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What is Christianity?
"Harnack's book is a theological-historical document of the greatest importance."
--Rudolf Bultmann
--Rudolf Bultmann
320 pages, Paperback
First published November 30, 1899
23 people are currently reading
165 people want to read
About the author
Adolf von Harnack
825 books12 followersCarl Gustav Adolf von Harnack (7 May 1851 – 10 June 1930) was a German Lutheran theologian and prominent church historian. He produced many religious publications from 1873 to 1912 (in which he is sometimes credited as Adolf Harnack).
Harnack traced the influence of Hellenistic philosophy on early Christian writing and called on Christians to question the authenticity of doctrines that arose in the early Christian church. He rejected the historicity of the Gospel of John in favor of the Synoptic Gospels, criticized the Apostles' Creed, and promoted the Social Gospel.
Harnack traced the influence of Hellenistic philosophy on early Christian writing and called on Christians to question the authenticity of doctrines that arose in the early Christian church. He rejected the historicity of the Gospel of John in favor of the Synoptic Gospels, criticized the Apostles' Creed, and promoted the Social Gospel.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
June 4, 2017
Dated in many ways, yet uncanny in relevance and applicability to our modern climate on the other. Harnack's "What is Christianity" which is the published form of his 1900 "The Essence of Christianity" given at the Universität Berlin, outline von Harnack's entire project in a simple and clear manner.
Simply put, the gospel has been lost, and it must be recovered. The kernel the lies within the husk must be reclaimed, as the husks of the mystogogy of Greek Orthodoxy or Rites and Law of Catholicism have hidden to pure untainted gospel of Christ.
Harnack first outlines the teachings of Christ and what he perceives to be the "true gospel." He then moves into Paul, whom he admires for the most part, then apostolic to Nicene Christianity. He sees the latter two as the start of the contamination of the gospel with greek philosophy and eventually greek mystery religions, rites, and fetishism. Last he outlines the development in Greek Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism, and finally in Protestantism.
Von Harnack's bias is not covert. He sees Roman Catholicism and Greek Orthodoxy as absolutely corrupt forms of the gospel of Christ. He praises Luther and the German spirit for the recovery, albeit incomplete, of the true gospel which he ultimately sees as the existential feeling of Love, the Fatherhood of God, the infinite value of the human soul, and the Brotherhood of Man.
These lectures are easy and accessible. They ought to be read not only as an introduction to Harnack's thought, for those who do not want to tread through his 7 volume History of Dogma, but also on their own merit as well. Definitely recommend.
-b
Simply put, the gospel has been lost, and it must be recovered. The kernel the lies within the husk must be reclaimed, as the husks of the mystogogy of Greek Orthodoxy or Rites and Law of Catholicism have hidden to pure untainted gospel of Christ.
Harnack first outlines the teachings of Christ and what he perceives to be the "true gospel." He then moves into Paul, whom he admires for the most part, then apostolic to Nicene Christianity. He sees the latter two as the start of the contamination of the gospel with greek philosophy and eventually greek mystery religions, rites, and fetishism. Last he outlines the development in Greek Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism, and finally in Protestantism.
Von Harnack's bias is not covert. He sees Roman Catholicism and Greek Orthodoxy as absolutely corrupt forms of the gospel of Christ. He praises Luther and the German spirit for the recovery, albeit incomplete, of the true gospel which he ultimately sees as the existential feeling of Love, the Fatherhood of God, the infinite value of the human soul, and the Brotherhood of Man.
These lectures are easy and accessible. They ought to be read not only as an introduction to Harnack's thought, for those who do not want to tread through his 7 volume History of Dogma, but also on their own merit as well. Definitely recommend.
-b
November 20, 2024
What’s up with Adolfs being really persuasive rhetoricians? Look: if I was like 5 drinks deep and this guy started talking at me at the bar, I might just give in to his spiel. What can I say? Hennessy leads to heresy.
March 17, 2025
No one will agree with everything he argues here, but it's hard not to be compelled by his passion.
All Evangelicals flirting with converting to Roman Catholicism should read his relevant chapter here.
All Evangelicals flirting with converting to Roman Catholicism should read his relevant chapter here.
