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At the turn of the twentieth century Adolf von Harnack was among the most influential theological figures in the United States. But by mid-century, his influence had seemingly declined due his role in World War I and the rise of alternative historiographical methodologies such as the History of Religions School. Did Harnack’s influence actually disappear, or did it adapt to the intellectual and social context of the United States? This paper examines how two of Harnack’s students – William Adams Brown and Arthur Cushman McGiffert, both leading figures at Union Theological Seminary – were responding to and accommodating the challenges brought by the History-of-Religions School, focusing on how they re-imagined the relationship between descriptive and normative approaches. In what ways were they reconceiving the relationship between ‘historical’ and ‘systematic’ theology? To what extent did Harnack’s influence persist? And how might this alternative account transform our understanding of the development of theology in twentieth-century America?