nite, of religion which isan intuition, could of course mean many e ‘infi Th e object experienced immediately eobject experienced inintuition of ispart interac- this eChristian Faith rst intuition timethe stands before measaseparate form” ( nite’ for isnot mere Schleiermacher endlessness,nor isit some- . In proposition §4of Introduction, the one of propositions the 3 is infi In other words, we are aware that we are on acted both friedrich schleiermacher rst rank inbrilliance, completeness and epoch- making Th nite chaos, where point of course represents every , where hehasmore tosay about infi the eChristian Faith Speeches 39 Schleiermacher isarguing Schleiermacher to hisartistic eologiae es asone of central the problems stands among works of system- , Calvin’s Institutes eproblem “concerned the experience nite inevery nite. We cannot and Barth’s nite. e entire ibid ibid .: .: Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 Schleiermacher, designates Whence the of our feeling of absolute dependence. … thisisfor usthereally original signifi as implied self- inthis consciousness, designated isto be by word the ‘God,’ and a slightly diff ordination unifi inthe gion’s despisers but awork of systematic written theology for training those for Th and immortality“when God disappeared before my doubting eyes” (1996:8).In thing of some concept, God, independent of feeling. onbased revelation. interlocutors Allthese shared that idea know the they some- of scholasticism and kindsof certain confessional theologians claims whose were speculative theologians following colleague Hegel, hisBerlin aswell astraditions single of part world” the other (§4.4.16). Onthe hand, hedefended himself against world, inthe sense of the totality of temporal existence, and still less isit any with hewascharged which inthe in hisday. He wassensitive on one the hand to distinguish himself from the religion Speeches inthe Speeches is one of consciously being aware, that is,acognitive moment remains, as inthe to maintain that feeling this isits foundation or Note essence. that also feeling the is not claiming here tohave of religion, accounted aspect hecontinues for every lute as“the dependence self- identical of essence piety” (§4.12).Note that he while nexus in the fi nexus inthe of our receptive being or on active depends our existence of aspart causal this addition, we have afeeling of absolute possibility very the because dependence, it. We have, therefore, feelings of relative and dependence relative freedom. In by universe the and things the init, and we on act universe the and things the in infi zero,never accompanies our whole existence” (§4.3.16). self- consciousness accompanies which allour activity, and therefore, sincethat is absolutewe experience never moment; inasingle dependence rather, it is“the ness, our receptivity and activity within occurring it. Schleiermacher argues that can nofeeling be of absolute freedom); we simply fi eChristian Faith nite fi inthe In same the way asheidentifi Schleiermacher positionedSchleiermacher hisconcept among of God other concepts possible In the Speeches the In the term‘God’the therefore presupposes an we then idea, shall simply with piety. If, however, word and ideaare always originally one, and concern, plainly because enough it hasitself nothing to dodirectly inasystemwewhich, of could Christian never have doctrine, any of such an original knowledge, but simply it to set aside assomething Now our proposition intended isinnowise todispute existence the , and it isaconscious rather than subconscious awareness. erent tack.“[T]he rst place.We didnot create or universe ourselves this (hencethere nite, hedefi which Schleiermacher hadwritten Schleiermacher that of it the experience wasthis , which isnot, which awork of apologetic written theology for reli- ed (Reformed and Lutheran) church of hetakes Prussia, , Schleiermacher here, Schleiermacher identifi theodore vialtheodore intuitioned the of infi the Whence nesasreligion, that himthrough carried even 40 cation of that word” for (§4.4.16).God, of our receptive and active existence, Speeches es the consciousnesses the of abso- nd ourselves, our conscious- : “this ‘Whence’ isnot the ofnite essence asthe Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 the young European intellectuals of hisgeneration, Schleiermacher enthusiastically greatest of changes these wasoccasioned by theFrench Revolution. Like many of changessocial late inthe eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Perhaps the conceive of and study religion. activities, and hiscontributions to education and, more specifi I shallnow turn infl to ways the theology this Having laid out briefl physical interactions with him.Th communityin the were of who those changed and shaped by linguistic their and perfect God- consciousness, and it isthisGod- consciousness that isstill found ‘blessedness’. callsthis Schleiermacher Jesus one wasthe human with being a existence world, inthe and perhaps change also one’s