History of Free Thought in Reference to The Christian Religion Part 29

Rothe's two most important works are, _Die Anfange der Christlichen Kirche_, 1837, and _Theologische Ethic_, 1845. An account of the former is given in the often-quoted article by Scherer (_Rev. des Deux Mondes_, Feb.

15, 1861), pp. 848-860. It appears to view the Christian church from its ideal side, to absorb the individual in the const.i.tution, to show that Christendom is the object of Christianity, an inst.i.tution the great means of embodying the doctrines; but that, as society becomes fermented by its spirit, the office of Christianity is fulfilled by the state, and the beau ideal would be a society where the church is the state. It is a view similar to that of Coleridge in his _Church and State_, or of Dr. Arnold in his work on _the Church_. Mr. F. C. Cook, in _Aids to Faith_ (p. 159), has given some interesting ill.u.s.trations of this point.

The second of Rothe's works, the _Ethic_, is briefly described in a previously-cited article in the _Westminster Review_ for April, 1857. Like the former it starts with the idea of the ident.i.ty of ethics and religion.

Regarding personality or the moral relations as the central fact of existence, it surveys material creation under this aspect. Next it discusses the moral and religious history of man, as means of enabling the personal being to subordinate to himself all the forces without or within him. The object apparently is to show, that the spiritual element is not an intrusion, but the normal development of nature or providence; and the moral society, the State, the normal development of the religions society, the Church. Rothe's later views have hardly been developed in system.

According to him theology is theosophy; philosophy can work out a theology from the consciousness.

It is probable that the writer of these lines is unintentionally doing injustice, through having to trust to secondhand information, to one who is regarded in Germany as belonging to the highest order of scientific theologians; though perhaps the interesting account of C. Schwarz leaves little to be desired.

Rothe, in accordance with his wish to strengthen orthodox theology by an independent philosophy, and not to support it by material agency, has lately taken part politically on the liberal side, in some questions connected with the church const.i.tution of Baden. (See Colani's _Nouvelle Revue de la Theologie_, Aug. 1862.)

Note 41. p. 285. The Most Modern Schools Of Philosophy And Theology In Germany.

The object of this note is to carry on the history of philosophy and theology to a more recent date than was necessary in the text.

The idealist school of philosophy reached its highest point with Hegel; and subsequently there has been as great a reaction against this mode of speculation, as the contemporaneous theological one in religion.

The philosopher who was directly or indirectly the cause of the realist tendency was Herbart (1776-1841), who succeeded Kant at Konigsberg, and afterwards was Professor at Gottingen. Concerning his system, see Morell's _History of Philosophy_, ii. 206, &c. Chalybaus, ch. iv. and v. He followed out the _material_, as distinct from the _formal_, system of the Kantian philosophy, and strove to develop it.

The schools of modern Germany may be reckoned as four:-

(1). The young Hegelian school; e.g. of the younger Fichte, which, though professedly idealistic, and adopting Hegel's method, is really affected largely by realistic tendencies, and seeks for a philosophy of matter as well as form. See Taillandier in _Revue des Deux Mondes_ for 1853, vol.

iii. p. 633; and also Oct. 1858; Morell's _History of Philosophy_, ii.

216, &c. Kahnis, p. 252. This school manifests decidedly realistic tendencies in Kuno Fischer, Weisse, and Branis.

(2.) That which shows a tendency to approach the subject of mental phenomena from the physiological side, in Drobisch, Waitz, and Volkmann, somewhat in the manner of the English writer Herbert Spencer.

(3.) A school decidedly materialist, e.g. Vogt, Moleschott, and Buchner.

See Taillandier, _Rev. des Deux Mondes_, Oct. 1858.

These three tendencies form a gradation from the ideal, and approach the real, until at last the ideal itself is destroyed. The other tendency, if such it may be called, stands apart, and is akin to the older ideal ones.

It is (4.) that of Schopenhauer (1788-1860), and tries to solve the problem of existence from the side of the will, instead of the intellect, and bears a remote resemblance to that of Maine de Biran. His system has long been before the public, but since his death has been much discussed.

