Religion and Morality
Religion, just as most other institutions in nineteenth-century Germany, was regulated by the government. The church officials served the Kaiser, and through this connection, churches and therefore church-goers were controlled by the state. Catholicism and Protestantism were the two main Christian religions in nineteenth-century Germany. There was a strong division between followers of the two religions, as “Protestants and Catholics not only had their own brands of faith; they had their own literary canons, their own historical pantheons - their own sense of what it meant to be German” (Blackbourn 286). The characters in Spring Awakening are Protestant, as were the majority of Germans. In fact, “German culture was Protestant; pride in German culture had an unspoken Protestant undertow. It became unmistakable when that culture was defended against the Catholic ‘threat’" (Blackbourn 293). Within the realm of Protestant religions, the characters in Spring Awakening are Lutheran.
Lutheranism is based on the beliefs of Martin Luther. He began as a Roman Catholic, but was troubled over personal guilt and so wrote his ninety-five theses. These writings became the basis for the Lutheran faith. The basic tenets of Lutheranism include:
Scripture is affirmed as the sole rule of faith, and justification by grace alone is the principle tenet. There is a strongly Christocentric emphasis in all Lutheran theology, which also insists on the lost condition of human beings and their inability to please God by human effort or moral achievements. Solely by the initiative of divine grace, men and women are reconciled to God through faith in Christ by whose perfect righteousness they are accounted righteous in God's sight. (Oxford Dictionary of World Religions)
Beginning in the sixteenth-century, the German princes began to adopt Lutheranism to avoid the control of the Pope. However, the German monarchy soon began using religion as their own means of control. Religion was taught not only at church, but in school as well, even if the school was state-sponsored. Instilling a strong sense of religion and morals in the German children helped to further reinforce the ideas of good behavior, discipline, and authority. In fact, “Luther’s notion of inner freedom went along with an acquiescence in the social and political order in which duly constituted authority must be obeyed” (Bigler 426).
Although religious teachings were an important aspect of the lives of German children, some claim that the German middle-classes were relatively indifferent towards religion. There was a decline in church attendance, but many people still clung to religion as a means to ensure morality and hope. Religion in Germany during the nineteenth-century was a series of paradoxes.
Beliefs on Abortion
Beginning in the seventeenth-century, an embryo was believed to have a soul from conception onward. Abortion was seen as murder and considered a sin at any point during a pregnancy. Birth control was also not considered an appropriate moral choice. However, as Protestantism relied more heavily on the conscience of each individual rather than on mass beliefs, the morality of abortion and birth control was in question.
Beliefs on Suicide
"The brief review of biblical suicide seems to suggest that suicide was the consequence of sin" (Blacker). Throughout the eighteenth-century, radical thinkers attempted to justify suicide. In the nineteenth-century, however, thoughts on suicide changed and hardened. Martin Luther said, "I don't have the opinion that suicides are certainly to be damned. My reason is that they do not wish to kill themselves but are overcome by the power of the devil" (LCMS 7).
Atheism
Atheism is not a lack of belief in religion, but a lack of belief in a deity. During the nineteenth-century, several atheist belief systems took hold, most notably, Marxism:
Central to Marxist theory is an explanation of social change in terms of economic factors, according to which the means of production provide the economic base which determines or influences the political and ideological superstructure. The history of society can be viewed as showing progressive stages in the ownership of the means of production and, hence, the control of political power. Marx and Engels predicted the final revolutionary overthrow of capitalism by the proletariat and the eventual attainment of a classless communist society. (OED)
Sources:
Bigler, Robert M. "The Rise of Political Protestantism in Nineteenth Century Germany: The Awakening Of Political Consciousness and the Beginning of Political Activity in the Protestant Clergy Of Pre-March Prussia." Church History 34.4 (1965): 423-44. JSTOR. Web. 12 June 2012.
Blackbourn, David. The Long Nineteenth Century: A History of Germany, 1780 - 1918. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. Print.
Blacker, Russell. "Suicide Down the Ages: A Judeo-Christian Perspective." Christian Medical Fellowship. Christian Medical Fellowship. Web. 28 Sept. 2014.
