Rudolf Bultmann, in full Rudolf Karl Bultmann (born August 20, 1884, Wiefelstede, Germany—died July 30, 1976, Marburg, West Germany), 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.