Karl Barth

68
Karl Barth bigraphy, stories - Swiss Reformed theologian

Karl Barth : biography

May 10, 1886 – December 10, 1968

Karl Barth ( – ) was a Swiss Reformed theologian. Barth is often regarded as the greatest Protestant theologian of the twentieth century. His influence expanded well beyond the academic realm to mainstream culture, leading him to be featured on the cover of Time on April 20, 1962.. TIME (May 31, 1963). Retrieved on 2012-07-15.

Beginning with his experience as a pastor, Barth rejected his training in the predominant liberal theology typical of 19th-century European Protestantism.Ian Barbour (1966), Issues in Science and Religion, Prentice-Hall pp. 116–119, 229, 292, 422–25, 456, 459http://lib.tcu.edu/staff/bellinger/60003/lecture_on_barth2009.htm Instead he embarked on a new theological path initially called dialectical theology, due to its stress on the paradoxical nature of divine truth (e.g., God’s relationship to humanity embodies both grace and judgment). Barth’s unease with the dominant theology which characterized Europe led him to become a leader in the Confessing Church in Germany, which actively opposed Adolf Hitler and the Nazi regime.http://www.christianitytoday.com/ch/131christians/theologians/barth.html?start=2 In particular, Barth and other members of the movement vigorously attempted to prevent the Nazis from taking over the existing church and establishing a state church controlled by the regime. This culminated in Barth’s authorship of the Barmen Declaration, which fiercely criticized Christians who supported the Nazis.http://www.ucc.org/beliefs/barmen-declaration.html

Many critics have referred to Barth as the father of neo-orthodoxy — a term emphatically rejected by Barth himself.Church Dogmatics III/3, xii. The most accurate description of his work might be "a theology of the Word." Barth’s work had a profound impact on twentieth century theology and figures such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer — who like Barth became a leader in the Confessing Church, Thomas Torrance, Reinhold Niebuhr, Jacques Ellul, Stanley Hauerwas, Jurgen Moltmann, and novelists such as John Updike and Miklós Szentkuthy.

Both the most prolific and influential theologian of the twentieth century, his theological thought emphasized the sovereignty of God, particularly through his reinterpretation of the Calvinistic doctrine of election, the sinfulness of humanity, and the "infinite qualitative distinction between God and mankind". His most famous works are his The Epistle to the Romans, which marked a clear break from his earlier thinking; and his massive thirteen-volume work Church Dogmatics, one of the largest works of systematic theology ever written.. People.bu.edu. Retrieved on 2012-07-15.

Influence on Christian Ethics

Among many other areas, Barth has also had a profound influence on modern Christian ethics.Matthew J. Aragon-Bruce. (book review) Princeton Seminary Library. Retrieved on 2012-07-15.. Oup.com. Retrieved on 2012-07-15. He has influenced the work of ethicists such as Stanley Hauerwas, John Howard Yoder, Jacques Ellul and Oliver O’Donovan.. www.kevintaylor.me (April 7, 2011). Retrieved on 2012-07-15.Choi Lim Ming, Andrew (2003). . wordpress.com

In literature

In John Updike’s Roger’s Version, Roger Lambert is a professor of religion. Lambert is influenced by the works of Karl Barth. That is the primary reason that he rejects his student’s attempt to use computational methods to understand God.

Harry Mulisch’s The Discovery of Heaven makes mentions of Barth’s Church Dogmatics, as does David Markson’s The Last Novel. In the case of Mulisch and Markson, it is the ambitious nature of the Church Dogmatics that seems to be of significance. In the case of Updike, it is the emphasis on the idea of God as "Wholly Other" that is emphasized.

In Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead, the preacher John Ames reveres Barth’s "Epistle to the Romans" and refers to it as his favorite book other than the Bible.

Whittaker Chambers cites Barth in nearly all his books: Witness (p. 507), Cold Friday (p. 194), and Odyssey of a Friend (pp. 201, 231).