Concordia Theological Quarterly

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Concordia Theological Quarterly CONCORDIA THEOLOGICAL QUARTERLY Volume 43, Number l JUNE 1979 Discord, Dialogue, and Concord: The Lutheran Reformation's Formula of Concord .... ,. Lewis W. Spitz 183 Higher Criticism and the Incarnation in The Thought of I.A. Dorner. ........ John M. Drickamer 197 The Quranic Christ.. .................................. C. George Fry 207 Theological Observer ........................................................... 222 Book Reviews . ............. 226 Books Received .................................................................... 250 CONCORDIA THEOLOGICAL QUARTERLY ISSN 0038-8610 Issued Quarterly by the Faculty of Concordia Theological Seminary The Concordia Theological Quarterly, a continuation of The Springfielder, is a theological journal of the Lutheran Church~ Missouri Synod, published for its ministerium by the faculty of Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana. DAVID P. SCAER, Editor, DOUGLAS JUDISCH, Assistant Editor, GERHARD AHO, Homiletical Editor, RAYMOND F. SURBURG, Book Review Editor, HEINO KADAI, ROBERT D. PREUS, Associate Editors. The Faculty: GERHARD AHO, HAROLD BULS, ROBERT H. COLLINS, G. WALDEMAR DEGNER, HENRY J. EGGOLD, JR., C. GEORGE FRY, WILLIAM G. HOUSER, HARRY A. HUTH, DOUGLAS JUDISCH, HEINO KADAI, EUGENE F. KLUG, MARTIN F. LUEBKE, WALTER A. MAIER, KURT MARQUART, NORBERT MUELLER, ROBERT D. PREUS, DANIEL G. REUNING, JOHN SALESKA, DAVID P. SCAER, AL VIN J. SCHMIDT, HERBERT SIMS, OTTO F. STAHLKE, BARBARA STEEGE, MARK J. STEEGE, RAYMOND F. SURBURG, HOWARD W. TEPKER, JAMES VOELZ, MICHAEL WARNER, WILLIAM WEINRICH, WARREN WILBERT, MELVIN ZILZ, and ROGER HUMANN (St. Catharines, Ontario campus). The CONCORDIA THEOLOGICAL QUARTERLY is published quarterly in January, April, July, and October. Changes of address for Missouri Synod clergymen reported to Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, Missouri, will also cover the mailing change of the CONCORDIA THEOLOGICAL QUARTERLY. Other changes of address, paid subscriptions, and other business matters should be sent to CONCORDIA THEOLOGICAL QUARTERLY, Concordia Theological Seminary, 6600 North Clinton Street, Fort Wayne, Indiana 46825. Annual subscription rate: $5.00. © Concordia Theological Seminary Press 1979 Discord, Dialogue, and Concord: 183 Discord, Dialogue, and Concord The Lutheran Reformation's Formula of Concord Lewis W. Spitz The Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, observing the religious strife of the day, commented sardonically, "How absurd to try to m~e two men think alike on matters of religion, when I cannot make two timepieces agree!" Since his day the chorus ofreligious belief and opinion has become increasingly cacaphonous, so that the celebration of the four hundredth anniversary of the Formu­ la of Concord, a confession which restored a good measure of harmony to a strife-ridden segment of the church, is an event of deep significance. Commemorations of Protestant confessions have at times in the past been not merely devout, but also parti­ san, sentimental, monumental, and even self-congratulatory or triumphalist, but ours must be done in a more reflective and analytical mood. The church of the Reformation, too, may bene­ fit from reform and renewal. In the Frankfurter gelehrten Anzeiger (1772) Goethe mocked the iconoclastic zeal of the "en­ lightened reformers" of his day, who were even urging the reform of Lutheranism. But, as Luther himself realized, such great things are not in the hands of man, but of God. "Quando enim Deus ver­ bum emittit," he wrote, "szo geets mit Gewalt!"I From Leonhard Hutterus' Libri christianae Concordiae: Sym­ boli' ecclesiarum Gnesios Lutheranarum (Wittenberg, 1609) to the contemporary work of Edmund Schlink, Holsten Fagerberg, Willard Dow Allbeck, and a host of others, the bibliography on the history and theology of the Lutheran Confessions has reached staggering proportions, so that it is not without trepidation that the non-specialist dares venture into the field. 