Kähler, Martin (1835-1912)

German theologian and champion of mission

Kähler, a famous representative of “biblical realism” in nineteenth-century German systematic theology, has not always been recognized as a missiologist. Yet as a contemporary, colleague, and close friend of Gustav Warneck at Halle University, he made a significant contribution to scholarly theological reinforcement of the Christian mission. In 1971 H. Frohnes collected and published Kähler’s writing on Christology and mission, which demonstrate that for Kähler the Christian world mission, both as a privilege and an obligation of the church, has its roots in the atoning work of Christ and is therefore to be regarded as an integral element of the Christian faith. Kähler expressed and promoted this conviction not only in several exegetical and theological essays but also in a number of sermons, meditations, and book reviews, all of them accessible in the 1971 volume. There exists also a draft of an unpublished memorandum by Kähler, solicited by John R. Mott, on the question “In what respects does the state of the Home Church affect the expansion of Christianity?” Kähler’s distinctly critical reply was not used by Mott during the World Missionary Conference at Edinburgh in 1910, but it remains a significant statement of Kähler’s convictions.

Hans-Werner Gensichen, “Kähler, Martin,” in Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions, ed. Gerald H. Anderson (New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 1998), 351.

This article is reprinted from Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions, Macmillan Reference USA, copyright © 1998 Gerald H. Anderson, by permission of Macmillan Reference USA, New York, NY. All rights reserved.