receptivity very and activity. awareness of presence the of that God, would change one’s consciousness of one’s receptivityin every and activity, or, inother words, were it possible to live in was just aman, and traditional supernatural that views God- hewasthe man. Note again how mediates Schleiermacher Enlightenment between that views Jesus God- consciousness, wasaveritable inHim” which existenceof God (§94.385). human nature, but distinguished from allby them constant the of potency his “Th personality: Jesus’ human In beings. identifi §94Schleiermacher of God- the consciousness” (§66.271).Th open to usisto reckon assinthat hasarrested everything free the development condition that terms Schleiermacher God- forgetfulness, or sin:“the only course aware,we very tendnot tobe consciously, of our absolute Th dependence. of God- this consciousness. In give hectic the and of take life, everyday infact, intuitionevery gives to afeeling. rise Onecan, however, more be or lessconscious receptivity and activity inahuman life. As Schleiermacher wrote inthe isolatedan experience from others. Rather, it isafeeling that accompanies every ered others around. As we have feeling the of seen, absolute isnot dependence and explicate what it wasthat madehispersonality compelling so that it gath- Schleiermacher’s took shape theology inthecontext of major political and Were one able to live inawareness of interconnected the nexusof universe the We are now inaposition to return God- to perfect the consciousness of Jesus odtoe nyb u eln faslt eedne (§4.4.17) conditioned only by our feeling of absolute dependence. quite independent of that original knowledge (properly called),and so and mostoriginalwith the we idea which are here concerned, and is feeling of absolute mostdirect isthe dependence, refl isnothingsay which more that idea, this expression than the of the political thoughtandactivitiespolitical eRedeemer, then,islike allmeninvirtue of theidentity of y thecentral tenets of Schleiermacher’s theological system, friedrich schleiermacher is,for Schleiermacher, isredemption. 41 islack of awareness naturally affl es what it is that is so attractive about about attractive so is that is it what es uenced hispolitical thought and ection upon it it upon ection cally, to the way we Speeches icts all icts isa , Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 powers ingovernment. Th fl Königsberg inAugust and September 1808,where King Friedrich Wilhelm IIIhad plan an uprising to overthrow French. the amission undertook to Schleiermacher conjunction with other cellsaround Prussia, sought to arm Prussian citizens and most fully expressed. of eachfi which wealthdiminish the of human diversity, and it isonly indiversity that infi the philosophy, religion, and art character. To overrun borders the of anation wasto communitythe of states eachmust allowed be to contribute of freely best the its of individuals eachmust allowed be freely and to speak listen to others, in so suppressing free the expression of Prussian the people. Just asinacommunity his hatred of wasunrelenting. In occupying Napoleon Prussia, was occupied. soon which wasalso asuniversityand served preacher. wasforced Schleiermacher to flBerlin, ee to Prussia’s fl invaded and occupied Prussia. Napoleon shut down theUniversity of , Schleiermacher’s developing thought. to on take responsibility for common their governance, dovetailed nicely with tendencies inFrance, where of allclasses citizens (rather than subjects) began picturethe very of Christpresent inthecommunity injeopardy. Th context of church, the externalconstraints on interactions the of believers put that constrain or diminishfree interaction process. impede this Indeed, inthe sion and isshaped fully by possibilities the expressed by structures others. Social another. It and gesturing isinspeaking that one’s own personality fi inan best environmentoccurs individuals inwhich are free to interact with one exciting about to Schleiermacher developments. these Full human fl and ecclesiology,neutics, Christology it isnot hard what todetermine wasso followed events the inFrance. Given what we have said above about hisherme- he hadnoincentive to follow through, and noconstitution wasforthcoming. Although hepromised Prussians a constitution, once Napoleon wasdefeated feared that any popular role ingovernance would limit histraditional authority. own political ends,but hesitated to embrace and goals methods their he because Friedrich Wilhelm of IIImadeuse reformers’ the nationalistic rhetoric for his 1813 asRussia, Austria and joined Prussia forces to force retreat the of Napoleon. consistedmilitary largely of mercenaries control underthe of noble the class. of that Prussia hadneverbefore inits occurred traditional monarchy, the inwhich popular uprising would nurture aculture of citizen participation inthegoverning was not merely to French endthe occupation, but to imitate also French: the a ed with hiscourt, to facilitate coordination the of uprising the with highest