It has been explained by Frauenstadt. It is also well described in the _Westminster Review_, April, 1853.

We now pa.s.s from the schools of philosophy to theology.

We have implied that there are three great schools of it in Germany; the Neo-Lutheran, the Mediation school, and the Tubingen; and have seen that they are each in course of transition into slightly new forms in younger hands. The "Neo-Lutheranism" has a.s.sumed a more ecclesiastical position, which has been called "Hyper-Lutheranism." The "Mediation" school of Schleiermacher is replaced by a newer form, modified by Hegelianism in Dorner. It remains to add, that the Tubingen school is giving place to another, of which C. Schwarz himself is a representative-a kind of derivation from the Tubingen school and that of De Wette. Its organ is the _Protestantische Kirchenzeitung_; and to it are said(1070) to belong Dr.

Dittenberger, court preacher at Weimar, C. Schwarz, who holds the same position at Gotha; Ellester of Potsdam, Sydow of Berlin, and Schweizer of Zurich. Their position seems to be more ethical and less evangelical than the members of the party of free thought in the protestant church of France.

Note 43. p. 289. The Modern Theology Of Switzerland And Holland.

It will be observed, that no notice has been taken in the text, of the modern theology of Switzerland and Holland. It may be desirable therefore to suggest an outline here.

THE THEOLOGY OF SWITZERLAND.-The materials for the account of it are scanty and disjointed. Since the reform of the Swiss universities during the present century, theological thought has chiefly taken the colour of the adjacent countries, Germany or France, in the respective universities where those languages are spoken. In the church of Geneva, about a quarter of a century ago, there seem to have been two parties, similar to those in the French protestant church: one professing the old Calvinistic orthodoxy, which had degenerated into semi-Socinianism; the other, the result of a revival of biblical truth and spiritual religion, under such pastors as D'Aubigne, the historian of the Reformation, and recently Gaussen, the writer on _Theopneustie_. A movement was commenced under Vinet of Lausanne, which may be considered to be the only native school which Switzerland has produced. It was a mixture of science and earnestness, founded chiefly on a combination of Pascal and Schleiermacher. Concerning Vinet, see a very just article in the _North British Review_, No. 42, August 1854; and see below, Note 46. Scherer was a friend of Vinet, but has since changed his views, or, as some would think, developed logically their results, and has long left his professors.h.i.+p at Geneva, and acts with the new liberal school in the French protestant church. See Note 46.

German Switzerland has been connected with Germany rather than France. The teaching at the university of Basle was moulded by De Wette, who was made professor there in 1826, a few years after his removal from Berlin. Its character, however, expressed the more orthodox and moderate views of his later years. The instructive writer Hagenbach, professor there, belongs to the "mediation school" of theology, and is a worthy representative of its learned and devout spirit. Zurich possessed a teacher, Usteri, belonging to the school of Schleiermacher; and others, whose tone rather resembled that of the critical school of De Wette, or of the Tubingen school. The well-known critics. .h.i.tzig and k.n.o.bel, were formerly its professors; and at present Schweizer is there, concerning whom see Note 41. A few years after Strauss had published his noted work, he was elected, as stated before, theological professor at Zurich, but the appointment was cancelled by a revolution of the people. See the Address of Orelli (translated 1844). The appointment of Zeller of the Tubingen school to Berne, created a similar excitement. In the proceedings of the Evangelical Alliance at Geneva, 1861, professor Riggenbach, of Basle, stated that some of the journals of eastern Switzerland adopt sceptical principles. (_News of the Churches_, Oct. 1861.) He named the _Zeit-stimmen aus der Reformirten Kirche der Schweiz_, which is edited at Winterthur by Lang, a pupil of Baur. In German Switzerland, however, as well as French, there exists a biblical school of theology; of which professor Riggenbach of Basle is an example.

