Milestone: Helmut Koester (1926–2016)

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The year was 1945, and 18-year-old German navy officer Helmut Koester became an American prisoner of war. He spent the remainder of the war in a German prisoner-of-war camp.

Under the shadow of World War II, Koester was confirmed into the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Germany. Romans 1:16, a verse he chose himself, was his mantra: “I am not ashamed of the Gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”

“I certainly did not fully realize then the implications of that statement,” reflected Koester much later in life. “What I realized at that time, however, was the vision of an alternative that would enable me to hang on to my Christian identity in spite of all the compromises that were required to survive in evil times. Yet, I still thought I had to obey the authorities of the state and serve my country. Little did I know that it was this faith, of which the Epistle to the Romans speaks—the utter reliance upon God’s loving acceptance—that would be the only thing that finally remained, when all the heroism and all the great deeds had been shattered and brought to naught.”^a

In the midst of Nazi Germany, this verse was a powerful choice and reflects the type of scholar and man Koester would become.

On January 1, 2016, at the age of 89, Helmut Koester died.

The John H. Morison Professor of New Testament Studies and Winn Professor of Ecclesiastical History Emeritus at Harvard Divinity School was one of the most eminent scholars of Christian Origins, with a career that spanned more than five decades. Drawing on his life verse, he is known for bridging boundaries both personally and professionally.

After the war Koester was released from the POW camp and studied theology at the University of Marburg under the direction of the legendary Rudolf Bultmann, earning his doctorate of theology (Th.D.) in 1954. He was ordained in the Lutheran Church in 1956, the year he became an assistant professor at the University of Heidelberg. Three years later he moved to America and joined the faculty at Harvard Divinity School, where he remained for the duration of his career. His students include such luminaries as Harry Attridge and Adela Yarbro Collins.

Koester received a Guggenheim Fellowship and American Council of Learned Societies Fellowships. He served as President of the Society of Biblical Literature and as an American Academy of Arts and Sciences fellow. Two tribute volumes have been written in his honor, and he was awarded two honorary doctorates.¹ Despite his official r etirement in 1998, he remained active with teaching and research until his death.

Koester wrote many scholarly books and articles, as well as pieces for the general public, particularly in BAR and Bible Review.

Koester’s wife, Gisela, and four children survive him.

The year was 1945, and 18-year-old German navy officer Helmut Koester became an American prisoner of war. He spent the remainder of the war in a German prisoner-of-war camp.