Festwerden Im Glauben an Christum : Eduard Böhl's (1836-1903) Proposal for a Re-Emergence of Reformation Thought

Nineteenth-century continental theology is usually associated with the classic liberal Protestantism of Schleiermacher and Ritschl. On the other side of the theological divide there was the Dutch Neo-Calvinist school, a sharp reaction to liberalism. Yet the theological realm of that era also included the Kohlbruuml;gge school, which founded its theological method upon the "Older Testament" and re-read and applied the documents of the Reformation for its time. The most important representative of this school is Eduard Bouml;hl (18361903), who advocated a return to Reformed doctrine and church order and a strong Christological reading of the Old Testament. He also rejected historical criticism, for which he was subjected to censure. Moving into the field of systematics, Bouml;hl suggested a new reading of "the image of God." His peculiar understanding of the imago Dei was also his biggest contribution to theological anthropology; this in turn influenced his views on Christology and salvation. Although Bouml;hl saw himself as a Reformed theologian, he would cross swords with those who claimed the same for themselves. Bouml;hl especially valued the teachings of Martin Luther, whom he held as a better exegete than the Genevan Reformer. Bouml;hl's theology is best captured as Reformation theology within the context of the Kohlbruuml;gge school. Although the names of Luther and Calvin are well known in church history, and to a lesser degree, so is Kohlbruuml;gge's, Bouml;hl's is not. This historico-theological account of Bouml;hl's life and work sheds some rare but much-needed shafts of light on a theologian who has wrongfully fallen into oblivion.