MEDIATING THEOLOGY. Pfleiderer gives the name Eclectic Mediating Theologians to a class of theologians who have sought, independently of definite philosophical systems, to reconcile the faith of the Church with the thought of their times. Typical of this class or school was Isaac August Dorner (1809-1884). One of his works was on the history of the development of the doctrine of the person of Christ (" Entwicklungsgeschichte der Lehre von der Person Christi ": 2nd ed. 1845-511); another was a history of protestant theology (" Geschichte der protestantischen Theologie," 1867). Dorner maintains that the method of Christian dogmatic theology must be not simply productive, but rather reproductive: still it must not be merely empirical and reflective, but also constructive and progressive. When the enlightened Christian mind is in harmony by its faith and experience with objective Christianity, which faith knows to be its own origin, and which is also attested by the Scriptures and the scriptural faith of the Church. then such a mind has to justify and develop its religious knowledge in a systematic form." Our knowledge of God is incomplete and relative, but it is real and growing. In revelation the divine power works, in part outwardly (in miracles). In part inwardly (in inspiration). Dorner taught that " the primary seat of inspiration must not be sought in books, but in men, and must not be separated from the general history of revelation. But though no specific difference can be proved between men endowed with the spirit and inspired men: still of the latter it is a dis tinctive and indeed unique characteristic, by virtue of their being vehicles of revelation, that without being personally absolutely incapable of error, they are yet preserved from it in their teaching and preaching, and proclaim only unerring truth, even in historical details, as the word of God " (Pfleiderer). In Denmark the school found an able representative in Hans Lassen Mar tensen (1808-1884), who wrote on "Christian Dogmatics " (4th German edition, 1897) and on "Christian Ethics " (6th German edition. 1893). In reference to the latter work, Martensen says: " The one-sided views against which we have to contend are those of one-sided eccles iasticism, and one-sided individualism. Both negative
the great problem of the modern age—the living union of Christianity and humanism. For a nomistic eccles iasticism which suppresses all intellectual, and especially all scientific freedom, and an individualism which tries to isolate Christianity, and separate it from the varied spheres of human life, are alike un-Christian and in human. The problem will continue to be the presentation in life and doctrine of this union and combination of Christianity and genuine and free humanity." Johann Peter Lange (1802-1884), who wrote on " Dogmatics " (1S49-51), tried to put new life into dogmatic theology with the help of theosophical speculation. Daniel Schenkel (1813-1885), who wrote a book on " Christian Dogmatics" (1S58-59), and another on the character of Jesus (" Das Charakterbild Jesu," 4th ed. 1873), thought that theology ought thoroughly to revise its idea of re ligion. The Jesus of Schenkel is described by Pfann miiller as " an idealized and modernized Christ." Albrecht Ritschl (1822-1889), who wrote on " The Christian Doctrine of Justification and Atonement " (4th ed. 18145), felt the need of an altogether new theology. and sought to supply it. He founded a new school of theology, the Ritschlian School. Another representa tive of the Mediating Theology, though he differed very much from Ritschl, was Richard Adelbert Lipsius (1830-1892), author of a " Manual of Evangelical Pro testant Theology " (3rd ed. 1893). According to Lipsius.
the Christian faith regards the existence and course of the world from the teleological point of view as the means of securing the divine purpose of the world—without prejudice to the scientific causal theory of the world. The same course of the world must be placed entirely under the point of view of natural causation, and also entirely under that of a divine purpose, since the divine teleology manifests itself as the power immanent in the course of nature" (Pfleiderer). See Otto Pfleiderer. Derelopme-nt of Theol.; G. Pfannmiiller, Jesus im Urteil der Yahrhunderte, 1908; H. S. Nash, Higher Criticism of the 1901.