In praise of Pietism

Friedrich Oetinger was a leading German pietist intellectual and theologian, deeply interested in the science of his day. And critical of science and rationalist philosophy as well. Against thinkers who placed a primacy on reason, Oetinger argued that sheer logical clarity is insufficient “for living knowledge.” Living knowledge takes form in common social life: “Fathers are moved without proof to care for their children; love does not demonstrate, but often against reason rends the heart at the beloved’s reproach.” He rehabilitated intuition as the fundamental “epistemological” act: “the whole of life has its center in the heart, which by means of common sense grasps countless things all at the same time.” This counts equally to Scripture and creation: “the ideas found in Scripture and in the works of God are the more fruitful and purified the more that each can be seen in the whole and all can be seen in each.” Hermeneutical rules are less important than the interpreter’s efforts to live out of Scripture: “above all apply the rules to yourself and then you will have the key to understanding Solomon’s proverbs.”