When in Berlin the writer often attended Schleiermacher’s church. The hymns to be sung were printed on slips of paper and distributed at the doors. They were always evangelical and spiritual in an eminent degree, filled with praise and gratitude to our Redeemer. Tholuck said that Schleiermacher, when sitting in the evening with his family, would often say, “Hush, children; let us sing a hymn of praise to Christ.” Can we doubt that he is singing those praises now? To whomsoever Christ is God, St. John assures us, Christ is a Saviour. Hodge, Charles. Systematic Theology. Vol 2, 400 n1.
Few read this blog and fewer likely read it for theology. And fewer who read it care about Schleiermacher. But it’s grand to see Hodge put the Scriptures first in his assessment of another’s faith rather than the systematic accuracy of that person’s writings or utterances.
1 John 5:20 And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know shim who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
I have often wondered if some teachings we (rightly) identify as heresy were named after men who are actually in Heaven. I have no way of knowing if this applies to Schleiermacher, but I do wonder if in many cases it is an example of the students running out to the extreme the ideas of the teacher.
Either way, Hodge provides a commendable example to us all that could even be applied to social media posts.