Urlsperger, Johann August

Urlsperger, Johann August a German theologian and controversialist, was born Nov. 25, 1728, and during most of his public life was pastor and senior at Augsburg. He was possessed of great learning and penetration, and was a fearless arid earnest thinker. He was also a foremost champion of evangelical truth against the attacks of the philosophical and rationalizing neologies of his country, and contributed several trenchant works to the literature of that controversy, among them, Versuche einer genauen Bestimmung des Geheiimnisses Gottes (1769-74, 4 pts. 4to): — Kurzge Jasstes System der Dreieinigkeitslehre: —Traktat vom gottlichen Ebenbilde. He founded the "Deutsche Christenthums Gesellschaft" (German Society for Christianity), the idea for which he took from the British Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (founded 1698) and the Swedish society "De Fide et Christianismo." The society was first established in Basle, but failed to undertake the work for which Urlsperger had called it into being-the advocacy and defense of pure doctrine-and devoted its efforts rather to the promotion of true piety. Though disappointed, Urlsperger gave his services repeatedly to the society, and continued to travel over the Continent and to England in its behalf, until he died at Hamburg, Dec. 1, 1806. See Herzog, Real Encyklop. s.v.; but comp. Smith's Hagenbach, Hist. of Doctrines, § 295, p. 3.