Briefwechsel 1875 - 1889

In a very personal way, the correspondence begun by Wilhelm Herrmann, a private lecturer from Halle, sheds new light on the controversial impact of Albrecht Ritschl's theology of the kingdom of God during the Wilhelminian era. The message of revelation is the reconciliation of humanity with God, not of God with humanity. This insight, new from an exegetical standpoint, set a precedent, since it made it possible to see the advent of the kingdom of God, a pivotal feature in the proclamation of Jesus, as an incentive for freedom in the moral (and societal) realm of life. This letter exchange reveals the enthusiasm with which a young Wilhelm Herrmann welcomed this approach. At first loyal to Ritschl, Herrmann insisted on the universality of the Christian worldview, but eventually the problem of certainty in religion led him to abandon Ritschl's community-oriented approach to focus on questions related to individual existence.