THE THEOLOGY OF HOLLAND.-The sources were given above (p. 110.) for the study of Arminianism and Calvinism in the seventeenth century. The subsequent history is soon told. We omit, of course, the history of the Romish church in Holland, and of the Jansenist secession from it, which took place in 1705.

The Protestant church continued to exist in two branches; viz. the Calvinists, or established church, who professed the creed of the synod of Dort; and the Remonstrants, who professed the moderate Arminianism of Episcopius; similar to that which was taught by our own Hales and Chillingworth. The studies in the established church were specially devoted to exegesis, in reference to which the name of Schultens of Leyden, in the last century, is well known; manifesting a slight inclination to free inquiry in Van der Palm (1763-1838).

About 1830, the condition of the church was a cold orthodoxy, much like that of the "moderate" party in the church of Scotland before the rupture of 1843. The stronghold of this party was the university of Utrecht.

Living isolated, and resembling the English in not easily admitting foreign influences, the Dutch read little of German literature. A periodical existed, the _Theological Contributions_, which used to bestow praises on the school of Bretschneider.

A little before 1830, a movement of evangelical piety had been kindled in the church, through the influence of the poet Bilderdyk (who died 1831), and of his two disciples, the Portuguese Jew of Amsterdam, Da Costa (who died in 1860), and Cappadose. Their position however was, a return to the rigid decrees of the synod of Dort and the theology of Calvin. They resembled very nearly the party in the church of Scotland which formed the free church. They acquainted themselves with German theology for the purpose of refuting it; and Da Costa wrote a work, _The Four Witnesses_, on the four Evangelists, in reply to Strauss; which has been translated.

In 1834 they separated from the national church under two pastors, De c.o.c.k and Scholte, and endured much persecution. The _Voices of the Netherlands_ was the periodical which expressed their views. Van Oosterze, pastor at Rotterdam, belonged to them. This party has been represented in the Dutch parliament by Groen van Printsterer. It has lost its political influence in some degree in recent years, by opposing political reforms.

Almost simultaneously with this Calvinistic revival, a school arose in the university of Groningen, a "mediation" school, modelled upon Schleiermacher, under the influence of the Platonist Van Heusde (1778-1839), led by Hofstede de Groot, Pareau, and Muurling. Its organ was _Truth in Charity_. The views held were a spiritual Arianism. They may be seen in a novel published recently (1861) at Cape Town, for the Dutch colonists, ent.i.tled, _The Pastor of Vliethuizen, or Conversations about the Groningen School_, translated by Dr. Lorgian.

These three parties were the chief in Holland, until about 1850. Since then a more decided movement of free thought has begun in the university of Leyden. Up to that time the venerable Van Hengel remained there, the example of the old philological orthodoxy of Holland. Two professors have now created an independent movement, more nearly resembling that of the Tubingen school; J. H. Scholten, in dogma; and, with rather more advanced views, the orientalist H. Kuenen in philology. (A list of some of Scholten's publications may be seen in the _Westminster Review_ for July, 1862, page 43, note. His _Hist. comparee de la Philos. et de la Relig._ was translated by Reville, in the _Nouvelle Rev. de la Theologie_, April 18.) Busker Huet has a.s.serted still more advanced views than these, apparently simple naturalism. The Positivist philosophy has found an advocate in Opzoomer, one of the professors at Utrecht.

The sources of this account are chiefly found in Ullmann's paper in the _Studien und Kritiken_, 1840, part iii. translated by professor Edwards, with additions, in the American _Bibliotheca Sacra_ for 1845; and in an interesting article by A. Reville of Rotterdam, himself one of the liberal school of the French protestant church, in the _Revue des Deux Mondes_ for June 15, 1860. Chautepie de la Saussure, pastor of the Walloon church at Leyden, formerly of the Groningen school, has also written in French, _La Crise Religieuse en Hollande_, 1859; but it is chiefly devoted to personal questions. A sketch of the Dutch universities and their intellectual characteristics was given by Esquiros in the _Revue des Deux Mondes_, 1856, vol. iii.

Note 44. p. 297. The Eclectic School Of France.