2 The modest aim of this paper will be to open up some critical matters for discussion, not to offer definitive statements or formulae. It will begin with a bit of historical revisionism and rehearse briefly a bit of the For­ mula's Entstehungsgeschichte, underlining the drive toward unity against a background of dissension and accenting some remark­ able aspects of the story. It will then address some major problems involved in confessionalism, the problem of authority in Protestantism, the relation of church structure to dogmatic emphasis, the function of confessions, some matters of interpre­ tation of the Formula then and now, and the role of confessions 184 CONCORDIA THEOLOGICAL QUARTERLY today. That is a tall order for a short paper, which will have to rely on suggestion and summary statement rather than upon fully developed argument. 1. A very widespread misreading of the history of the second half of the sixteenth century which has affected the common un­ derstanding of the Formula of Concord is the myth of Lutheran stagnation especially in contrast to the aggrandizement of a more militant Calvinism. Just as the old view that the evangelical move­ ment faltered as a spontaneous popular movement following the debacle of the Peasants' Revolt in 1525 has been discarded in the light of new historical evidence of the urban expansion of the l\e­ formation and the evangelization of the countryside after 1530,-!io the picture of a passive and static Lutheranism in the second half of the century is being thoroughly revised. Lutheranism con­ tinued to be vigorous and expansive duri_n.g the second half of the century. Although most Lutheran territories were Lutheran in name prior to the Peace of Augsburg(1555), several of the largest states such as Prussia and Sweden were satisfactorily reor­ ganized only in the latter half of the century. The consolidation of those territories continued up until the outbreak of the Thirty Year's War. As late as the year 1598 Strassburg turned Lutheran and subscribed to the Formula of Concord. Even the Palatinate, the center of the Reformed churches in the Empire which had Cal­ vinist presbyteries from 1570 on, became Lutheran in 1576 and re­ mained so for seven· years. Moreover, the evidence is, mounting that Renaissance humanism continued far into the Reformation era as a major cul­ tural force and was expanded and popularized through the Pro­ testant educational program. 3 The Lutheran area of Silesia was of great significance for the cultural history of confessionalism, for during the decades between the Reformation and the Enlight­ enment it led Germany in literature and philosophy with Martin Opitz formulating the laws for modern high German literature and Christian Wolff most prominent as the leading philosopher. In 1558 Melanchthon had declared quite sincerely that Silesia could boast of having more men learned in the humanities than any other area of Germany. 4 Even during the three decades of the doctrinal controversies follo'¢ing the death of Luther, the open­ ing of the Council of Trent, the trauma of the Interims, and the Peace of Augsburg, the very tumult and the shouting, vehemence and acrimony, the abuse and heated emotions bore negative wit­ ness to the fact that people cared and were very much alive, con­ cerned, and energetic. 2. The Formula of Concord owed its origin to the fear of disin- Discord, Dialogue, and Concord: 185 tegratiolf, weariness with dissension, and a positive desire for unity witbin Lutheranism. Protestantism, because of its lack of a supreme centralized authority and its emphasis upon the indivi­ dual's explicit faith has always carried within it a potential for complete organizational disintegration. With deviations from the central church pattern toward individualism on one hand and toward sectarianism on the other, according to Ernst Troeltsch's well-known diagram, it has come to resemble nothing so much as a banyan