Background
He was born on September 5, 1666 at Annaberg, in Saxon, where his father was a schoolmaster.
historian scientist theologian
He was born on September 5, 1666 at Annaberg, in Saxon, where his father was a schoolmaster.
In 1682 he went to the Gymnasium at Gera, and three years later to the university of Wittenberg. Flere he made a special study of theology and history, and afterwards, through the influence of P. J. Spener, " the father of pietism, " he became tutor in Quedlinburg.
Flis first work, Die Erste Licbe zu Christo, to which in modern times attention was again directed by Leo Tolstoy, appeared in 1696. It went through five editions before 1728, and gained the author much reputation. In the year after its publication he was invited to Giessen as professor of church history. The life and work here, however, proved so distasteful to him that he resigned in 1698, and returned to Quedlinburg. In 1699 he began to publish his largest work, described by Tolstoy (The Kingdom of God is within You, chap. iii. ) as " remarkable, although little known, " Unparteiische Kirchen- und Ketzerhistoric, in which he has been thought by some to show more impartiality towards heresy than towards the Church (cp. Otto Pfleiderer, Development of Theology, p. 277). His next work, Geheimniss der gottlichen Sophia, published in 1700, seemed to indicate that he had developed a form of mysticism. Soon afterwards, however, his acceptance of a pastorate marked a change, and he produced a number of noteworthy works on practical theology. He was also known as the author of sacred poems. Gottfried Arnold has rightly been classed with the pietistic section of Protestant historians (Bibliotheca Sacra, 1850).
In this major revision of church history, Arnold directed his sharpest criticism against those who wrote deeply biased apologetic “orthodox” histories instead of trying to understand where substantial religious differences actually came from. In his view, “heresy making” was usually the defensive reaction of those in authority, rather than a true indictment of unconventional thinkers. He thought that the worst calamity in Church history was its establishment as the accepted and orthodox faith by the Roman Emperor Constantine in the fourth century. Arnold evinced a remarkable sympathy for a huge variety of “heretics. ” This “impartial history” exercised a wide influence on the German Enlightenment and won approval from such thinkers as Johann Wolfgang Goethe in addition to Leo Tolstoy.
His next work, Geheimniss der göttlichen Sophia, showed that he had developed a form of mysticism including a female image of wisdom (sophia) as a kind of divinity. Soon afterwards, however, his marriage and his acceptance of a pastorate marked a sharp change of views, and he produced a number of noteworthy works on practical theology.
His sacred poems also made a substantial contribution to the treasury of hymns within the Lutheran church, and a poem of his was used by Johann Sebastian Bach.