Gabler's inaugural address distinguishing biblical and dogmatic theology

Upon his appointment as a professor of theology at the University of Altdorf, Johann Philipp Gabler delivered an inaugural address titled On the Correct Distinction Between Dogmatic and Biblical Theology and the Right Definition of Their Goals. He sharply distinguished the two disciplines: biblical theology sets out what the sacred writers themselves thought, while dogmatic theology is a systematized construction built on the foundation of biblical theology and contextualized to the era in which it is to be proclaimed. The address is widely regarded as the founding moment of modern biblical theology.