The Eclectic School is sketched in Morell's _History of Philosophy_, vol.

ii. c. viii; Damiron's _Essai sur l'Histoire de la Philosophie en France au 19eme siecle_, 1828, pp. 280-385: Nettement's _Histoire de la Litt.

Franc. sous la Restoration_, 1853, vol. i. b. ii. p. 127 seq.; vol. ii. b.

viii. p. 290 seq.; and _Hist. de la Litt. Franc. sous le Gouvernement de Juillet_, vol. i. b. vi: also in Taine's _Philosophie Francaise du 19eme siecle_. The last writer is wholly unfavourable to the school, on the ground of the uselessness of metaphysical philosophy.

The eclectic school was the means of uniting together the philosophy of Scotland and Germany, which had previously been running in separate streams. The leading minds of the school have been four,-Royer Collard, Maine de Biran, Cousin, and Jouffroy.

The founder of it, R. Collard (1763-1845), was a disciple of the Scotch school, who about 1812 commenced an attack on the philosophy of Condillac, very similar to that of Reid on Hume. He devoted himself to the a.n.a.lysis of the intellectual and moral parts of men, in order to a.s.sert the existence of a world within, independent of sensational impressions. The next writer, Maine de Biran (1766-1824), devoted himself especially to the examination of the will and the notion of cause, and reproduced the ideas of Leibnitz. The third, Cousin (born 1792), succeeded Collard in 1815 as professor at Paris; and in his early lectures followed the Scotch school.

When the conservative reaction occurred in 1822, consequent on the a.s.sa.s.sination of the duke de Berri, the const.i.tutional party was thrown into disgrace; and Cousin therefore retired into Germany, and there imbibed the spirit of the great schools of philosophy, especially of Sch.e.l.ling and Jacobi. He has given, his own history in the preface to _Fragments Philosophiques_, vol. ii. Lastly came Jouffroy, the translator of Dugald Stewart, who improved upon the Scotch school. See Sainte-Beuve's criticism on Jouffroy. (_Crit. Litt._ vol. i.)

Damiron was an admirable exponent of the eclectic school; Benjamin Constant, Degerando, and Lerminier, partially belonged to the same school.

Its effects are ably stated in Morell. The delicate hand of E. Renan also has sketched the influence of _Cousin et L'ecole Spiritualiste_, in the _Revue des Deux Monds_, April. 1858; reprinted in his _Essais de Morale et de Critique_.

Note 45. p. 300. The Catholic Reactionary School Of France.

Concerning this school, see Morell's _History of Philosophy_, vol. ii. pp.

274-318; Damiron (as in the last note), pp. 105-197; Nettement (second work), vol. i. b. v.

The members of this school all agree in reposing upon the principle of _authority_; but differ in the source in which they place it. Their philosophy accordingly does not aim at discovering truth, but only the authority on which we may rely as the oracle of truth.

The founder of the movement was De Maistre (1753-1821), the bitter opponent of the Baconian philosophy, whose doctrine, about the time of his death, was absolute submission to the catholic church. See concerning him C. Remusat in the _Revue des Deux Mondes_, May 1857; and E. Scherer's _Melanges de la Critique Religieuse_. Lamennais belonged to the same movement. In his early manner, as expressed in his _Essai sur l'Indifference_, 1821, he found the test of truth in primitive revelations transmitted by testimony; in his later, he abandoned this school, and strove to work out philosophy, in part independently of authority. The next writer, De Bonald, sought for truth in the same source, viz.

fragments of divinely communicated knowledge, transmitted in the languages of mankind. On Bonald see C. Remusat (_Revue_, as quoted above). The Abbe Bautain improved upon this system by placing the ground of cert.i.tude in the authority of Revelation, and considered the office of philosophy to end when it has shown the necessity of a revelation. Next to him came D'Eckstein, who sought the test of truth in authority based on researches into the catholic beliefs of mankind. The two latter views, it will be perceived, are far n.o.bler than the former. Maret, whose writings have been before cited, also belongs to this reactionary school.