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Work #1032 · Mature

The Christian Faith

Friedrich Schleiermacher
1821-22 (first edition); substantially revised 1830-31 (second edition, the standard form) · German
Systematic dogmatic theology · Liberal Protestant theology

The founding modern Protestant systematic theology — Schleiermacher's reconstruction of Christian doctrine on the basis of religious self-consciousness

Attribute Fingerprint

Rows where works disagree are highlighted in gold. The full ontology grid is shown.

Attribute The Christian Faith (Mature)
Time · Extent Infinite
Time · Ontological Status Substantival
Time · Grain Continuous
Time · Freedom Non-Deterministic
Time · Traversability Linear
Time · Dimensionality One
Time · Direction Uni-directional
Space · Extent Infinite
Space · Ontological Status Substantival
Space · Curvature Flat
Space · Dimensionality Three
Space · Locality Local
Matter · Extent Infinite
Matter · Ontological Status Substantival
Matter · Conservation Conserved
Matter · Dimensionality Three
Matter · Locality Local
Observer · Time Instance Single
Observer · Space Instance Single
Observer · Knowledge Extent Partial
Observer · Knowledge Retainment Total
Observer · Physicality Embodied
Observer · Agency Both
Observer · Number Plural
Observer · Metaphysical Agency Personal
Observer · Moral Authority Experience
Observer · Theological Method
Energy · Extent Infinite
Energy · Ontological Status Substantival
Energy · Conservation Conserved
Energy · Dispersibility Irreversible
Information · Ontological Status Substantival
Information · Cosmic Conservation Conserved
Information · Personal Conservation Conserved
Information · Granularity Continuous

Dimension-by-Dimension Evidence

What each work's passages reveal about its stance on each of the six dimensions.

Time

The Christian Faith

The historical-developmental time of Christian doctrine; the present time of the Christian community whose self-consciousness the theology articulates.

Space

The Christian Faith

The Berlin academic-ecclesial space where Schleiermacher taught; the broader Protestant world the work shaped.

Matter

The Christian Faith

The embodied Christian community; the institutional church.

Observer

The Christian Faith

The Christian believer whose religious self-consciousness is the data; the theologian who systematises it.

Energy

The Christian Faith

The religious-spiritual energies of the Christian community; the intellectual energies of systematic theology.

Information

The Christian Faith

The Christian doctrines as systematic articulation of religious self-consciousness.

Internal Tensions

Where each work's argument pulls against itself.

The Christian Faith

Karl Barth's 1922 Romans commentary and subsequent dialectical theology defined themselves substantially in opposition to Schleiermacher's "feeling of absolute dependence" framework; the Schleiermacher-Barth debate has organised modern Protestant theology for a century. Recent rehabilitations (Gerrish, Williams, Mariña) have substantially restored Schleiermacher's standing.