The Pietist movement of the late seventeenth and eighteenth cen-
turies emphasizes the primacy of personal faith, criticizing Protestant
orthodoxy as well as rigid church structures. As Pietism is no philo-
sophical movement, it may be overstated to claim that it has a definite
intellectual position in matters of religious recognition. It is indisput-
able, however, that the Pietist hermeneutics constructs a new, prac-
tical reading of Scripture which makes the application of the text to
the individual believer a primary event. These ideas of individual
application and appropriation (Zueignung,Aneignung) shape mod-
ern philosophy in various ways. For instance, the view of labour as the
basis of personal property, apparent from Locke to Hegel and Marx,
and the notion of subjectivity in Kierkegaard, belong to this cluster of
modern ideas related to personal appropriation.^34
As the Pietists criticize the intellectualist nature of orthodoxy and
emphasize the primacy of personal faith, theologians like König no
longer provide an adequate basis for their understanding of religion.
According to the famous renewal programme of Philipp Jakob Spener
of 1675, Christianity constitutes itself not as knowledge but as prac-
tice. Therefore, theological education should emphasize piety and
skills like preaching. Instead of intellectual training, educators should
promote‘pious gatherings’(Collegia pietatis) in which religious prac-
tice canflourish.^35
As an exemplary Pietist text I will analyse theBerlin Speeches
(Berlinische Reden, 1738) of Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf. As
the founder of Herrnhut community that carried out extensive mis-
sionary work, Zinzendorf was a particularly influential and cosmo-
politan Pietist. His writings were widely read in European learned
communities. While Zinzendorf employs the resources of Lutheran-
ism, he also uses the traditions of bridal mysticism and Catholic
spirituality.
In his Berlin speeches, Zinzendorf exposes Luther’s commentary of
the Second Article of Faith inSmall Catechism. While this source
links the speeches with theological tradition, the exposition contains
the typical Pietist accent on practice. I focus on terminologies that
highlight the nature of normative knowing.
The veryfirst passage of thefirst speech is provocative. Zinzendorf
quotes James 2:19, which states that mere believing is not enough, as
(^34) Kramer 1971; Franz 2000; Horn 2009. (^35) Brecht 1996, 612–13.
The Modern Era 121