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Hermann Otto Erich Sasse (17 July 1895 – 9 August 1976) was a German
Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
pastor, theologian, and author. He was considered one of the foremost
confessional Lutheran 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 ...
theologians of the 20th century. Sasses was born on 17 July 1895 in Sonnewalde,
Lower Lusatia Lower Lusatia (; ; ; szl, Dolnŏ Łużyca; ; ) is a historical region in Central Europe, stretching from the southeast of the German state of Brandenburg to the southwest of Lubusz Voivodeship in Poland. Like adjacent Upper Lusatia in the sou ...
,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, to Hermann Sasse, a pharmacist, and his wife Maria, née Berger. In 1913, he began reading theology and ancient
philology Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources; it is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics (with especially strong ties to etymology). Philology is also defined as th ...
at the
University of Berlin Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative ...
. He was a German infantryman in
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, in which he was one of only six men in his battalion to survive the
trench warfare Trench warfare is a type of land warfare using occupied lines largely comprising military trenches, in which troops are well-protected from the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery. Trench warfare became ar ...
in
Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...
. Sasse began his career under the influence of the theological liberalism of his teachers, such as
Adolf Harnack Carl Gustav Adolf von Harnack (born Harnack; 7 May 1851 – 10 June 1930) was a Baltic German Lutheran theologian and prominent Church historian. He produced many religious publications from 1873 to 1912 (in which he is sometimes credited ...
. He was ordained on 13 June 1920 in St Matthew's Church in
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
and thereafter served several parishes in
Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 sq ...
, He took the licentiate in theology in 1923. He spent a year (1925-1926) as an exchange student at
Hartford Theological Seminary The Hartford International University for Religion and Peace (formerly Hartford Seminary) is a private theological university in Hartford, Connecticut. History Hartford Seminary's origins date back to 1833 when the Pastoral Union of Connectic ...
in the United States, where he earned a master's degree. Sasse returned to Germany to take up a teaching position at
University of Erlangen A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
. He married Charlotte Margarete Naumann on 11 September 1928 at St. Nicolai's Church in
Oranienburg Oranienburg () is a town in Brandenburg, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Oberhavel. Geography Oranienburg is a town located on the banks of the Havel river, 35 km north of the centre of Berlin. Division of the town Oranienburg ...
, Germany. They had three children together. During the Depression, he was a (pastor with social duties) among factory workers in Berlin. During this period, he became an active participant in the ecumenical movement. He attended the first world conference of the
Faith and Order Movement The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most j ...
in
Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR ...
, Switzerland in 1927 as a delegate and translator. He also attended the Conference for the Reduction and Limitation of Armaments in
Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...
in 1932. In the early 1930s, he emerged as a vocal critic of the
Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...
and Germany's new chancellor,
Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
, as part of the Confessing Church Movement led by
Martin Niemöller Friedrich Gustav Emil Martin Niemöller (; 14 January 18926 March 1984) was a German theologian and Lutheran pastor. He is best known for his opposition to the Nazi regime during the late 1930s and for his widely quoted 1946 poem " First they ca ...
. While he did not sign the 1934
Barmen Declaration __NOTOC__ The Barmen Declaration or the Theological Declaration of Barmen 1934 (German: ''Die Barmer Theologische Erklärung'') was a document adopted by Christians in Nazi Germany who opposed the German Christian movement. In the view of the de ...
, he did author, with
Dietrich Bonhoeffer Dietrich Bonhoeffer (; 4 February 1906 – 9 April 1945) was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian and anti-Nazi dissident who was a key founding member of the Confessing Church. His writings on Christianity's role in the secular world have ...
and others, the first draft of the lesser known Bethel Confession of 1933, which addressed the treatment of Jews. However, he left the Confessing Church in 1934 because he believed it was improperly taking church authority for itself. In 1933, he became a professor of church history at the
University of Erlangen A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
in
Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
. The Nazi government took away his passport in 1935, but he was able to continue working throughout the Nazi era because he was a popular lecturer and the dean of the faculty was able to protect him. In 1948, he opposed the formation of the
Evangelical Church in Germany The Evangelical Church in Germany (german: Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland, abbreviated EKD) is a federation of twenty Lutheran, Reformed (Calvinist) and United (e.g. Prussian Union) Protestant regional churches and denominations in German ...
, in part because he distrusted state-supported university faculties of theology. As a result, he joined the Lutheran Free Church. In 1949, Sasse emigrated to
Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
, South Australia, where he served on the faculty of Immanuel Seminary of the United Evangelical Lutheran Church of Australia. He was heavily involved the effort merging that body with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Australia to create the
Lutheran Church of Australia The Lutheran Church of Australia (LCA) is the major Lutheran denomination in Australia and New Zealand. It counts 540 congregations and 30,026 members according to official statistics. It was created from a merger of the Evangelical Lutheran Chu ...
in 1966. Sasse remained involved in Lutheranism throughout the world. He was known in the United States as "Mr. Lutheran" and regularly corresponded with Lutheran leaders there and elsewhere. A noted conservative voice in Lutheranism, his theological research focused on Scripture as Word of God and on the
Eucharist The Eucharist (; from Greek , , ), also known as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was instit ...
. He was involved with the Australian Roman Catholic-Lutheran dialogue from its beginnings. Sasse retired from teaching in 1969. The
Federal Republic of Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated between ...
appointed him to the Order of Merit. He died in a fire at his home in North Adelaide on 9 August 1976 and was buried in Centennial Park Cemetery.


Selected bibliography

Sasse published 479 works during his lifetime. Some of the more notable ones are: * ''This Is My Body: Luther's Contention for the Real Presence in the Sacrament of the Altar.'' (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2001) * ''The Lonely Way: Selected Essays and Letters of Hermann Sasse: 1941-1976'' (Concordia Publishing House, 2003) * ''The Lonely Way: Selected Essays and Letters of Hermann Sasse: 1927-1939'' (Concordia Publishing House, 2002) * ''Christ and His Church: Essays by Hermann Sasse: Vol. 1, Union and Confession'' (Office of the President LCMS 1997)


References

* Werner Klän (Hg.): ''Der Theologe Hermann Sasse (1895–1976). Einblicke in seine internationale Wirkung als Exeget, Kirchenhistoriker, Systematiker und Ökumeniker'', Oberurseler Hefte Ergänzungsband 24, Göttingen 2020,


External links


Hermann Sasse and the Liturgical Movement
by John T. Pless

(Confessional Lutherans Australia)

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20071020080652/http://messiahkenosha.org/beliefs/sasse.htm Church and Lord's Supper by Hermann Sasse
We Are Not Ashamed of Their Ardent Struggle by Hermann Sasse
* *
History and content of the 1933 Bethel Confession
1895 births 1976 deaths People from Elbe-Elster People from the Province of Brandenburg German Lutheran theologians German emigrants to Australia Australian Lutheran clergy Australian Christian theologians 20th-century German Protestant theologians German male non-fiction writers Hartford Seminary alumni Officers Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany {{Lutheran-stub