tree. Yet; the fact that ninety percent of its adherents are nominally members of a few major persuasions is all the more astonishing. Such cohesion despite all the centrifugal forces_ brought to bear upon the church may perhaps be explained his­ torically by three factors. The one is a generally observable phenomenon that while ideas make for change in history, institu­ tions provide stability, which gives a long term advantage to or­ ganization over individualism. The second is the fact that in early modern times political powers which insisted upon religious uni­ formity for the good of the state dominated the church. The third was the development of a general adherence and loyalty to the major c6nfessions, whether that be the Confessio Helveticus Posterior, the Westminster Confession, or the Formula of Concord.5 The desire of rulers for uniformity within the state increased with princely particularism, and the growth in power of natural monarchs added to the traditional proprietary church arrange­ ments. In 1536 the Swedish statesman Axel Oxenstierna told his colleagues on the council that religion "is the great vinculum communis affectus et societatis humanae and there is no greater or stronger nexus concordiae ac communitatis than unitas religionis. 6 Sweden was out of line with German Lutheranism, for it did not include the Liber Concordiae among its symbola until late in the next century. At Uppsala in1593 the opportunity to in­ clude it was missed and the ordinace on religion in 1663 and the draft of the Church Ordinance of 1682 really merely recommend­ ed it as an explanation of the Augsburg Confession. It was only by his Church Law of 1686 that Charles XI at last gave the Formula of Concord a quasi-symbolic character. 7 Jn·the case of Sweden, however, the church assembly and, in line with it, the kings and parliaments reinforced religious unity, and the one case of possible royal deviation toward Catholicism proved not to be a serious threat. Ecclesiastical and secular government did in the case of Sweden, by way of example, present further fragmenta­ tion of the church. There can be no doubt that the confessions played an important 186 CONCORDIA THEOLOGICAL QUARTERLY role in preventing the doctrinal and organizational .disinte­ gration of Protestantism, and among these the Formula"Of Con­ cord merits an honored place.
Recommended publications
  • Book Reviews
    BOOK REVIEWS THE COUNCIL, REFORM AND REUNION. By Hans Kling. Translated by Cecily Hastings. New York, Sheed & Ward, 1961. $3.95. Farber Hans Kling, Professor of Fundamental Theology in the Catholic Theological Faculty of the University of Tubingen, has been rightfully hailed as a major theological talent of this decade. His most recent work, The Council, Reform and Remzion is one of the most important books on the Christian scene today. With extreme penetration and clarity, it is ad­ dressed explicitly to the problems and prospects of the Second Vatican Council. It is living and practical in that it does not deal with vague gen­ eralities but goes directly to the heart of things in proposing what the Council must do. Fr. Kiing does not claim that the Council will effect reunion but he does claim that it will be a step toward it. The Council, he teaches, will lay the groundwork for reunion. He follows Pope John in envisioning how this will happen. The Pope's inaugural encyclical, Ad Petri Cathedram, made it clear that the irresistible hope of assurance for reunion is bound up with the increase of the Catholic faith, with a true renewal of morality among Christian people, and with the adaptation of ecclesiastical discipline to the needs and conditions of our time. The Second Vatican Council is to do something totally different from all the wholly theoretical and ineffectual appeals to "return" which have rung out so often. The Pope is confident that a council which achieves these practical tasks will, as he says, "itself be a gentle invitation to our separated brethren to seek and .find true unity." Fr.