June 30, 2024
A HISTORIAL PERSPECTIVE BY A FAMOUS THEOLOGIAN
Adolf von Harnack (1851-1930) was a German theologian and prominent church historian. This book contains Harnack’s lectures that were originally given during the 1899-1900 winter semester at the University of Berlin. [NOTE: page numbers below refer to a 301-page paperback edition.]
In the first lecture, he asks, “What is Christianity? It is solely in its historical sense that we shall try to answer this question here; that is to say, we shall employ the methods of historical science, and the experience of life gained by studying the actual course of history. This excludes the view of the question taken by the apologist and the religious philosopher.” (Pg. 6) He adds, “the Christian religion is something simple and sublime; it means one thing and one thing only: Eternal life in the midst of time, by the strength and under the eyes of God.” (Pg. 8)
He observes, “There are only two possibilities here: either the Gospel is in all respects identical with its earliest form, in which case it came with its time and has departed with it; or else it contains something which, under differing historical forms, is of permanent validity. The latter is the true view. The history of the Church shows us in its very commencement that ‘primitive Christianity’ had to disappear in order that ‘Christianity’ might remain; and in the same way in later ages one metamorphosis followed upon another. From the beginning it was a question of getting rid of formulas, correcting expectations, altering ways of feeling, and this is a process to which there is no end.” (Pg. 13-14)
He asserts, “we are firmly convinced that what happens in space and time is subject to the general laws of motion, and that in this sense, as an interruption of the order of Nature, there can be no such things as ‘miracles.’ But we also recognize that the religious man… is certain that he is not shut up within a blind and brutal course of Nature, but that this course of Nature serves higher ends... although the order of nature be inviolable, we are not yet by any means acquainted with all the forces working in it and acting reciprocally with other forces… Miracles, it is true, do not happen; but of the marvelous and the inexplicable there is plenty. In our present state of knowledge we have become more careful, more hesitating in our judgment, in regard to the stories of the miraculous which we have received from antiquity… From these suggestions you can arrive for yourselves at the right position to take up in regard to the miraculous stories related in the Gospels, and at their net results.” (Pg. 26-28)
He points out, “Take the people of Israel and search the whole history of their religion; take history generally, and where will you find any message about God and the good that was ever so pure and so full of strength---for purity and strength go together---as we hear and read of in the Gospels?” (Pg. 48)
He notes, “Religion subordinates to itself the whole motley world of phenomena, and defies that world if it claims to be the only real one. Religion gives us only a single experience, but one which presents the world in a new light: the Eternal appears; time becomes means to an end; men is seen to be on the side of the Eternal. This was certainly Jesus’ meaning, and to take anything from it is to destroy it.” (Pg. 69-70)
But he argues, “we must decline to regard the Gospel as a message of world-denial.” (Pg. 84) He adds, “Ascetic in the primary meaning of the word the Gospel is not; for it is a message of trust in God, of humility, of forgiveness of sin, and of mercy.” (Pg. 87) He states, “Jesus laid down no social programme for the suppression of poverty and distress, is by programme we mean a set of definitely prescribed regulations. With economical conditions and contemporary circumstances he did not interfere. Had he become entangled in them; had he given laws which were ever so salutary for Palestine, what would have been gained by it? They would have served the needs of a day, and tomorrow would have been antiquated; to the Gospel they would have been a burden and a source of confusion.” (Pg. 97) He continues, “The Gospel is a social message, solemn and overpowering in its force; it is the proclamation of solidarity and brotherliness, in favor of the poor. But the message is bound up with the recognition of the infinite value of the human soul, and is contained in what Jesus said about the kingdom of God.” (Pg. 101)
