The Theological Faculty became Protestant in 1535, when the reigning monarch brought the Reformation into the University. Theological studies began to be determined by the mainstream Lutheranism of the Reformation.
This mainstream Lutheran theological influence was maintained during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Little emphasis was given to Pietism or to the European Enlightenment.
The influance of critical historical theological research entered the Faculty in the nineteenth century. Ferdinand Christian Baur joined the Faculty in 1826, an this marked the beginning of the formation of the "early Tuebingen School."
Two outstanding scholars responded to the thological challenges of the first half of the twentieth century. Adolf Schlatter joined the Faculty in 1898. Schlatter attempted to balance liberal approaches to the New Testament with a unified view of the historical Jesus and the Christ of faith. Karl Heim joined the Faculty in 1920. Heim was one of the few theologians of his time who entered into dialogue with modern natural sciences.
The Protestant Theological Faculty is closely related to the Evangelische Stift. The Stift
was established in 1536. It is an institute of the Lutheran Church in Wuerttemburg, the part
of Germany in which Tuebingen is located. The Stift is devoted to the developement of young
theologians from Baden-Wuerttemburg, the German state in which Tuebingen is located.
Prominent among the Stift's Students have been Friedrich Hoelderlin, Friedrich Wilhelm
Schelling and Georg Friedrich Wilhelm Hegel.
Current student enrollment is 929Most of these students (70%) are preparing for ministry in the Church, or for teaching Religious Education in public and parochial high schools (21%). The remainder are preparing for advanced studies aimed at an academic degree.
The standard examinations are the First Theological Examination and the First Teacher Certification Examination.
The First Theological Examination is administered in two forms: either by the examining board of the Wuerttemburg Protestant Church, or by the Theological Faculty. Both forms of the Examination are led by professors from the Theological Faculty.
The First Theacher Certification Examination is administered by the German government, and lead by professors from Theological Faculty.
Advanced studies lead to the following degrees:
This classical structure is also enlarged and enriched by a number of Institutes. Each Institute is designed for the study of a specific area. Some Institutes work in close cooperation with non-theological disciplines.
The recent dramatic changes within Europe are influencing religion, particularly the churches' understanding of their role in society. Research is developing on the role or the churches in the former state-socialist society, on Protestantism in the modern religious pluralism, and on the contribution of the Church to European integration.
Library holdings of both Faculties are combined. The library is located in the same building as the teaching and research facilities. The library contains more than 210,000 volumes, with 110,000 volumes belonging to the Protestant Faculty and 100,000 to the Catholic Faculty.
Important collections of maps, slides and archaeological artifacts are also located in the library. More than 1,400 maps of Palestine and the Near East, as well as 25,000 slides related to biblical and archaeological research, are available for researchers, professors and students.
The Protestant Theological Faculty also maintains strong relationships to the World Council of Churches and to the international ecumenical and missionary movements.