The Conceit of Norms in the Theology of Ernst Troeltsch
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THE CONCEIT OF NORMS IN THE THEOLOGY OF ERNST TROELTSCH A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Divinity to the Post-Braduate Faculty of Divinity of the University of Edinburgh by Louise S. Eby TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAP. I. Introductory The Place of Troeltsch as a Theological Thinker II. The Necessity for Norms in the Field of Theology III* Troeltsoh*s Determinatam of Norms in the General Field of History IV. The Relation of Historical Norms to Theological Norms V. The IfciEa&inatiori: of the Theological Norms VI. Troeltsch^s Construction of the Normative Essence of Christianity VII. The Normative Significance of Jesus VIII. The Application of the Theological Norms in the General Field of the Religions of the World The Finality of Christianity IX» Conclusion The Value of Troeltsch* s Concept of Norms in Theology CHAPTER I INTRODUCTORY THE PLACE OF TROELTSGH AS A THEOLOGICAL THINKER Brnst Troeltsch was born February 17, 1865, in Augsburg, German.. His father was a physicians hence the son had the opportunity to familiar ise himself with science in his parental home, and enjoyed the cultural advantages to which his family background made him heir. The classical culture became known to him in the Gymnasium, where he was prepared for the university. Following his own desire, he began the study of theo logy in 1885, and pursued his studies at Erlangen and Gottingen, where he sat at the feet of Frank, Ritschl, and Paul de Lagarde. All three of these great teachers contributed to the theological development of the youthful Troeltsch, as he later acknowledged repeqtedlyj but it was Ritschl who was most influential in the formation of Troeltsch* s own theology, even though the latter was largely a reaction from the 2 Ritschlian School. At the conclusion of his theological studies in 1888, Troeltsch served as assistant minister in a Lutheran Church in Munich, where he had a taste of the practical work of the Christian Church, in which he was always to retain interest to a degree unusual among German theo logians. ^ In 1891 his academic career began; for it was then that he became a lecturer (Privatdoaent), at Go'ttingen. The following year 1 A. von Harnack, "Rede am Sarge Ernst Troeltschs, "Berliner Tageblatt, 6 Feb., 1923, reprinted in Die ohristliche Welt, 22 Feb., 1923. n c Troeltsch, Gesammelte Schriften, Bd. 1, Vorwort* * Cf. his essays on church affairs such as Die Trennung von Staat und Kirehe, Gewissensfreiheit, Die Mission in dter modefnen Welte, etc. he was made Professor Extraordinarius at Bonn. In 1893 he was appointed full professor in systematic theology at Heidelberg, where he remained until 1915, when he was called to occupy the chair of philosophy at Berlin, which had once been held by Otto Pfleiderer. Troeltsch held this position until his untimely death on February 1, 1923. In addition to his work as a university professor, and a prolific writer on theological and philosophic subjects, Troeltsch took an active part in the politics of his time. While at Heidelberg, he was a member of ihe Upper House of Baden for several years; and later, in Berlin, he was in the Prussian Landtag,.besides serving as Under-Secretary of State in the Ministry of Public Worship. This practical interest and vital contact with the affairs of his time, both clerical and secular, had an energising effect upon his theological thinking; and made him aware be yond all others of his theological compatriots, of the acuteness and complexity of the problems which modern life presents to theology. Some of his most stimulating essays are those which treat of the con flicts between Christianity and the secular trends of modern civilisation, (for example, the famous one, Grundprobleme der Ethik), and indeed all of his work is permeated with a broad understanding of modern life and its divergent cultural tendencies with which the church must battle. History from time to time presents us with figures which in their single persons embody the spirit of the age in which they live, Virgil in the Augustan age, Luther in the Reformation, and others too numerous to mention. Troeltsch was such an incarnation of the early * Troeltsch, Christian Thought, Introduction by Baron von Hugelj also R. S. Sleigh, The SuiTiciency of Christianity, pp. 21-26. -3- twentieth century s for in his own person he epitomised both the strengths and the weaknesses of that era. As Kaftan well says, he is an epoch in himself, the early twentieth century. Troeltschf s work mirrors his time with all its varied and conflicting trends, its u. appreciation of, and the attempt to synthesise the most divergent and i^ incompatible influences. It