He states, “Jesus was the ‘Messiah,’ and was not the Messiah; and he was not the messiah, because he left the idea far behind him; because he put a meaning into it which was too much for it to bear.” (Pg. 141) Of the Easter Faith, he observes, “Whatever may have happened at the grave and in the matter of the appearances, one thing is certain: This grave was the birthplace of the indestructible belief that death is vanquished, that there is a life eternal.” (Pg. 162)
He suggests, “Without doing violence to the inner and essential features of the Gospel---unconditional trust in God as the Father of Jesus Christ, confidence in the Lord, forgiveness of sins, certainty of eternal life, purity and brotherly fellowship---Paul transformed it into the universal religion, and laid the ground for the great Church.” (Pg. 180)
He observes, “What a proof it is of the impression which Christ’s teaching created that Greek philosophers managed to identify him with the Logos! For the assertion that the incarnation of the Logos had taken place in an historical personage there had been no preparation. No philosophizing Jew had ever thought of identifying the Messiah with the Logos; no Philo, for instance, ever entertained the idea of such an equation! It gave a metaphysical significance to an historical fact; it drew into the domain of cosmology and religious philosophy a person who had appeared in time and space; but by so distinguishing one person it raised all history to the plane of the cosmical movement.” (Pg. 204)
He laments, “There is no sadder spectacle than this transformation of the Christian religion from a worship of God in spirit and in truth into a worship of God in signs, formulas, and idols.” (Pg. 238) Later, he adds, “But in Rome the episcopal throne was occupied in the fifth century by men who understood the signs of the times and utilized them to the full. The Roman Church in this way privily pushed itself into the place of the Roman World-Empire, of which it is the actual continuation; the empire has not perished, but has only undergone a transformation.” (Pg. 252)
He explains, “Protestantism must be understood, first and foremost, by the contrast which it offers to Catholicism, and here there is a double direction which any estimate of it must take, first as REFORMATION and secondly as REVOLUTION.” (Pg. 268) He adds, “as Protestants we ought to know that we belong, not to an ‘invisible’ Church, but to a spiritual community which disposes of the forces pertaining to spiritual communities; a spiritual community resting on earth, but reaching to the Eternal.” (Pg. 274) He continues, “Protestantism reckons… upon the Gospel being something so simple, so divine, and therefore so truly human, as to be most certain of being understood when it is left entirely free, and also as to produce essentially the same experiences and convictions in individual souls.” (Pg. 275)
He concludes, “it is religion, the love of God and neighbor, which gives life a meaning; knowledge cannot do it... But to the question, Whence, whither, and to what purpose, it [knowledge] gives answer today as little as it did two or three thousand years ago. It does, indeed, instruct us in facts; it detects inconsistencies; it links phenomena; it corrects the deceptions of sense and idea. But where and how the curve of the world and the curve of our own life begin… and whither this curve leads, knowledge does not tell us. But… if we are earnest and courageous enough to accept them as the great Reality and direct our lives by them; and if we then look at the course of mankind’s history, follow its upward development, and search, in strenuous and patient service, for the communion of minds in it, we shall not faint in weariness and despair, but become certain of God, of the God whom Jesus Christ called his Father, and who is also our Father.” (Pg. 300-301)
Harnack’s book is one the most important examples of modern theology, and will be of value to any serious theological library.
Adolf von Harnack (1851-1930) was a German theologian and prominent church historian. This book contains Harnack’s lectures that were originally given during the 1899-1900 winter semester at the University of Berlin. [NOTE: page numbers below refer to a 301-page paperback edition.]
