Wilhelm Gass (November 28, 1813 – February 21, 1889) was a German theologian born in Breslau. He was the son of theologian Joachim Christian Gass (1766–1831). He received his education in Breslau, Halle and

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 as a student was influenced by the teachings of

August Neander Johann August Wilhelm Neander (17 January 178914 July 1850) was a German theologian and church historian. Biography Neander was born at Göttingen as David Mendel. His father, Emmanuel Mendel, is said to have been a Jewish peddler, but August ...

(1789–1850). In 1846 he became an associate professor at the

University of Breslau 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 ...

, and during the following year relocated to

Greifswald Greifswald (), officially the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald (german: Universitäts- und Hansestadt Greifswald, Low German: ''Griepswoold'') is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rosto ...

, where in 1855 he achieved the title of ''professor ordinarius''. In 1862 he was appointed professor of

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 topic ...

at the

University of Giessen University of Giessen, official name Justus Liebig University Giessen (german: Justus-Liebig-Universität Gießen), is a large public research university in Giessen, Hesse, Germany. It is named after its most famous faculty member, Justus von ...

, and in 1868 moved to

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

as a successor to

Richard Rothe Richard Rothe (28 January 1799 – 20 August 1867) was a German Lutheran theologian. Biography Richard Rothe was born at Posen, then part of Prussia. He studied theology in the universities of Heidelberg and Berlin (1817–20) under Karl Daub, ...

(1799–1867). He died in 1889 in Heidelberg His theological work largely dealt with the history of Protestant dogmatics, studies of the

Greek Orthodox Church The term Greek Orthodox Church ( Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also cal ...

during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

and the history of Christian ethics. Among his more important written works was the four-volume ''Geschichte der Lutherischen Dogmatik'' (History of

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 ...

Dogmatics 1854-67), and an 1846 book on Georgius Calixtus and syncretism called ''Georg Calixt und der Synkretismus''. Other noted works by Wilhelm Gass include: * ''Beiträge zur kirchlichen Litteratur und Dogmengeschichte des griechischen Mittelalters'' (1844–49, 2 volumes) * ''Zur Geschichte der Athosklöster'' (1865) * ''Die Lehre vom Gewissen'' (1869) * ''Symbolik der griechischen Kirche'' (1872) * ''Optimismus und Pessimismus. Der Gang der christlichen Welt- und Lebensansicht'' (1876) * ''Geschichte der Ethik'' (1881, volume 1)

References

*
English translation

translated biography @

Meyers Konversations-Lexikon ' or ' was a major encyclopedia in the German language that existed in various editions, and by several titles, from 1839 to 1984, when it merged with the '. Joseph Meyer (1796–1856), who had founded the publishing house in 1826, intended t ...

External links

* German Lutheran theologians Writers from Wrocław Academic staff of the University of Giessen Academic staff of Heidelberg University Academic staff of the University of Greifswald 1813 births 1889 deaths People from the Province of Silesia 19th-century German Protestant theologians 19th-century German male writers German male non-fiction writers 19th-century Lutherans {{Germany-reli-bio-stub