Heinrich Klee was a German theologian and Biblical exegete who argued against liberal and Rationalist currents in Catholic thought.

At the age of seventeen he entered the seminary

Seminary

A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...

 at Mainz. In 1824, a year after his ordination, he was appointed to the professorship of exegesis

Exegesis

Exegesis is a critical explanation or interpretation of a text, especially a religious text. Traditionally the term was used primarily for exegesis of the Bible; however, in contemporary usage it has broadened to mean a critical explanation of any text, and the term "Biblical exegesis" is used...

 and ecclesiastical history in the same seminary, and in the following year also to that of philosophy. In the meantime he obtained the Doctorate of Theology from the University of Würzburg

University of Würzburg

The University of Würzburg is a university in Würzburg, Germany, founded in 1402. The university is a member of the distinguished Coimbra Group.-Name:...

 after presenting the thesis Tentamen theologico-historicum de chiliasmo primorum saecolurum. In 1829 the government of Baden

Baden

Baden is a historical state on the east bank of the Rhine in the southwest of Germany, now the western part of the Baden-Württemberg of Germany....

 tendered him the chair of exegesis at Freiburg

Freiburg

Freiburg im Breisgau is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. In the extreme south-west of the country, it straddles the Dreisam river, at the foot of the Schlossberg. Historically, the city has acted as the hub of the Breisgau region on the western edge of the Black Forest in the Upper Rhine Plain...

, vacated by Johann Leonhard Hug

Johann Leonhard Hug

Johann Leonhard Hug , was a German Roman Catholic theologian.-Life:In 1783 he entered the University of Freiburg, where he became a pupil in the seminary for the training of priests, and soon distinguished himself in classical and Oriental philology as well as in biblical exegesis and criticism...

, and at the same time the Prussia

Prussia

Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...

n authorities offered him a professorship either at Breslau or Bonn

Bonn

Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999....

.

He chose Bonn; but his position there was a difficult one. George Hermes and his ideas were strong there, and the presence of Klee, an exponent of orthodox Catholicism, was viewed with disfavour by his Rationalist colleagues. After ten years' stay at Bonn, during which he taught dogmatic and moral theology, the history of dogma and exegesis, Klee was induced by the conflict between the Archbishop von Droste-Vichering

Clemens August von Droste-Vischering

Baron Clemens August von Droste-Vischering, German Clemens August Freiherr von Droste-Vischering was an Archbishop of Cologne.-Biography:...

 of Cologne

Cologne

Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...

 and the Hermesian professors to accept the call to the University of Munich as successor to Mö in the chair of dogmatic theology and exegesis, but an early death carried him off within a year.

Published works

• Die Beicht, a work which shows his close acquaintance with the Fathers, published in Frankfurt in 1827.
• Commentar über das Evangelium nach Johannes (Commentary on the Gospel of John
  Gospel of John
  The Gospel According to John , commonly referred to as the Gospel of John or simply John, and often referred to in New Testament scholarship as the Fourth Gospel, is an account of the public ministry of Jesus...
  
  ; Mainz 1829);
• Commentar über den Romerbrief (Commentary on the 'Epistle to the Romans
  Epistle to the Romans
  The Epistle of Paul to the Romans, often shortened to Romans, is the sixth book in the New Testament. Biblical scholars agree that it was composed by the Apostle Paul to explain that Salvation is offered through the Gospel of Jesus Christ...
  
  '; Mainz 1830);
• Enclcylopädie des Theologie (Mainz 1832;
• Auslegung des Briefes an de Hebrä (Interpretation of the Letter to the Hebrews; Mainz 1883);
• Die Ehe, dogmatisch-arch-ä Abhandlung (Mainz 1833; 2nd Ed., 1835)
• Katholische Dogmatik in three volumes which went through four editions (Mainz 1834-5, 1840, 1844 and 1861)
• Lehrbuch der Dogmengeschichte in two volumes (Textbook on the History of Dogma; Mainz, 1837-8)
• A posthumous work, Grundris der Ethik was edited by Himioben (Mainz, 1843; 2nd ed. 1847).