"LCMS Views - Life Issues." LCMS - Frequently Asked Questions. Print.
Meyers Kleines Konversationslexikon. Leipzig and Vienna, 1908, vol. 2, pp. 332-33; reproduced in Helmut Walser Smith, German Nationalism and Religious Conflict: Culture, Ideology, Politics, 1870-1914. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1995, pp. 2-3.
The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Print.
Lutheranism is based on the beliefs of Martin Luther. He began as a Roman Catholic, but was troubled over personal guilt and so wrote his ninety-five theses. These writings became the basis for the Lutheran faith. The basic tenets of Lutheranism include:
Scripture is affirmed as the sole rule of faith, and justification by grace alone is the principle tenet. There is a strongly Christocentric emphasis in all Lutheran theology, which also insists on the lost condition of human beings and their inability to please God by human effort or moral achievements. Solely by the initiative of divine grace, men and women are reconciled to God through faith in Christ by whose perfect righteousness they are accounted righteous in God's sight. (Oxford Dictionary of World Religions)
Beginning in the sixteenth-century, the German princes began to adopt Lutheranism to avoid the control of the Pope. However, the German monarchy soon began using religion as their own means of control. Religion was taught not only at church, but in school as well, even if the school was state-sponsored. Instilling a strong sense of religion and morals in the German children helped to further reinforce the ideas of good behavior, discipline, and authority. In fact, “Luther’s notion of inner freedom went along with an acquiescence in the social and political order in which duly constituted authority must be obeyed” (Bigler 426).
Although religious teachings were an important aspect of the lives of German children, some claim that the German middle-classes were relatively indifferent towards religion. There was a decline in church attendance, but many people still clung to religion as a means to ensure morality and hope. Religion in Germany during the nineteenth-century was a series of paradoxes.
Beliefs on Abortion
Beginning in the seventeenth-century, an embryo was believed to have a soul from conception onward. Abortion was seen as murder and considered a sin at any point during a pregnancy. Birth control was also not considered an appropriate moral choice. However, as Protestantism relied more heavily on the conscience of each individual rather than on mass beliefs, the morality of abortion and birth control was in question.
Beliefs on Suicide
"The brief review of biblical suicide seems to suggest that suicide was the consequence of sin" (Blacker). Throughout the eighteenth-century, radical thinkers attempted to justify suicide. In the nineteenth-century, however, thoughts on suicide changed and hardened. Martin Luther said, "I don't have the opinion that suicides are certainly to be damned. My reason is that they do not wish to kill themselves but are overcome by the power of the devil" (LCMS 7).
Atheism
Atheism is not a lack of belief in religion, but a lack of belief in a deity. During the nineteenth-century, several atheist belief systems took hold, most notably, Marxism:
Central to Marxist theory is an explanation of social change in terms of economic factors, according to which the means of production provide the economic base which determines or influences the political and ideological superstructure. The history of society can be viewed as showing progressive stages in the ownership of the means of production and, hence, the control of political power. Marx and Engels predicted the final revolutionary overthrow of capitalism by the proletariat and the eventual attainment of a classless communist society. (OED)
Sources:
Bigler, Robert M. "The Rise of Political Protestantism in Nineteenth Century Germany: The Awakening Of Political Consciousness and the Beginning of Political Activity in the Protestant Clergy Of Pre-March Prussia." Church History 34.4 (1965): 423-44. JSTOR. Web. 12 June 2012.
Blackbourn, David. The Long Nineteenth Century: A History of Germany, 1780 - 1918. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. Print.
Blacker, Russell. "Suicide Down the Ages: A Judeo-Christian Perspective." Christian Medical Fellowship. Christian Medical Fellowship. Web. 28 Sept. 2014.
"LCMS Views - Life Issues." LCMS - Frequently Asked Questions. Print.
Meyers Kleines Konversationslexikon. Leipzig and Vienna, 1908, vol. 2, pp. 332-33; reproduced in Helmut Walser Smith, German Nationalism and Religious Conflict: Culture, Ideology, Politics, 1870-1914. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1995, pp. 2-3.
The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Print.