18th–19th centuries (Strauss – 1835)

The Historical Criticism of the Bible: From Reimarus and Lessing to the Tübingen School and Strauss

Already in the 18th century the deists raised the question of the historicity of the biblical narratives, especially the miracles. The posthumous publication of fragments by Reimarus spurred biblical scholars to the critical study of Scripture; Semler became one of the founders of the critical-historical method, and Lessing saw in the teachings of Scripture and the creeds only a stage in the education of the human race. F. C. Baur applied Hegelian methods to the New Testament, contrasting "Petrine" and "Pauline" theology, and D. F. Strauss in his Life of Jesus (1835) called the Gospel narratives "myths" expressing a truth of a higher order. According to Lane, nineteenth-century historical criticism came to regard the Bible not as an authority but as a source to be criticized.