Mourning for Professor Dr Thomas M. Schmidt

The members of the Max-Weber-Kolleg bid farewell to Professor Thomas M. Schmidt, philosopher of religion at Johann Wolfgang Goethe University Frankfurt, who died unexpectedly on 31 December 2025 at the age of just 65. In 2011 and 2012, he was a fellow at the Max-Weber-Kolleg for two years and worked on a project entitled "Subjective certainty of faith and intersubjective justification. On the normative and epistemic status of religious convictions under post-secular conditions."

In his employees, Schmidt, who completed his doctorate under Jürgen Habermas, focussed on the relationship between faith, reason and modern society. With his passing, the philosophy of religion has lost a profound expert and a scholar who was keen to discuss religious experiences and attitudes such as hope in modern societies. "We will honour his memory with gratitude," said Hartmut Rosa, Director of the Max-Weber-Kolleg.