Ernst Harald Riesenfeld (8 February 1913 – 9 July 2008) was a Swedish theologian and Bible scholar, best known for his

exegesis Exegesis ( ; from the Ancient Greek, Greek , from , "to lead out") is a critical explanation or interpretation (logic), interpretation of a text. The term is traditionally applied to the interpretation of Bible, Biblical works. In modern usage, ...

of the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

Biography

Riesenfeld was born in

Freiburg im Breisgau Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population o ...

, Germany, to Ernst Riesenfeld and Johanna (Hanna) née Johansson; his family moved back to Sweden when he was a child. He later studied at

Uppsala University Uppsala University ( sv, Uppsala universitet) is a public university, public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the List of universities in Sweden, oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in opera ...

and after receiving his master's degree in philosophy began to study theology. From 1942 to 1945, he was head of the

Uppsala Student Union Uppsala Student Union (''Uppsala studentkår'') is one of four students' unions at Uppsala University in Uppsala, Sweden. According to Swedish law, university students are no longer required to be members of a students' union since 2010. Uppsal ...

. After receiving his doctorate in 1947, he became a

docent The title of docent is conferred by some European universities to denote a specific academic appointment within a set structure of academic ranks at or below the full professor rank, similar to a British readership, a French " ''maître de conf ...

in New Testament exegesis with his dissertation . He then began to preach in Loka, Örebro County. He reached the rank of captain in the I 13 Dalarna Regiment in 1952 after having been made an officer in 1941. In 1953, Riesenfeld became professor of New Testament exegesis at Uppsala University, a post he held until 1979. From 1955 to 1959 he was dean of the faculty of theology there, and in 1979 became acting professor of exegesis at the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Wü ...

. From 1972 to 1981, he served on the committee for the Swedish translation of the Bible and participated as an expert in the 1981 Swedish translation of the New Testament ('), which has been incorporated into the newer . In addition to his permanent positions, Riesenfeld has also held several other positions, including first vice-president of Sveriges scoutförbund (1954–1956). He was a member of several international research societies, and received an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...

in theology from the

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

in 1959, and later from the

University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

. He was a member of the

Royal Society of Arts and Sciences of Uppsala The Royal Society of Arts and Sciences of Uppsala ( sv, Kungliga Vetenskapssamhället i Uppsala), is a Swedish royal academy in Uppsala Uppsala (, or all ending in , ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the county seat of Uppsala County and the ...

Royal Society of the Humanities at Uppsala The Royal Society of the Humanities at Uppsala ( sv, Kungl. Humanistiska Vetenskaps-Samfundet i Uppsala) is a Swedish Royal academy for the study of the humanities. Founding The society was founded in 1889 by a donation from tannery factory owner ...

Nathan Söderblom Lars Olof Jonathan Söderblom (; 15 January 1866 – 12 July 1931) was a Swedish clergyman. He was the Church of Sweden Archbishop of Uppsala between 1914 and 1931, and recipient of the 1930 Nobel Peace Prize. He is commemorated in the Calen ...

Society,

Royal Society of Sciences in Uppsala The Royal Society of Sciences in Uppsala ( sv, Kungliga Vetenskaps-Societeten i Uppsala), is the oldest of the royal academies in Sweden, having been founded in 1710. The society has, by royal decree of 1906, 50 Swedish fellows and 100 foreign. ...

Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters The Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters ( da, Det Kongelige Norske Videnskabers Selskab, DKNVS) is a Norwegian learned society based in Trondheim. It was founded in 1760 and is Norway's oldest scientific and scholarly institution. The s ...

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

, and a corresponding member of the

British Academy The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars span ...

. In 1968–1969 he was president of Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas, an international society of New Testament scholars. Riesenfeld was made an honorary member of the student association in 1961 and was ''

inspektor Inspektor or inspehtori, Swedish and Finnish for inspector, is the largely honorary chairman of student nations in Lund and Uppsala universities in Sweden and University of Helsinki in Finland. The inspektor has a supervisory role in their nat ...

'' of the Västmanlands-Dala student nation from 1966 to 1981. As a result of developments in the

Church of Sweden The Church of Sweden ( sv, Svenska kyrkan) is an Evangelical Lutheran national church in Sweden. A former state church, headquartered in Uppsala, with around 5.6 million members at year end 2021, it is the largest Christian denomination in Sw ...

beginning in the 1950s, Riesenfeld converted to

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

in 1984. In 1944, he married the librarian of Uppsala University Library, Blenda Hedin (1913–2008), daughter of professor

Sven Gustaf Hedin Sven Gustaf Hedin (6 October 1859 – 11 July 1933) was a Swedes, Swedish chemist and physiologist credited with the discovery of histidine. He was born in Alseda parish, Jönköping County. He began his studies in 1878 and received his bachelor' ...

and Gunhild Sanne. He was the nephew of physiology professor and geologist . Riesenfeld died in Uppsala, Sweden, in 2008 and is buried in Bjursås, Dalarna.

References

Notes

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Riesenfeld, Harald 1913 births 2008 deaths Swedish theologians Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters Corresponding Fellows of the British Academy Members of the Royal Society of Sciences in Uppsala Swedish Roman Catholics