Friedrich Schleiermacher was the preeminent clergyman of the Age of Goethe. The theological thought of this small, delicate, yet polemical man culminated in the revolutionary belief that religious faith, grounded in individual feeling that is itself the product of historical and cultural awareness, is the quintessential characteristic of human experience. Typical of the Romantic spirit, Schleiermacher, who has been called the father of modern scientific theology, was opposed to religion as dogmatic precept or as rationalistic speculation. While his primary sphere of influence was in theology and ecclesiastical policy-making, Schleiermacher was also passionately engaged in the political, philosophical, and, to a lesser extent, the literary discussions of his time. A charismatic and eloquent preacher, he was a spirited advocate of the unification of the German people and of the divided Protestant church. An exacting scholar, he lectured and wrote on all the major branches of philosophy and introduced...