Gerd Lüdemann

Gerd Lüdemann (July 5, 1946 – May 23, 2021) was a German biblical scholar and historian. He taught first Jewish Christianity and Gnosticism at McMaster University, Canada (1977–1979) and then New Testament at Vanderbilt Divinity School, U.S.A. (1979–1982).

In 1983, Lüdemann was appointed to the chair in New Testament Studies in the Evangelical Theological Faculty at the University of Göttingen (Georg-August-Universität Göttingen), Germany, and taught New Testament until 1999. In the same year, his chair in "New Testament" was renamed "History and Literature of Early Christianity" in the Institute for Special Research (Institut für Spezialforschungen) at the university. Thus, he was removed from the professorship to train future Protestant pastors and stayed in the new department until his retirement in 2011.

Early life and education Gerd Lüdemann was born on July 5, 1946, in Visselhövede, a town in the district of Rotenburg an der Wümme in Lower Saxony, Germany. His parents were not poor but they lived modestly; his mother was religious and a devout churchgoer. Lüdemann was a born again Christian by conversion at a “tent mission” of his home town, Visselhövede, in May 1963, but eventually he lost his faith.

The Confederation of Protestant Churches in Lower Saxony called for his dismissal from the Chair of New Testament Studies, because he did not agree with their mission. His dismissal was rejected by the state government of Lower Saxony and as a result a search for a new Chair of New Testament Studies was instituted, and Lüdemann was retained and appointed Chair of History and Literature of Early Christianity. he debated William Lane Craig in 1997 and in 2002 over Jesus' resurrection. Since 2011, after his retirement from the University of Göttingen, Lüdemann was visiting scholar at Vanderbilt University Divinity School, Nashville, Tennessee, as a resident alien of the United States.

Selected works in English For German versions and other publications, see the external link below to Library of Congress.

(German original published in 1996) (German original published in 1998)