Karl Barth Audio

Karl Barth, who learned to speak english later in his life by reading novels, made one trip to the United States in 1962. The lectures he delivered upon this visit were compiled in a short volume, Evangelical Theology: An Introduction. In his introduction to the German edition of this book, Barth wrote:

I hope none of those who find the volumes of the Church Dogmatics too thick will complain about the energetic brevity with which I express myself here. Since I could not very well announce "Dogmatics" as a lecture topic for but one hour each week, I chose to use the opportunity of this swan song for another purpose. I wanted to render a short account to myself and my contemporaries of what, up to now, I have basically sought, learned, and represented from among all the paths and detours in the field of evangelical theology during my five years as a student, twelve years as a preacher, and subsequent forty years as a professor. Perhaps I also had the secondary intention of offering to the present-day younger generation a survey of an alternative to the mixophilosophicotheologia (a word coined by Abraham Calov in days long past!)-- to the mixture of philosophy and theology which, at present, seems to make such a tremendous impression upon many as the newest thing under the sun. I did not wish to do this in the form of a further Credo, an "Outline" of dogmatics or a comparable Summula. So I chose the form of an "introductory" presentation, which in all events had not appeared for some time in the program of study of our faculty at Basel (Evangelical Theology, xiii).

I presume that the six audio lectures hosted by faithquest are from these lectures. Where they are ultimately from doesn't make any difference-- they provide a fantastic opportunity to hear Barth lecture. The audio is clear and the overall sound is fantastic. I think you will find these lectures fascinating whether you have spent any time reading Barth or not. And, if you are a regular reader of Barth, this can give you a voice to go with the text in those sections where you need a little something extra to get through.
Community part (2)

Lecture 1 (Princeton)
Lecture 2 (Princeton)
The Spirit (1 of 2)
The Spirit (2 of 2)
Witness part (2)

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Comments

[Ben Myers]

Thanks a lot for finding the link to these lectures. My blog used to link to this page, but the URL changed and I was unable to find it again.

As you say, these lectures are from the 1962 American series on "Evangelical Theology" -- so they correspond to some of the chapters in the book Evangelical Theology. All the lectures were recorded in audio at the time, but these seem to be the only ones available online.

[K.G.H. Nicholes]

(August 2006) The full 1962 lectures audio set, plus additional photo and text material including a brief commentary by Dr. Markus Barth, is available at http://www.Barth1962.com. This newly published set is authorized by Dr. Barth's family, and sales produce royalties for Dr. Barth's publisher, TVZ. These lectures are still under copyright and are not legally available as free downloads.