In the first lecture, he asks, “What is Christianity? It is solely in its historical sense that we shall try to answer this question here; that is to say, we shall employ the methods of historical science, and the experience of life gained by studying the actual course of history. This excludes the view of the question taken by the apologist and the religious philosopher.” (Pg. 6) He adds, “the Christian religion is something simple and sublime; it means one thing and one thing only: Eternal life in the midst of time, by the strength and under the eyes of God.” (Pg. 8)
He observes, “There are only two possibilities here: either the Gospel is in all respects identical with its earliest form, in which case it came with its time and has departed with it; or else it contains something which, under differing historical forms, is of permanent validity. The latter is the true view. The history of the Church shows us in its very commencement that ‘primitive Christianity’ had to disappear in order that ‘Christianity’ might remain; and in the same way in later ages one metamorphosis followed upon another. From the beginning it was a question of getting rid of formulas, correcting expectations, altering ways of feeling, and this is a process to which there is no end.” (Pg. 13-14)
He asserts, “we are firmly convinced that what happens in space and time is subject to the general laws of motion, and that in this sense, as an interruption of the order of Nature, there can be no such things as ‘miracles.’ But we also recognize that the religious man… is certain that he is not shut up within a blind and brutal course of Nature, but that this course of Nature serves higher ends... although the order of nature be inviolable, we are not yet by any means acquainted with all the forces working in it and acting reciprocally with other forces… Miracles, it is true, do not happen; but of the marvelous and the inexplicable there is plenty. In our present state of knowledge we have become more careful, more hesitating in our judgment, in regard to the stories of the miraculous which we have received from antiquity… From these suggestions you can arrive for yourselves at the right position to take up in regard to the miraculous stories related in the Gospels, and at their net results.” (Pg. 26-28)
He points out, “Take the people of Israel and search the whole history of their religion; take history generally, and where will you find any message about God and the good that was ever so pure and so full of strength---for purity and strength go together---as we hear and read of in the Gospels?” (Pg. 48)
He notes, “Religion subordinates to itself the whole motley world of phenomena, and defies that world if it claims to be the only real one. Religion gives us only a single experience, but one which presents the world in a new light: the Eternal appears; time becomes means to an end; men is seen to be on the side of the Eternal. This was certainly Jesus’ meaning, and to take anything from it is to destroy it.” (Pg. 69-70)
But he argues, “we must decline to regard the Gospel as a message of world-denial.” (Pg. 84) He adds, “Ascetic in the primary meaning of the word the Gospel is not; for it is a message of trust in God, of humility, of forgiveness of sin, and of mercy.” (Pg. 87) He states, “Jesus laid down no social programme for the suppression of poverty and distress, is by programme we mean a set of definitely prescribed regulations. With economical conditions and contemporary circumstances he did not interfere. Had he become entangled in them; had he given laws which were ever so salutary for Palestine, what would have been gained by it? They would have served the needs of a day, and tomorrow would have been antiquated; to the Gospel they would have been a burden and a source of confusion.” (Pg. 97) He continues, “The Gospel is a social message, solemn and overpowering in its force; it is the proclamation of solidarity and brotherliness, in favor of the poor. But the message is bound up with the recognition of the infinite value of the human soul, and is contained in what Jesus said about the kingdom of God.” (Pg. 101)
He states, “Jesus was the ‘Messiah,’ and was not the Messiah; and he was not the messiah, because he left the idea far behind him; because he put a meaning into it which was too much for it to bear.” (Pg. 141) Of the Easter Faith, he observes, “Whatever may have happened at the grave and in the matter of the appearances, one thing is certain: This grave was the birthplace of the indestructible belief that death is vanquished, that there is a life eternal.” (Pg. 162)
He suggests, “Without doing violence to the inner and essential features of the Gospel---unconditional trust in God as the Father of Jesus Christ, confidence in the Lord, forgiveness of sins, certainty of eternal life, purity and brotherly fellowship---Paul transformed it into the universal religion, and laid the ground for the great Church.” (Pg. 180)
He observes, “What a proof it is of the impression which Christ’s teaching created that Greek philosophers managed to identify him with the Logos! For the assertion that the incarnation of the Logos had taken place in an historical personage there had been no preparation. No philosophizing Jew had ever thought of identifying the Messiah with the Logos; no Philo, for instance, ever entertained the idea of such an equation! It gave a metaphysical significance to an historical fact; it drew into the domain of cosmology and religious philosophy a person who had appeared in time and space; but by so distinguishing one person it raised all history to the plane of the cosmical movement.” (Pg. 204)
