Gisle Christian Johnson (10 September 1822 – 17 July 1894) was a leading 19th-century Norwegian

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the s ...

and educator.

Biography

Gisle Christian Johnson was born at Fredrikshald (now Halden) in Østfold, Norway. He grew up at Kristiansand in Vest-Agder. He was a son of engineer and architect Georg Daniel Barth Johnson (1794-1872). He studied theology at the

University of Christiania The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

(now University of Oslo) and graduated in 1845. In 1849 he became a lecturer at the University of Christiania, and in 1860 a

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

, first in

systematic theology Systematic theology, or systematics, is a discipline of Christian theology that formulates an orderly, rational, and coherent account of the doctrines of the Christian faith. It addresses issues such as what the Bible teaches about certain topi ...

and Dogmatic theology and from 1875 in

church history __NOTOC__ Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritual ...

. In 1855, he founded the Christiania Inner Mission Society (''Christiania Indremissionsforening''), in 1863 the Lutheran Church Official Journal (''Luthersk Kirketidende'') and in 1867 the Norwegian Luther Foundation (''Den norske Lutherstiftelse''). In 1858 he established, together with

Carl Paul Caspari Carl Paul Caspari (8 February 1814 – 11 April 1892) was a Norwegian neo-Lutheran theologian and academic. He was a Professor of Old Testament Theology at the University of Oslo. He wrote several books and is best known for his interpretations ...

, an annual publication entitled ''Theologisk Tidskrift for den evangelisk-lutherske Kirke i Norge'' which he edited until 1891. Religiously he followed strict

Confessional Lutheranism Confessional Lutheranism is a name used by Lutherans to designate those who believe in the doctrines taught in the ''Book of Concord'' of 1580 (the Lutheran confessional documents) in their entirety. Confessional Lutherans maintain that faithfulne ...

. During a revival which went across Norway during the 1850s, he reflected the pietistic and ecclesial tradition of

Hans Nielsen Hauge Hans Nielsen Hauge (3 April 1771 – 29 March 1824) was a 19th-century Norwegian Lutheran lay minister, spiritual leader, business entrepreneur, social reformer and author. He led a noted Pietism revival known as the Haugean movement. Hauge is also ...

. Johnson emphasized a theology that was both based on the experience of faith and grounded in

Lutheran orthodoxy Lutheran orthodoxy was an era in the history of Lutheranism, which began in 1580 from the writing of the ''Book of Concord'' and ended at the Age of Enlightenment. Lutheran orthodoxy was paralleled by similar eras in Calvinism and tridentine R ...

. He was a member of the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters from 1858. He was appointed a Knight in the Order of St. Olav in 1866 and made a Commander 1st class in 1882. In 1879, he was conferred an honorary doctorate by the

University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in ...

. He died during 1894 at Nøtterøy in Vestfold, Norway. Both Gisle Johnsons plass in the district of Grünerløkka in Oslo and Gisle Johnsons gate in Trondheim were named in his honor.

Works

* ''Grundrids af Den systematiske teologi'' (''Foundations of the systematic theology'') (1878) * ''Forelæsninger over dogmehistorien'' (''Lectures in dogmatic history'') (1898)

References

1822 births 1894 deaths Clergy from Kristiansand University of Oslo alumni Academic staff of the University of Oslo Norwegian Lutheran theologians 19th-century Norwegian Lutheran clergy Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters Recipients of the St. Olav's Medal Burials at the Cemetery of Our Saviour {{Norway-academic-bio-stub

Biography

Works

See also

References