Von Hügel, Friedrich

(1852–1925)

   Ecumenist, Philosopher and Theologian.

   Von Hügel was born in Florence and was of Austrian-Scottish ancestry. For most of his life he lived in England where he was regarded as an important figure in the Catholic Modernist movement. A personal friend of loisy and tyrrell, he was the author of works such as the Mystical Element in Religion, Eternal Life and The Reality of God. He accepted the findings of biblical criticism and constantly wrestled with the problem of the relationship of Christianity and history. Although his activities were regarded with suspicion by the Roman Catholic hierarchy, he was an influential figure in his time. A prolific letter writer, he was a committed ecumenist and was a founder member of the London Society for the Study of Religion, which brought Jewish and Christian scholars together.

   L.F. Barmann, Baron von Hügel (1972);

   M.D. Petre, Von Hügel and Tyrrell: The Story of a Friendship (1937).