is this feature of his own mind and tem perament, as well as that of the era to which he belongs that made Troeltsch so many-sided, so inconsistent. It was the effort to ex press an age which caused him to change his mind so often, and to be so dissatisfied with any position he had adopted. In a personality of that type, we cannot expect a unified system, nor a large body of positive results, but rather a keen analysis of the problems, and a suggestive method of approach to them. These are what Troeltsch gives us in his theological writings, in which we have in heightened and intense form the Christian mind wrestling with the modern world. To his task as a theologian and a philosopher in the fields of religion and history, Troeltsch brought not only the equipment of a powerful mind and a temperament which epitomised the modern world in their sweep, but also the indispensable qualification of a thoroughly religious mind and heart. Baron von Htigel, who was an intimate friend Of his ••"••• over a long period of years, tells us how Troeltsch saw in all the events of his own life the guidance and the goodness of God in Whose presence he felt himself to stand, whether in good or ill o fortune, but even if we did not have this confirmation from an in- The odor Kaftan, Ernst Troeltsch, eine kritische Zeitstudie, p. 1 Q Baron von Httgel, "Er"Ernst Troeltsch,'1 in The Times Literary" Supplement, 29 March, 1923. -4- tiiaate friend, we could not help inferring the presence of a deep and vital Christian experience from the nan's own writings. Behind the involved and technical phraseology in which Troeltsch so often ex presses himself is the unmistakeable heart-beat of a warm and vital Christian faith,land frequently .,,,.! in the midst of some learned discussion comes an almost lyrical gem of religious insight. It was this re ligious spirit which would never allow him to rest content with the idea of a culture that was not Christian. Even when he seems to reach negative conclusions, Troeltsch is actuated by a sincerely religious desire to find the truth, for as Professor Henry N. Wieman reminds us, it is religion that craves and cherishes truth even more than science. Moreover, no matter how relativistic Troeltsch 1 s theoretical conclusions about the Christian religion might become, they never affected his prac tical devotion to it. As Baron von Hugel finely says, apropos of the extreme relativism and individualism which characterised Troeltsch1 s final book, "The wonder is that the conclusion does not appear more thin than it does in fact appear. But then we have Ifco do with a soul of the rarest and finest richness, which in spite of every logical self-entrap ment, does partly have its way; and again this soul retains certain grand convictions, alive still, from pre-individualistic days, its faith in God and its sense of Christ convictions assuredly not acquired from such a break-neck plunge." 2 It is not only the comprehensiveness and power of Troeltsch*s 1 Wieman, The Wrestle of Religion with Truth, p. 233« ^ Troeltsch, Christian Thought, Introduction by Baron won Hflgel, pp. -5- niind, and his vast understanding of modern culture, but his religious spirit as well that made him an inspiring teacher, whose memory his students still reverence; and from whose books many of us who never knew the great master in life still derive light upon our problems and religious help towards their solution. During his lifetime, he enjoyed great respect not only in Germany, but in other countries as well, particularly in the English-speaking world, for whose culture he had great appreciation. Even the French Protestant, Vermeil, con sidered his thought of sufficient importance to make it the subject of a sympathetic monograph. The international recognition which Troeltsch received was due to the fact that he was free from the extreme national ism which sometimes spoils the German intellectual. Indeed, while en tertaining a true affection for his country, he preserved an objectivity of outlook upon German affairs which made him aware of the dangerous trends in the national and religious life of his fatherland, and also displayed a truly international and catholic outlook which enabled him to appreciate the excellencies of other peoples. His high estimate of Calvinism, in his Soziallehren^.J5 a case in point, as is the esteem in which he held the activistic temper of the churches of the Anglo- n Jtooerioan world. He visited America in 1904, and wrote appreciatively 2 of much he had seen of church life there; . His last book, Christian Thought, was a volume of lectures prepared for delivery in England, Georg Wunsch, "Zum Gedachtnis an Ernst Troeltsch," in Die Christ- liche Welt, 22 Feb., 1923, and Albert Dieterich, "Ernst Troeltsch," in .Archiv.