BULTMANN, RUDOLF (KARL)

born Aug. 20, 1884, Wiefelstede, Ger. died July 30, 1976, Marburg, W.Ger. leading 20th-century New Testament scholar known for his program to demythologize the New Testament; i.e., to interpret, according to the concepts of Existentialist philosophy, the essential message of the New Testament that was expressed in mythical terms.