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Concordia Journal CONCORDIA JOURNAL Volume 32 April 2006 Number 2 CONTENTS EDITORIALS Editor’s Note .............................................................................. 126 Theological Observer ................................................................. 128 ARTICLES Aspects of Lutheran Identity: A Confessional Perspective Werner Klän ..............................................................................133 Luther Discovers the Gospel: Coming to the Truth and Confessing the Truth Robert Rosin ......................................................................... 147 Luther at Worms and Wartburg: Still Confessing Robert Rosin.............................................................................. 161 Here We Stand: Confessing the Faith in Luther’s Footsteps from Worms to Smalcald Robert Kolb ........................................................................... 175 The Formula of Concord as a Model for Discourse in the Church Robert Kolb ........................................................................... 189 GRAMMARIAN’S CORNER................................................................211 HOMILETICAL HELPS .................................................................. 214 BOOK REVIEWS ............................................................................... 238 BOOKS RECEIVED ........................................................................... 252 CONCORDIA JOURNAL/APRIL 2006 125 Editor’s Note The five articles presented in this issue were originally given at the twenty-first conference of the International Lutheran Council (ILC), which met in Berlin, Germany, from August 27 to September 2, and are publishered here by permission of the ILC. The conference, which involved bishops and presidents from twenty-five Lutheran churches was hosted by the Independent Evangelical Lutheran Church (SELK) in Germany. The ILC is an association of confessional Lutheran churches from all over the world to promote the proclamation of the Gospel according to the Lutheran Confessions. It represents the more conservative churches of the Lutheran family. Lutheranism is the largest group within Protestant- ism, with over 69.5 million members. It traces its beginning to the six- teenth-century reformer Martin Luther. Dr. Werner Klän, Professor of Systematic Theology at the Lutherische Theologische Hochschule in Oberursel, Germany, delivered the keynote address, in which he emphasized the importance of the Lutheran Confes- sions for the church today. After pointing out that one fundamental char- acteristic of the Lutheran church is that it is a “confessional” church, he examines what Luther understood by the concept of the church being con- fessional. Confessions, which give identity to a church body, must be based on Scripture as the origin and founding document of the Christian faith. He then raises the question of “Lutheran identity” for the Lutheran church in Germany today in light of the Leuenberg Concord which was intended to bridge the differences between the Lutheran, United, and Reformed churches and what this means for SELK. Confessional statements keep the church grounded in the Word of God, provide a means of identity, and supply a guideline whereby Christians can understand and articulate their faith. In his article, “Luther Discovers the Gospel: Coming to the Truth and Confessing the Truth,” Dr. Robert Rosin begins with Martin Luther’s self- confession to being the son of a peasant who earned university degrees, turned from a future legal career to become an monk, then clashed with the church of his day, and married a nun. As Luther wrestled with the theological issues of his day, he was led to confess a different theology than what he had initially learned. Luther rediscovered the Gospel message of God’s promise of redemption in Christ and spent his life confessing and teaching that faith. In his article, “Luther at Worms and the Wartburg: Still Confessing,” Dr. Rosin starts with a discussion of Luther’s boldness and the risks he took in standing up to the emperor and church when he confessed, “Here I stand....” Luther did not take his stand simply to be contrary to the church of his day or to establish for himself a personality cult, but, in reexamining Scripture, he became convinced that comfort in Christ’s cross can be grasped 126 only by faith. Luther found some theological/confessional company in indi- viduals like Johannes Brenz and Martin Bucer. Luther went on to write over 120 thick volumes in which he set forth his beliefs about the teach- ings of Scripture and the true contents of the Christian faith, until he made his final confession on his deathbed when he affirmed that he be- lieved in Christ as the Son of God, who was his Savior and Redeemer. Dr. Robert Kolb, in his article, “Here We Stand: Confessing the Faith in Luther’s Footsteps from Worms to Smalcald,” notes the infrequent oc- currences in the history of the church of a religious figure being sum- moned to testify before the highest secular governmental power and ap- pealing to Scripture and conscience against the church and civil powers as Luther had done at the Diet of Worms. Luther’s confession at Worms in- volved a new understanding of human identity in relation to God, based on his distinction of the two kinds of righteousness. On the basis of his new insights into the relation between human beings and God, he formulated his theology of the cross. The Lutheran understanding of what makes human beings righteous before God, namely, faith in the merits of Christ, remain his, and our, most important contribution to ecumenical discus- sions in the church today. Luther began a habit of confessing his faith at the Diet of Worms and remained convinced that confessing the faith is a vital part of being children of God. In his second article, “The Formula of Concord as a Model for Dis- course in the Church,” Dr. Kolb points out that the “Formula of Concord” was the last of the confessional writings of the Lutheran church and was intended to bring harmony to strife-ridden churches of the time. It was to be a binding summary of Christian teachings regarding certain articles of faith that were in dispute at the time among different factions of Lutherans, such as the Gnesio-Lutherans, the Philippists, and the Crypto-Calvinists. Harmony was restored due to the dedication of men, such as, Jakob Andreae and his colleagues to the confession of the faith and the unity of the church. After more than four hundred years, the “Formula of Concord” still serves as an expression and confession of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and as a model for theological discourse in the church. It is our privilege to make these articles available to more people in the church and world. Quentin F. Wesselschmidt CONCORDIA JOURNAL/APRIL 2006 127 Theological Observer Pastoral Questions about Immigration Problems One of the results of our Synod’s fiscal crisis which precipitated its organizational downsizing three years ago is that now there is no Hispanic administrative presence for Hispanic ministry at the International Cen- ter. Hispanics involved in educational or district programs around the Synod do what they can, but there is no center to channel questions and con- cerns. In practical terms, Concordia Seminary’s Hispanic Institute has be- come the default depository of a variety of questions and complaints re- lated to ministry to Hispanics. On lighter occasions, I am called upon to suggest a Spanish language school in the U.S. or Central America, a pos- sible servant event site in the States where someone’s child or grandchild could get some safe exposure to Hispanic culture. The tone of the question becomes darker, however, when a pastor calls to ask if he should report a worshipper whom he suspects is undocumented to the Immigration Ser- vice. In early October 2005, questions revolving around immigration seemed to dominate one of my workweeks. Early in the week, I finished editing the DVD summary of our June day-long workshop entitled Immigration and the Law which is jointly sponsored by Lutheran Immigration and Refu- gee Service and the seminary. This tool should be available to the Synod in early 2006. Over the next three days of the week, I received queries about immigration problems that prompt me to suggest the need for broad theo- logical conversation about the nation’s immigration crisis. The first series of questions came from a circuit counselor of a midwestern district: We have this problem. Hispanics are responding to our mission efforts. They are forming worshipping groups. When it comes to organizing and church polity, we really are not sure what to do because so many of them are not here legally…they really do not exist before the law, so they really cannot become voting members and sign our constitution or hold offices…or could they? Our his- toric polity suggests a congregation-based government that has a stable base for calling its pastoral leader. Here we have a numer- ous but quite fluid congregational base which probably cannot be legally responsible. Who calls and directs the missionary-pastor? The “Theological Observer” serves as a forum for comment on, assessment of, and reactions to developments and events in the church at large, as well as in the world of theology generally. Since areas of expertise, interest, and perceptions often vary, the views presented in this section will not always reflect the opinion of the editorial committee. 128 The next day another pastor from another state called to present this problem:
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