the Schleiermacher wasassociated with asecret patriotic that, cellinBerlin in neverwaveredSchleiermacher inhisadmiration for French the citizens, but In 1806,however, citizen powerful the armies of France, ledby Napoleon, Th euprising never occurred, although theking reluctantly formed militias in agship university, where Schleiermacher wason thetheological faculty nite thing, person or community wasbut one expression, can be e hope of and Schleiermacher hisco- conspirators theodore vialtheodore 42 e democratic nds expres- nds ourishing nite, nite, Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 issues of religious pluralism. religion development inthe of comparative and ineff role of history academicinstitutions; inthe and role (ii)the of hisdefi study of religions, there are two important issuesto (i)Schleiermacher’s consider: Turning from questions of theology, and ecclesiology to theacademic government madehimsuspicious also king. tothe liturgy. new the Schleiermacher’s arguments for aPresbyterian form of church waspersonally Schleiermacher exempted struggle, in this from having to follow development of theChristian community. Although theKing ultimately prevailed liturgy could from not imposed be top the down, but rather organic the hadto be fashioned and therefore Catholic, too but more importantly on grounds the that a macher viciously attacked liturgy, new the on both grounds the that it wasold beganinstitutingPrussia, acommon liturgy that hehimself created. Schleier- governance. In king, 1814the desiring auniform liturgy across churches the of church positions. sermons, and wasonce threatened with exileand lossof the histeaching and ment. frequently Schleiermacher sitting hadsecretpolice inon hislectures and reformers found themselves undersuspicion of govern- asunderminers the With Restoration the and particularly Carlsbad Decrees the of former 1819,the university education wasweighted more towards general the development of teachers and researchers. Schleiermacher and Humboldt agreed that thegoal of process of becoming researchers themselves. University faculty, therefore, are both tion, and research institutes. Th of function wasto which primary the impart schools), (secondary informa- Schleiermacher argued that theuniversity waslocated between disciplineunifying before professional in their specializing disciplines. Further, – with requirement the that allstudents grounded be fi sion of university the into four –philosophy, schools law, medicine, and theology essay,in this way madetheir into Humboldt’s plan. Most important divi- wasthe Sense”.German Many of Schleiermacher’s for basicideas auniversity, argued for sion of an essay in1808entitled “Occasional Th oughts on ina Humboldt to found university. the He played two key roles. submis- Onewasthe wasoneSchleiermacher of three members of commission the working under von Humboldt of washead Department the of Worship and Public Instruction. eff tual the University of Halle, and to rebuild Prussia’s spirit by replacing with intellec- Universitythe Friedrich of Wilhelm Berlin. III’s government neededto replace At institutional the level, played Schleiermacher asignifi Schleiermacher andSchleiermacher king the were at also on loggerheads issueof the church orts what lostphysically hadbeen through Napoleon’s invasion. Wilhelm the academic study ofreligions friedrich schleiermacher euniversity waswhere young people beganthe 43 rst inphilosophy asa cant role increating orts to wrestle with Gymnasien nition of of nition

Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 played by Romantics German the and shift inthis idealists of sources the of conceptual this shift explorers reported across running people with noreligion whatsoever. gions: Christianity, Judaism, Islam and heathenism). Not infrequently, European throughout eighteenth the Western the century taxonomy included just four reli- that can compared. be Most faculty enter theclassroom with thesame sense. But enon and that there isafairly standard listof or eleven twelve ‘world religions’ know what religion cannot is,evenifthey defi today enter classrooms indepartments of religious studies that with asense they streetthe shift taxonomythe of religions that self- seemed evident to scholars and to people on gion? Tomoko Masuzawa (2005)askswhy it isthat category the ‘religion’ and question: what washisrole manufacture inthe category of modern of the reli- academic study of religion forwards or backwards liesamore fundamental completely open to scientifi made) and that defi infact Schleiermacher many interpreters with Rudolf Schleiermacher confuse Otto (amistake Otto never lenged (rightfully so, inmy opinion) by Andrew shows Dole (2004),who that exclusively with emotion. Th isreading Schleiermacher has of recently been chal- cognitive of earlier, feeling aspect discussed associating Schleiermacher’s making it into aprivate and ineff religion. He isfrequently of protecting accused religion from rigorous study by questions inrecent