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869 RELIGIOUS ENCYCLOPEDIA Ee ~k 1870-73; 2d ed., 1881-83; Eng. trand. by M. J. Evans, "System of Christian Certainty," Edin burgh, 1886). The great question which Frank attempted to answer in this work was the basis of belief. The answer is offered by the positive as surance of the Christian. The Christian is trans posed into a new state of life, and into a state of regeneration and conversion of which he becomes positively assured. This assurance, however, im plies also the assurance of an objective cause. Thus there result three groups of objects of Chris tian assurance; the immanent objects Theory of as the effects of the objective cause Christian inherent in the subject (knowledge Certitude. of sin; reality of the new life); the transcendent objects (God as the supramundane factor, the Trinity; the atoning God-Man); and the transmittent objects (the Word, the Sacraments, the Church), or the historical and concrete media. by which faith experiences the effect of the supramundane cause. Each of these three groups is opposed by a develop ment of modern intellectualism; so that rationalism denies the reality of the peculiar religious experi ence of the Christian; pantheism does away with the causality of a personal God; and criticism (as represented by Baur and Strauss) tries to prove the Church and church life to be merely natural phe nomena devoid of any specifically inherent trans cendent causality. According to Frank, the objects of faith are implied in the assertion of the Ego of the new man, and he is assured of them according to the degree of the certainty of that Ego concerning itself. Having thus acquired the realities of Christian faith, it is the task of dogmatics, as set forth by Frank in his System der ehristlichen Wahrheit (2 vols., Erlangen, 1878-80; 3d ed., 1893-94), to grasp and represent the objects of Christian faith in their inner connection. Here Dogmatic Frank no longer starts from sub System. jective assurance, but from the first cause of Christian realities, from the principium essendi, or God. His work accordingly represents the evolution of the humanity of God. The first part treats of the " principle of evolution " and establishes the doctrine of God. The second part is devoted to the " realization of evolution " in three divisions: generation (creation, world, man), degeneration (sin, devil), and regeneration, the latter comprising the humanity of God as being realized for the God-Man; the humanity of God as posited in the God-Man; -arad the humanity of God as evolving from the God-Man, that is (a) the humanity of God as the object of becoming (the means of grace); (b) the humanity of God as the subject of becoming (the order of salvation); and (c) the humanity of God as the object-subject of becoming (the Church). The third part describes the " aim of becoming," or eschatology. The life-work of Frank as a systematic theologian found its completion in his System der christlichen Sittlichksit (2 vole., Erlangen, 1884-87; Eng. transl., System of the Christian Certainty, Edinburgh, 1886.) The leading point of view in this work is the "evolu tion ofthe God-Man." Frank attacked the theology IV. 24 of Riteehl in his Ueber die kirchliehe Bedeutung der Theologie A. Ritschls (Leipsie, 1888), arid Zur Theologie A. Ritachls (3d. ed., 1891); and he also wrote Evangelische Schulreden (Altenburg, 1856); Die Theologie der Concordienformel (4 vols., Erlangen, 1858-65); Aus dem Leben christlieher Frouen (Gii tersloh, 1873); Dogmatische Studien (Leipsic, 1892); Vademeeum fur angehende Theologen (1892); and Geschichte and Kritik der neueren Theologie (1894; 3d ed., 1898). (R. SEEBERG.)
BIBLIOGRAPHY: B.. Seeberg, F. H. R. von Frank; sin Godenkblatl, Leipsie, 1894; J. Gottechiek, Die Kirchlicdkeit der eogenannten kircklirhen Theolopie, pp. 110 aqq., Freiburg, 1890; F. Nippold, Handbuch der neueeten Kirdeengeechichte, iii., part 1, pp. 495 eqq., Berlin, 1890; O. PHeidrrer, Die Entuicklung der protestantisdaen Theologfe aeit Rant, pp. 183 sqq., Freiburg, 1891; G. Daxer, Der $ubjektivismus in Franks '-System der chrisaichen Getoieeheit" Giltersloh, 1900; F. K. E. Weber, F. H. R. non Franks GoUeelehre, Leipsic, 1001.
FRANK, GUSTAV WILHELM: German Protestant; b. at Schleiz (24 m. s.w. of Gam) Sept. 25, 1832; d. at Vienna Sept. 24, 1904. He studied at Jena, where he became privat-docent in 1859 and was appointed associate professor of theology in 1864. In 1867 he was called to Vienna as full professor of dogmatic and symbolic theology, and the same year became a member of the Evangelical ecclesiastical council in Vienna. He edited E. F. Apelt's Religionsphilosophie (Leipsic, 1860), and wrote Memorabilia qucedam Flocciana (Schleiz, 1856); De Luthero rationaZismi prcecursore (Leip-. sic, 1857); De Academia Jenensi evangelicce veritatis altrice (Sehleiz, 1858); Die jenaisehe Thealogie in ihrer geschichtllichen Entwickelung (Leipsic, 1858); De Matthim Flacii Myrici in ltxbros aacros meritis (1859); Geschichte der protestantischen Theo l" (vols. i. iii., 1862-75, vol. iv., with Lebensabriss by G. L6sche, 1905); Johann Major, der Wittenberger Poet (Halls, 1863); Das Toleranzpatent Kaiser Joseph 11 (Vienna, 1882); and Symbolce ad recentiorem C. R. ordinia Theologorum evangelicorum Vindobonensia historaam congest&, (1896).
FRANK, JACOB (Jankiev Lebowicz): Jewish adventurer, founder of the sect of Frankiate; b. in Podolia c.1720; d. at Offenbach (4 m. e. of Frankfort) Dec. 10, 1791. He was the son of a rabbi and originally a distiller, but afterward traveled as a merchant in Turkey, where he received the surname of Frank, the usual designation for Occidentals among the Turks. In Turkey he lived chiefly in Salonica and Smyrna, the centers of Shabbe: thaianism, and himself became a prominent member of the sect of Shabbethak Zebi. On his return to. Poland he became famous as a cabalist. In 1755 he settled in Podolia, gathered about him a group of local sectaries and began to preach to them a new gospel. The essence of his teaching semis to have been a negation of moral 'and religious laws, his mission, in his own words; being " to free the world from the laws and regulations which have hitherto existed." When it leaked out that at his meetings orgies were celebrated similar to those of the Adamites (q.v.), the Roman Catholics joined the orthodox Jews in the suppression of the Frankist sect. At the rabbinical court held at Sovanta