HARNACK, Adolph von (1851-1930):
one of the greatest German LIBERAL theologians and
CHURCH historians. He saw RELIGION reconciling CULTURE and CHRISTIANITY for the proper
ordering of daily life. To him DOGMA in the EARLY CHURCH obscured the practical thrust of
JESUS' teachings. He argued that we must separate the permanently valid kernel of the Gospel
from the culturally conditioned husk. In What is Christianity? (1901) he argues
Jesus' message was his ethical preaching about "the KINGDOM OF GOD." His other
works include: The History of Dogma (1894-1899 7 Vols.), The Mission and
Expansion of Christianity in the First Three Centuries (1904-1905, 2 Vols.), and The
Constitution and Law of the Church in the First Two Centuries (1910).