He laments, “There is no sadder spectacle than this transformation of the Christian religion from a worship of God in spirit and in truth into a worship of God in signs, formulas, and idols.” (Pg. 238) Later, he adds, “But in Rome the episcopal throne was occupied in the fifth century by men who understood the signs of the times and utilized them to the full. The Roman Church in this way privily pushed itself into the place of the Roman World-Empire, of which it is the actual continuation; the empire has not perished, but has only undergone a transformation.” (Pg. 252)
He explains, “Protestantism must be understood, first and foremost, by the contrast which it offers to Catholicism, and here there is a double direction which any estimate of it must take, first as REFORMATION and secondly as REVOLUTION.” (Pg. 268) He adds, “as Protestants we ought to know that we belong, not to an ‘invisible’ Church, but to a spiritual community which disposes of the forces pertaining to spiritual communities; a spiritual community resting on earth, but reaching to the Eternal.” (Pg. 274) He continues, “Protestantism reckons… upon the Gospel being something so simple, so divine, and therefore so truly human, as to be most certain of being understood when it is left entirely free, and also as to produce essentially the same experiences and convictions in individual souls.” (Pg. 275)
He concludes, “it is religion, the love of God and neighbor, which gives life a meaning; knowledge cannot do it... But to the question, Whence, whither, and to what purpose, it [knowledge] gives answer today as little as it did two or three thousand years ago. It does, indeed, instruct us in facts; it detects inconsistencies; it links phenomena; it corrects the deceptions of sense and idea. But where and how the curve of the world and the curve of our own life begin… and whither this curve leads, knowledge does not tell us. But… if we are earnest and courageous enough to accept them as the great Reality and direct our lives by them; and if we then look at the course of mankind’s history, follow its upward development, and search, in strenuous and patient service, for the communion of minds in it, we shall not faint in weariness and despair, but become certain of God, of the God whom Jesus Christ called his Father, and who is also our Father.” (Pg. 300-301)
Harnack’s book is one the most important examples of modern theology, and will be of value to any serious theological library.
August 23, 2011
By removing certain defining elements of Christianity all together, Harnack, leaves a religion that is not all that clearly defined. The result is an individual faith that has the will and reason to determine its own relationship with God and how that relationship should be practically revealed though a life of love. He understands his theology to be a liberation of Christian faith from mystery and unknowable ideas, from the power structures of institutions and doctrines, and from all worldly activities and concerns. While he strives to present a revised understanding of Christianity without dogma and ascetic practices, he ends up with a religion that holds history as his dogmatic doctrine of truth and morality as its necessary ascetic practice. In liberating the Christian kernel from the husk, Harnack has removed so much of the Christian religion that he has created a kernel of religion that depends on the ability of humanity’s reason and will. He seems to have freed humanity from any need or want of the Christian God at all. While Harnack’s theology does emphasize some important, and even true, notions, it does not reveal the full truth of the Gospel held by Protestant Christians as faith in Jesus as God.
May 22, 2020
Well , liberal tho this is supposed to be and as reviewers have said dated , nevertheless its '' woo '' factor and insistence on redundandcy of Judaism and on a new nation of believers and on hellenism [ which is eastern anyway imo] means it nicely set the groundwork for irresponsible democratic socialist xty in germany . Give me old fashioned historical criticism anyday.
May 6, 2024
In this book, Harnack argues that the gospel can be peeled away from its Hellenistic shell and found, and that faith in God the Father and the love that is subordinate to it is the essence of Christianity. And the accusation that Harnack is a heretic is highly ironic given Harnack's position that if heresy is not Christianity, why should orthodoxy interfere? Harnack's attempt to move away from the distinction between orthodoxy and heresy was to find common ground across Christianity, starting with the historical Jesus. I would have given this book four stars, but it would be lousy for this book to have a worse rating than Machen's false accusations, so I'll give it five. The tragedy of Machen's ignorance and Barth's dementia. It would be of great benefit to students to read this book, History of Dogma, and Marcion before moving on to Troeltsch's books.
May 6, 2022
Harnack’s view of Christianity is heretical, as he denies many key tenants of the gospel and the inerrancy scripture, however his writing on Christianity from a modernist and naturalist perspective are helpful for understanding the origins of thought for many liberal theologians today.
December 18, 2017
Certainly one of the best refreshers I have read so far, as it stands helpful for the upcoming comprehensive examinations. Good exposition even for the non-believer!
December 20, 2024
This book is from lectures presented by Adolf von Harnack. It descriptively goes through beliefs and dogmas through time. It's a loooonnnnng read, and was not captivating.
