TVBINGEN SCHOOL. A term applied to a modern theological movement which had its origin in the teachings of Ferdinand Christian Baur (q.v.), of the University of Tubingen. Though he was unwilling to admit that he was a disciple of Hegel, Baur's distinctive and guiding principles were those of the Hegelian philosophy. it was his aim to reconstruct the history of early Christianity so that it would be seen to be in harmony with the laws which everywhere govern historical evolution. He began with the Apos tolic age, a method which has since won uni versal approval. in 1831 he published his essay Die Uhristasparlci in der korinthischen Ge include, der Gegensatz des paulinischen und pctrinischen Christentums in der altcstca Kirche, der Apostel Feints in Rom. In this were fore shadowed all his later critical results. His posi tion was that the early Apostolic Church was split into two hostile factions, Pauline (Gen tile) and Petrine (Jewish), between whom there was a hitter conflict. Although an element of Jewish Christianity remained unreconciled to the last (the Ebionites), the Pauline party (mainly after Paul's death) made concessions, and thus brought about a reconciliation which resulted in the establishment of the Old Catholic Church. These views were elaborated and fully stated in the works: Ucber clic sogenannten Pustoralbriefe (1835, the same year in which Strauss's Lcben Jesu appeared) ; Paulus der Apostcl Jcsu Christi, seirr Leben and Mirken, seine Bricfe and seine Lehrc ( 1S45, 2c1 ed. 1866) ; Die kanonischen Erangelicn (1847) ; and Das Christent um and die christlichc Kirche der drci. ersten Jahrhan derte (1853). Baur's position led hint to at tempt a thorough reconstruction of the history of the origin of the New Testament literature. His theory demanded that the New Testament books in which the evidences of the conflict were most patent, or in which either of the two con flicting views was positively stated, should be considered earliest in date. Therefore, Paul's four genuine letters (Rom., I. and II. Con. and Gal.) of the Pauline wing, and the Apocalypse by John with the early Hebrew form of the Gospel of Matthew, of the Petrine or Jewish party, were named as the earliest productions of the Apostolic Church. The other hooks were dated according to the exigencies of the general theory—Mark, as altogether neutral, being set down as the latest of the Synoptics, and with our Greek :Matthew, Luke, Acts, John, and the Pastoral Epistles placed very late, altogether outside of the Apostolic age. In Acts, in par
ticular, the desire to reconcile the two parties, even at the expense of genuine Paulinism, was said to be quite manifest. This criticism, based on the supposed tendency (Tendenz) of the New Testament documents and now known as 'tendency criticism' (Tcndenzkritik), was thoroughly under the control of the Hegelian conception ('thesis, antithesis and synthesis") of history. Baur's theory, practically unaltered, was advocated with great brilliancy by E. Zeller in the organ of the school, the Thcologische .1alybiiiher (from 1842 on), and in Die Apostelgese1irhtc each Owena Inhalt and Ursprung (1856). by A. Sehwegler in Das aaehapostolisehe Zeitalter (1846), and by Karl Planck and Karl Kiistlin in various pub lications. Others of the school differed from the master in important details, but fully ac cepted the main principle. Of these Volkmar in Switzerland, Hilgenfeld and Holsten in Ger many, Scholten in Holland, S. Davidson in Eng land, may be cited as representatives. David Strauss is also often spoken of as a representa tive of the 'Piihingeu school. This, however, is not strictly correct. Strauss was indeed influ enced by Baur in his early years, but that was before Baur himself had fully formulated his views.
The most important defection in the ranks of Baur's disciples was that of Albrecht Ritschl (q.v.), who in the second edition of his Die En Isle/lung der ullkatholiseben Kirehe (1857) asserted that it Wa S a 111 tit a lie to explain origin of Old Catholic Christianity a. a anion of early Jewish or Petrine Christianity and modi fied Paulinism. 11 is trenehant criticism and that of others gradually showed the baselessness of many of Baur's positions. At his death in 1858 it was already evident that the dates he assigned to New Testament books °mild not longer be defended. The whole theory, fact, as originally formulated by Baur, has no advocates at the present time, although 111 any prominent of to-day, as Hilgenfeld. Hausrath, 0. Pfleiderer, 11. J. Holtzmann, Schmiedel, while independent of any formal adhesion to Baur's theory. are at one with the great Tiibingen professor on hn portant points.