Gustav Adolf Deissmann

07.11.1866 Langenscheid an der Lahn, 05.04.1937 Wunsdorf bei Berlin. Deissmann, Sohn eines lutherischen Pfarrers, besuchte zusammen mit T. Wiegand das humanistische Gymn. in Wiesbaden (1879-1885); hier wurde ihre lebenslange Freundschaft begrundet. Es folgte das Studium der evang. Theol. in Tubingen (1885-1888) u. Berlin (1888), wo er u. a von F. Piper (CA) u. von Alfred Stoecker (Sozialpolitik) gepragt wurde.

Adolf Deissmann (1866-1937) was a German theologian and classical philologist best know for his 1908 book, Licht vom Osten (Engl. Version, Light from the ancient East). He was Professor of theology at Heidelberg (1897-1908) and Berlin (1908-1935). At Heidelberg he produced pioneering works on ancient Greek philology and proved that the language of the New Testament was koine Greek, thus changing the course of biblical studies everywhere. Together with the classical philologist Albrecht Dieterich, he founded the intellectual discussion group Eranos, whose exclusive membership included men like Max Weber, Ernst Troeltsch and the archaeologist Friedrich von Duhn. Under the latter’s leadership he participated in a two-month philological study tour to many archaeological sites of ancient Greece. In 1909 he organised a second study tour from Berlin, this time to the Levant, where he first visited Ephesus and, significantly, befriended the archaeologist Josef Keil. Between 1914 and 1923 Deissmann published the weekly bulletins, Evangelische Wochenbriefe and its English edition, Protestant Weekly Letters (ceased 1917). These bulletins gave him internationally influential connections through which he was able - virtually single-handedly - to organise the necessary funds to revive the archaeological excavation of ancient Ephesus in 1926. Since archaeological work had ceased there in 1913, this 1600 ha site had become badly neglected, with much of it in imminent danger of permanent loss due to annual flooding and persistent looting. Deissmann was an integral team member in the first four excavation-seasons (1926-1929) and remained chair of the Ephesus trust until his death.