March 28, 2014
My impression is that Von Harnack would have been a wonderful lecturer. His writing was clear and almost poetic. Maybe, it's more a credit to the translator, but I did enjoy the work for the style as much as the content. More actually, because I think that his view of Christianity, however poetic, ultimately fails.
As a brilliant liberal scholar at the cusp of what was likely the most optimistic time of modernity, Harnack set out to reconcile Christianity with the modern intolerance for any miracles. Granted he allowed for the possibility that Jesus, perhaps working within latent though currently unknown human capabilities, did actually heal some people. However, he obviously did not calm the sea, walk on water or rise from the dead because we, with our privileged modern perspective, know that these things are impossible. Surprisingly, he did a pretty good job. I thought that he was much more generous with the biblical texts and the historical tradition than other liberal theologians such as Schleiermacher or Feuerbach. I don't know if I understand what he means when he talks about "the living God", but my suspicion is that it's not orthodox.
Ultimately I think that Harnack fails because he attempted an impossible task. In his first letter to the Corinthians Paul writes, "If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all men most to be pitied." I think Harnack made a good effort but fell short because Christianity rises or falls depending on whether or not Jesus was resurrected.
On a side note, Von Harnack's name is spelled wrong. If anyone has the authority, it would be nice to change it.
As a brilliant liberal scholar at the cusp of what was likely the most optimistic time of modernity, Harnack set out to reconcile Christianity with the modern intolerance for any miracles. Granted he allowed for the possibility that Jesus, perhaps working within latent though currently unknown human capabilities, did actually heal some people. However, he obviously did not calm the sea, walk on water or rise from the dead because we, with our privileged modern perspective, know that these things are impossible. Surprisingly, he did a pretty good job. I thought that he was much more generous with the biblical texts and the historical tradition than other liberal theologians such as Schleiermacher or Feuerbach. I don't know if I understand what he means when he talks about "the living God", but my suspicion is that it's not orthodox.
Ultimately I think that Harnack fails because he attempted an impossible task. In his first letter to the Corinthians Paul writes, "If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all men most to be pitied." I think Harnack made a good effort but fell short because Christianity rises or falls depending on whether or not Jesus was resurrected.
On a side note, Von Harnack's name is spelled wrong. If anyone has the authority, it would be nice to change it.
November 6, 2023
This is certainly an essential book to read in terms of theological books that has had an impact in its contemporary times on how people think about Christianity. I was very surprised when I read this book because I had dipped in to von Harnack's historical theological works and they had more lived up to the title of liberal theology. This, however, had an almost evangelical feel to it, in particular in the interpretation of Jesus. Yes, he does state that some sayings probably doesn't belong to Jesus, but other than that this is pretty regular traditional Christianity. And Protestant, certainly Protestant. The last sections are very good examples on how one could view Luther from a positive interpretation. Could be good to even things out these days.
November 21, 2019
As with all the books I am required to read for Regent College's Modern Protestant Thought class (but for those I really like), I am giving this three stars, not because I liked it that much, but because it is an important work for understanding the liberal approach to Jesus and gospel interpretation at the turn of the century (these were originally lectures the University of Berlin in 1900). This work sheds light on so much modern commentary treatment of the gospels and the 'historical Jesus' approach to biblical and theological scholarship.
September 8, 2014
Harnack was one of the most important and influential nineteenth century historians of the early church. His histories remain well worth reading. This book, however, while important as representative of the quintessence of progressive German scholarship of the period, will read as rather old-hat to modern students.
March 4, 2011
I am not a Christian but I had some questions about the religion I wanted answered. this book was good at giving an overview of the religion, the different belief systems within the religion and answered some questions that I had. It no way made me feel as though I was being pressured into being a Christian- it just lay out facts and theories in lay man terms for me to understand.
March 25, 2013
Clearly written, and clearly thought out...or just really well translated. While Harnack's thesis has been brutalized by two World Wars, Karl Barth, and a sea of contrary evidence (including Harnack-killing manuscript finds), this book continues to be unendingly important for understanding the out-workings of Lutheran theology in general and Luther's method in particular.
January 19, 2013
Adolf von Harnack
July 28, 2017
Reading for historical theology II. Really interesting stuff, basic tenets of Classical Protestant Liberalism.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews