Harnack, THEODSIUS

Harnack, THEODSIUS, a Lutheran theologian, was born at St Petersburg in 1817, and studied at Dorpat, where he was professor of Theology from 1848 to 1853, next till 1866 at Erlangen, and again at Dorpat till his retirement in 1873. He died in 1889. His principal works are his Praktische Theologie (3 vols. 1877-82) and Katechetik und Erklärung des kleinen Katechismus Luthers (2 vols. 1882).—Of his sons, all of whom have attained to some distinction, the most famous is ADOLF, who was born 7th May 1851 at Dorpat, where he studied from 1869 to 1872. He was appointed privat-docent for church history at Leipzig (1874), extra-ordinary professor there (1876), and ordinary professor successively at Giessen (1879), Marburg (1886), and Berlin (1888). His chief writings are Zur Quellenkritik der Geschichte des Gnostizismus (Leip. 1873); Die Zeit des Ignatius und die chronologie der antiochensischen Bischöfe (Leip. 1878); Das Mönchtum, seine Ideale und Geschichte (2d ed. Giessen, 1882); Lehrbuch der Dogmengeschichte (3 vols. 1886-90; Eng. trans. 1894-97); Die Geschichte der altchristlichen Litteratur (vol. i. 1893). The Outlines of the History of Dogma (trans. 1893) is a translation of the Grundriss (2d ed. 1893). Prussian orthodoxy was greatly scandalised by his treatment of the Apostles' Creed in Das Apostolische Glaubensbekenntnis (1892), and agitated for his removal from his post. In conjunction with Von Gebhardt and Zahn he edited the Patrum apostolicorum opera (3 parts, Leip. 1876-78); and with Von Gebhardt alone the Texte und Untersuchungen zur Geschichte der altchristlichen litteratur (12 vols. 1882-94). He was also joint-editor of the Theologische Litteraturzeitung established by Schürer (1876).—AXEL, Adolf's twin-brother, who died in 1888, was a distinguished mathematician, and wrote on the calculus; ERICH, another brother, became a professor of Physiology at Halle; and a fourth, OTTO, wrote on Goethe.