Wilhelm Martin Leberecht de Wette (January 12, 1780 - June 16, 1849), was a German theologian. Image of De Wette January 12 is the 12th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1780 was a leap year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... June 16 is the 167th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (168th in leap years), with 198 days remaining. ... 1849 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Theology is reasoned discourse concerning God (Greek θεος, theos, God, + λογος, logos, word or reason). It can also refer to the study of other religious topics. ...

He was born at Ulla, near Weimar, where his father was pastor. He was sent to the gymnasium at Weimar, then at the height of its literary fame. Here he was much influenced by intercourse with Johann Gottfried von Herder, who frequently examined at the school. In 1799 he entered on his theological studies at Jena, his principal teachers being JJ Griesbach and HEG Paulus; from the latter he derived his tendency to free critical inquiry. Both in methods and in results, however, he occupied an almost solitary position among German theologians. Ulla may mean: Ulla, meaning yoke, was an Asherite mentioned in 1 Chronicles 7:39, in the Hebrew Bible. ... For the locality in Texas called Weimar see Weimar, Texas, there is also Weimar bei Kassel and Weimar in Marburg-Biedenkopf. ... A gymnasium is a type of school of secondary education in parts of Europe. ... Johann Gottfried Herder Johann Gottfried von Herder (August 25, 1744 - December 18, 1803), German poet, critic, theologian, and philosopher, is best known for his concept of the Volk and is generally considered the father of ethnic nationalism. ... 1799 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Friedrich Schiller University of Jena (FSU) is located in Jena, Thuringia in Germany and was named for the German writer Friedrich Schiller. ... Johann Jakob Griesbach (January 4, 1745 - March 24, 1812), German biblical critic, was born at Butzbach, a small town in the state of Hesse, where his father, Konrad Kaspar (1705-1777), was pastor. ... Heinrich Eberhard Gottlob Paulus (born 1 September 1761, died 10 August 1851) was a German theologian and critic of the Christian bible. ...

Having taken his doctor's degree, he became Privatdozent at Jena; in 1807 professor of theology at Heidelberg, where he came under the influence of J.F. Fries (1773-1843); and in 1810 was transferred to a similar chair in the newly founded Friedrich Wilhelm University in Berlin, where he became friendly with Friedrich Schleiermacher. He was, however, dismissed from Berlin in 1819 on account of his having written a letter of consolation to the mother of Karl Ludwig Sand, the murderer of Kotzebue. A petition in his favour presented by the senate of the university was unsuccessful, and a decree was issued not only depriving him of the chair, but banishing him from the Prussian kingdom. 1807 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... The Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (German Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; also known as simply University of Heidelberg) was established in the town of Heidelberg in the Rhineland in 1386. ... Jakob Friedrich Fries (August 23, 1773 - August 10, 1843), was a German philosopher. ... 1810 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (German Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin) is Berlins oldest university, founded in 1810 as the University of Berlin (Universität zu Berlin) by the liberal Prussian educational reformer and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt whose university model has strongly influenced... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher (November 21, 1768 - February 12, 1834) was a theologian and philosopher. ... Karl Ludwig Sand (d. ... August Friedrich Ferdinand von Kotzebue (May 3, 1761 _ March 23, 1819), was a German dramatist. ...

He retired to Weimar, where he occupied his leisure in the preparation of his edition of Luther, and in writing the romance Theodor oder die Weihe des Zweiflers (1822), in which he describes the education of an evangelical pastor. During this period he began preaching, at which he proved to be very popular. But in 1822 he accepted the chair of theology in the University of Basel, which had been reorganized four years before. Though his appointment had been strongly opposed by the orthodox party, De Wette soon won for himself great influence both in the university and among the people generally. He was admitted a citizen, and became rector of the university, which owed to him much of its recovered strength, particularly in the theological faculty. 1822 (MDCCCXXII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... The University of Basel (German: Universität Basel) is located at Basel, Switzerland. ...

De Wette has been described by Julius Wellhausen as "the epoch-making opener of the historical criticism of the Pentateuch." He prepared the way for the Supplement-theory. But he also made valuable contributions to other branches of theology. He had, moreover, considerable poetic faculty, and wrote a drama in three acts, entitled Die Entsagung (Berlin, 1823). He had an intelligent interest in art, and studied ecclesiastical music and architecture. As a Biblical critic he is sometimes classed with the destructive school, but, as Otto Pfleiderer says (Development of Theology), he "occupied as free a position as the Rationalists with regard to the literal authority of the creeds of the church, but that he sought to give their due value to the religious feelings, which the Rationalists had not done, and, with a more unfettered mind towards history, to maintain the connection of the present life of the church with the past." His works are marked by exegetical skill, unusual power of condensation and uniform fairness. Accordingly they possess value which is little affected by the progress of criticism. Julius Wellhausen (May 17, 1844 - January 17, 1918), was a German biblical scholar and Orientalist. ... Look up Pentateuch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary For a detailed discussion about the contents of the Pentateuch, see the article Torah. ... Rationalism, also known as the rationalist movement, is a philosophical doctrine that asserts that the truth can best be discovered by reason and factual analysis, rather than faith, dogma or religious teaching. ...

The most important of his works are:

• Beiträge zur Einleitung in das Alte Testament (2 vols, 1806-1807)
• Kommentar über die Psalmen (1811), which passed through several editions, and was long regarded as of high authority
• Lehrbuch der hebräisch-jüdischen Archäologie (1814)
• Über Religion und Theologie (1815); a work of great importance as showing its author's general theological position
• Lehrbuch der christlichen Dogmatik (1813-1816)
• Lehrbuch der historisch-kritischen Einleitung in die Bibel (1817)
• Christliche Sittenlehre (1819-1821)
• Einleitung in das Neue Testament (1826)
• Religion, ihr Wesen, ihre Erscheinungsform, und ihr Einfluss auf das Leben (1827)
• Das Wesen des christlichen Glaubens (1846)
• Kurzgefasstes exegetisches Handbuch zum Neuen Testament (1836- 1848).

De Wette also edited Luther's works, 5 vols. (Berlin: Georg reimer 1825-1828). Luther at age 46 (Lucas Cranach the Elder, 1529) The Luther seal Martin Luther (November 10, 1483–February 18, 1546) was a German theologian, an Augustinian monk, and an ecclesiastical reformer whose teachings inspired the Reformation and deeply influenced the doctrines and culture of the Lutheran and Protestant traditions. ...

The full title of this collection is: Dr. Martin Luther's Briefe, Sendschreiben and Bendenken: vollständig aus den verschiedenen Ausgaben seiner Werke und Brief, aus andern Büchern und noch unbenutzten Handschriften gesammelt, kritish und historisch bearbeitet. A sixth volume(1856), edited by Johann Karl Seidemann(1807-1879), is also a part of the De wette collection.

References

• This article incorporates text from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, a publication in the public domain.
• Entry for De Wette @ Jewish Encyclopedia.com
• Entry for De wette @ The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia[1]

• Religion and the Rise of Historicism: ISBN: 0521650224 Theological Origins of Nineteenth-Century Historical Consciousness.