Edmund Schlink
Encyclopedia
Edmund Schlink was a leading German Lutheran theologian in the modern ecumenical movement, especially in the World Council of Churches
. Because his career began at the time of Hitler's rise to power in Germany, Schlink’s life, theology, and witness to Christ were shaped by what he called, "Grace in God’s judgment". He is also the father of writer Bernhard Schlink
.
Schlink completed two doctorates, the first in psychiatry
at Marburg
in 1927, the second in theology under Karl Barth
at Münster
in 1934. He also completed the usual training for the parish ministry at Friedberg Seminary in 1934, but then, in the fall, began teaching at the University of Giessen
, near Frankfurt
. Schlink also was active in the Confessing Church
movement at this time and, not unlike Karl Barth, he publicly criticized church leaders who allowed pagan Nazi religious ideas in the church. As a result he was arrested by the police in 1934, interrogated, released, but then denied government approval to teach at a university. For a few years he taught at Bethel Theological School, until it was closed by the Nazis, and then served as a pastor in congregations until the end of the Second World War in 1945.
During those war years, under Nazi oppression, Schlink began to see clearly the work of the risen Christ in the lives of faithful Christians in diverse churches other than his own. This transforming insight remained central in his subsequent work. After the war he was called to the Theological Faculty of the University of Heidelberg, where he lectured in systematics, with special interest in ecumenical issues. He created the Ecumenical Institute there, the first at a German university. At his urging the university called its first Professor of World Religions and Missions. He was an editor for new theological journals, like the Ecumenical Review and Kerygma und Dogma.
Schlink also published a novella, Die Vision des Papstes 1975 (The Vision of the Pope 2001), about the personal experience of an imagined modern Roman Catholic pope, who underwent a deepening of his faith and a change in his understanding of the church and his ministry.
World Council of Churches
The World Council of Churches is a worldwide fellowship of 349 global, regional and sub-regional, national and local churches seeking unity, a common witness and Christian service. It is a Christian ecumenical organization that is based in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland...
. Because his career began at the time of Hitler's rise to power in Germany, Schlink’s life, theology, and witness to Christ were shaped by what he called, "Grace in God’s judgment". He is also the father of writer Bernhard Schlink
Bernhard Schlink
Bernhard Schlink is a German jurist and writer. He was born in Bethel, Germany, to a German father and a Swiss mother, the youngest of four children. Both his parents were theology students, although his father lost his job as a Professor of Theology due to the Nazis, and had to settle on being a...
.
Schlink completed two doctorates, the first in psychiatry
Psychiatry
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
at Marburg
Marburg
Marburg is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany, on the River Lahn. It is the main town of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district and its population, as of March 2010, was 79,911.- Founding and early history :...
in 1927, the second in theology under Karl Barth
Karl Barth
Karl Barth was a Swiss Reformed theologian whom critics hold to be among the most important Christian thinkers of the 20th century; Pope Pius XII described him as the most important theologian since Thomas Aquinas...
at Münster
Münster
Münster is an independent city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also capital of the local government region Münsterland...
in 1934. He also completed the usual training for the parish ministry at Friedberg Seminary in 1934, but then, in the fall, began teaching at the University of Giessen
University of Giessen
The University of Giessen is officially called the Justus Liebig University Giessen after its most famous faculty member, Justus von Liebig, the founder of modern agricultural chemistry and inventor of artificial fertiliser.-History:The University of Gießen is among the oldest institutions of...
, near Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
. Schlink also was active in the Confessing Church
Confessing Church
The Confessing Church was a Protestant schismatic church in Nazi Germany that arose in opposition to government-sponsored efforts to nazify the German Protestant church.-Demographics:...
movement at this time and, not unlike Karl Barth, he publicly criticized church leaders who allowed pagan Nazi religious ideas in the church. As a result he was arrested by the police in 1934, interrogated, released, but then denied government approval to teach at a university. For a few years he taught at Bethel Theological School, until it was closed by the Nazis, and then served as a pastor in congregations until the end of the Second World War in 1945.
During those war years, under Nazi oppression, Schlink began to see clearly the work of the risen Christ in the lives of faithful Christians in diverse churches other than his own. This transforming insight remained central in his subsequent work. After the war he was called to the Theological Faculty of the University of Heidelberg, where he lectured in systematics, with special interest in ecumenical issues. He created the Ecumenical Institute there, the first at a German university. At his urging the university called its first Professor of World Religions and Missions. He was an editor for new theological journals, like the Ecumenical Review and Kerygma und Dogma.
The Ecumenical Dogmatics
From this work came, at various stages, a long list of articles and books. The most important is his Ökumenische Dogmatik 1983, second edition 1997. A unique work, it presents Schlink’s scholarly reflections on Christian dogmatics in a clear systematic format, with considerable sensitivity for teachings common to the Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Protestant churches, and shows a way forward in the manifestation of church unity through "mutual recognition." In the ÖD he repeatedly states, “All churches teach....” This type of dogmatics is new. It grew out of his wartime experience of Christ in other Christians and in diverse churches, and out of decades of dialogue within the World Council of Churches and with representatives of the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches.Schlink also published a novella, Die Vision des Papstes 1975 (The Vision of the Pope 2001), about the personal experience of an imagined modern Roman Catholic pope, who underwent a deepening of his faith and a change in his understanding of the church and his ministry.
Books in English
- The Victor Speaks, English 1958, a collection of wartime Lenten sermons;
- Theology of the Lutheran Confessions, English 1961, reprinted six times;
- The Coming Christ and the Coming Church, English 1967, an anthology of key articles related to his work in the World Council of Churches;
- After the Council, English 1968, reflections on the Second Vatican Council as an official observer;
- The Doctrine of Baptism, English 1972, based on a historical-critical reading of the New Testament texts, it examines the doctrine as held by all churches.
- The Vision of the Pope, English 2001