scholarship ishisrole of academicstudy history the inthe of universitiesmodern theological and education, modern one of mostvexed the in ABrief Outline of Th exegetical, historical, dogmatic plan (the and hehadoutlined what standard the education became of model seminary into subject the areas of of theuniversity in1815–16.In setting up thetheological faculty hedevised fi the responsible for calling fi the graduate studying school inGermany. Unitedthe States, where many of leading the academicsspent formative years of fi freedom from state control wasdesirable. Th e University Berlinwas one of the of demand immediately practical results from of research, academic policy astrict statethe should support university. the But of state’s because the temptation to and information. of state’s the Because interest insuch well formed individuals, English- countries),speaking and inculcation lessthe of immediately skills useful the person (‘Bildung the research universitiesrst modern for and amodel became others, not in least Masuzawa on focuses nineteenth- century British comparative asone theology question the Beyond Schleiermacher’s of whether work moved modern the In addition to therole Schleiermacher played institutionally indeveloping Secondly, asamember of Humboldt’s commission, was Schleiermacher rst dean faculty of (and thetheology three timesthereaft ed so radicallyed so around theturn of thetwentieth century. Students ’ in German, which isrelated which ’ inGerman, tradition arts to liberal the in eological Study c enquiry. rst members of theuniversity’s faculty. He as served theodore vialtheodore able aff , 1811). not,. She does however, at look role the 44 air of feeling. Th ned religion asahuman phenomenon ne it, that it isauniversal phenom- isreading overlooks the , arole that isat least er), and wasrector Gefühl

Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 Schleiermacher isoneSchleiermacher of mostimportant the ofvoices. German these as great (inmy opinion, far greater than) role the of British. the It isclear that ality. Formally alike, each religion particular. willbe religion, determinedby willbe contingencies the of history, language and person- infi the religions share aform or structure inthat are they centred around an intuition of primordial religion that ramifi then there are only concrete, ‘positive’, historical religious communities. Th basic principles. Anysciences. attempt to protect religion from free investigation would violate and ineff To human be religious. is,insome to sense, be In principle religion isnot personal ofis auniversal human aspect consciousness, available sense- inevery perception. is particular about thereligious aff defi createsSchleiermacher ataxonomy of religions. He because, having so does , Judaismtheism, “betrays alingering affi andtheism . religions three Ofthe that have into developed mono- (§7.31). Religions develop through stages the of fetishism (idol worship), poly- human conditions (‘aesthetic religions’), and that those subordinate natural the distinguishes religions between that subordinate moral the to natural the in formhighest of monotheism (§7.4.37–8). level associated with ” (§7.4.37).Christianity, for Schleiermacher, isthe strongly sensuous content of its ideas”, tends to keep its followers on emotional the Babylonianthe exile(§7.4.37).Islam, “with its passionate character, and the limited to one nation, and it because oft other intwo ways: “as diff gion’ and ‘world religions’. Historical religious communities canrelated be to each today’s standards, it isaremarkable step on path the to our current of sense ‘reli- thatspecies share same the genus. While taxonomy this isabit embarrassing by he iswriting asystematics, and hecan only by dothis marking it off In the Speeches the In In the introduction to Schleiermacher also argued also Schleiermacher that there isno such thing asgeneric religion; Turning from stages of development to kindsof religion, Schleiermacher ned religion of absolute asasense hemust dependence, now distinguish what things, are material for scientifi place total in the fi eld of human life; since piety and Church, like other itself and communion the relating to it, and determining proper their and passing judgment from own their point of upon view piety both [W]e have nodesire to keep leadersof the from science scrutinizing here entering upon such a scrutiny. (Schleiermacher 1984:§3.1.6) (Schleiermacher here entering upon such ascrutiny. nite. nite. Th able, but common, and assuch open to investigation by human the e specifi Schleiermacher argued Schleiermacher that religion, an intuition of infi the c content of intuitions, these though, and therefore of each friedrich schleiermacher erent stagesof development and asdiff Th e Christian Faith ections of thespecifi es into various specifi c knowledge. Indeed, we ourselves are en vacillated towards idol worship before 45 nity with Fetichism [sic , prior to dogmatics proper, c community for which c religious forms. All ]” because it]” because is erent kinds” erent from other ere isno nite, nite, Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 of diff stages of development through any which religion can pass.We have ataxonomy world religions: fetishism and polytheism are not aseparate religious category, but by Masuzawa of our of‘common- genealogy the sense’ contemporary taxonomy of Schleiermacher’s defi nitions taxonomiesand playthe historical in questionposed Islam). To can usthis only antediluvian. seem But we must note also role the that as asingle religion), and thelack of knowledge of traditions those (especially of atradition, out of great the diversity that makes infact up what we isolate macher’s taxonomy toassumeone seems normative that type identifi accomplished by Jesus of Nazareth” (§11.52). from any other such religion inthat init “everything isrelated to redemption the gion expressing best teleological the (§9.40–44).It type distinguished isfurther ical religion. Christianity, for Schleiermacher, isdefi commanding will, it isan active, although “lessperfect”, expression of teleolog- ona focus moral challenge; nonetheless, it because isdominated by divine the of because aesthetic the its on focus divine rewards and punishments rather than dinates moral the to natural, the is an religion. and aesthetic so Judaism tends to to themoral (‘teleological religions’). Islam, with its “fatalistic character”, subor- debates about hisproper place intheReformed tradition and between Calvin Barth. studies, and areconsideration of hisinfl hisrolestrue advance inthe of university- the studybased of religions. and way inthe hereconciles religion and We science. ought not, however, miscon- identifiSchleiermacher and criticize, over 170years aft philosophersmodern of religion must operate. Th thatview allreligions are diff other religions are not equal the of Christianity, nor heaccept does inclusivist the to which religions which make competing claims cannot and true therefore all be (Protestant) Christianity. not does accept Schleiermacher , according human and history development allreligions willnaturally to passover begin into found only inJesus, and that Schleiermacher fully expects over thefullcourse of intuition of infi the nitethe fi in expressions isimportant, for eachwillhave adiff diff other very as individuals develop and grow by expressing themselves incommunities with interfaith off dialogue, Schleiermacher express agenuine of infi the experience to diff are God- consciousness. In other words, we have moved religion from true–false In current theological eff fi must We Th isakey fi Schleiermacher e past thirty years have epastthirty aremarkable witnessed renaissance inSchleiermacher erent expressions of God- consciousness, diff erent authentic religions (inJohann Herder’s Gottfried eachof sense), which rst note essentializing the of historical religious traditions (Schleier- erent individuals, for so diversity the Schleiermacher of religious ed as the essence of essence ed asthe religion, inhistaxonomy of religions orts to grapple with religious pluralism, and to facilitate erent paths up same the mountain. gure shaping inthe of categories the with which nite. nite. Th er thepublication of theodore vialtheodore at said, the perfect God- at God- said, perfect the consciousness was ers an interesting conversation partner. Just nite. 46 uence beyond thetraditional theological erent religious aff erent, necessarily incomplete, ere may much be todiscuss ned as the monotheisticned asthe reli- Th eChristian Faith ections, but all es the essence essence es the , inwhat Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 Blackwell, A.1982. category. categoryof modern of the religion and appropriate for methods study the of that in hermeneutics, post- Kantian epistemology, education, political theory, shape the In addition to more traditional theological thisinfl loci, 4, 11,12;Vol. 3,Ch.14;Vol. 5,Chs 13,20. Vol. also On christology see 1,Ch.10;Vol. 2,Ch.3.Onlanguage Ch.8;Vol. also see 2,Chs On scripture Vol. also see 1,Chs 9,13,17;Vol. 2,Ch. 19; Vol. 3,Chs 3,4,15;Vol. 5,Ch.12. Nowak, K.2001.Schleiermacher: Leben, Werk und Wirkung Mariña, J. (ed.) 2005.Th Forstman, J. 1977.ARomantic Triangle: Schleiermacher and Early German . Dole, A.(forthcoming) Schleiermacher on Religion and the Natural Order Crouter, 2005.Friedrich R. Schleiermacher: Between Enlightenment and Romanticism. Cambridge University Press. CA: Scholars Press. University Press. Phantasy. Cambridge University Press. Chico, CA:Scholars Press. Schleiermacher’s Early Philosophy of Life: Determinism, Freedom, and e Cambridge Companion to Friedrich Schleiermacher. friedrich schleiermacher further reading 47 . Göttingen: Vandenhoeck &Ruprecht. uence isclearly important . New York: Oxford Cambridge: Cambridge: Chico, Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 02:08 03 Oct 2021; For: 9781315729602, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315729602.ch3 This pageintentionallyleftblank