    [Show full text]
  • Protestant Dissent in Nazi Germany: the Confessing Church Struggle with Hitler's Government
    Western Washington University Western CEDAR WWU Honors Program Senior Projects WWU Graduate and Undergraduate Scholarship Spring 2001 Protestant Dissent in Nazi Germany: The Confessing Church Struggle with Hitler's Government Jenisa Story Western Washington University Follow this and additional works at: https://cedar.wwu.edu/wwu_honors Part of the European History Commons Recommended Citation Story, Jenisa, "Protestant Dissent in Nazi Germany: The Confessing Church Struggle with Hitler's Government" (2001). WWU Honors Program Senior Projects. 348. https://cedar.wwu.edu/wwu_honors/348 This Project is brought to you for free and open access by the WWU Graduate and Undergraduate Scholarship at Western CEDAR. It has been accepted for inclusion in WWU Honors Program Senior Projects by an authorized administrator of Western CEDAR. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Protestant Dissent in Nazi Germany: The Confessing Church Struggle with Hitler's Government Jenisa Story Advisor: Dr. Harry Ritter Honors Project June 4, 2001 An equal OP/JOrtunity university Honors Program Bellingham, Washington 98225-9089 (360)650-3034 Fax (360) 650-7305 HONORS THESIS In presenting this honors paper in partial requirements for a bachelor's degree at Western Washington University, I agree that the Library shall make its copies freely available for inspection. I further agree that extensive copying of this thesis is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood that any publication of this thesis for commercial purposes or for financial gain shall not be al1owed without my written permission. Signature r Date ~ - 3-JOOI Protestant Dissent in Nazi Germany: The Confessing Church Struggle with Hitler's Government Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established.
    [Show full text]
  • Die Propsteien / Kirchenkreise in Nordelbien
    Landeskirchliches Archiv Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Norddeutschland Die Propsteien / Kirchenkreise in Nordelbien Schriften des Landeskirchlichen Archivs der Nordkirche Band 2 1 IMPRESSUM Als Manuskript vervielfältigt. Mai 2016 Herausgegeben vom Landeskirchlichen Archiv Postfach 34 49, 24033 Kiel Tel. 04 31 / 64 98 6 - 0 Fax 04 31 / 68 08 36 E-Mail: [email protected] Internet: www.archivnordkirche.de Autor: Benjamin Hein Das Werk ist urheberrechtlich geschützt. Die dadurch begründeten Rechte, insbesondere das Recht der Vervielfältigung und Verbreitung sowie der Übersetzung und des Nachdrucks, bleiben, auch bei nur auszugsweiser Verwertung, vorbehalten. Kein Teil dieses Werkes darf in irgendeiner Form (Druck, Fotokopie, Mikrofilm oder ein anderes Verfahren) ohne schriftliche Genehmigung des Landeskirchlichen Archivs der Nordkirche reproduziert oder unter Verwendung elektronischer Systeme verarbeitet, vervielfältigt oder verbreitet werden. Die Angaben wurden mit großer Sorgfalt erhoben. Eine Gewähr kann jedoch nicht gegeben werden. Die Informationen sind auch im Internet unter: www.archivnordkirche.de zu finden. 2 Inhalt Vorwort ......................................................................................................................................................... 4 Kirchenkreis Altholstein ........................................................................................................................... 6 Kirchenkreis Dithmarschen ...................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Book Reviews
    CONCORDIA THEOLOGICAL QUARTERLY Volume 43, Number'4 JUNE 1979 Discord, Dialogue, and Concord: The Lutheran Reformation's Formula of Concord .... ;. Leu is W. Spitz 183 Higher Criticism and the Incarnation in The Thought of I.A. Domer ......... John M. Ilrickamer 197 The Quranic Christ .................................... C. George Fry 207 Theological Observer ........................................................-..222 Book Reviews .................................................................... 226 Books Received .................................................................... 250 246 CONCORDlA THEOLOGlCAL QUARTERLY Book Reviews 1. Biblical Studies THESE THINGS ARE WRITTEN. AN INTRODUCTION TO THE RELIGIOUS IDEAS OF THE BIBLE. By James M. Efird. John Knox Press, Abanta, 1978. 169 pages. Paper. $4.95. James Efird, who is currently Associate Professor of Biblical Languages and Interpretation at Duke Divinity School, has endeavored to meet the needs of academic and religous communities to furnish an introduction to the religious thought of the Bible. The former Director of Academic Affairs presents for the reader the fruits of his scholarship to enlighten current and historical issues in modem Biblical studies. The presuppositions which underly this volume are those of the various forms of the historical-critical method. The entire literature, as well as the views of con- servative Biblical scholarship, is ignored. Efird especially considers the chronological development of the religious ideas of the Bible. Thus he covers the Pentateuch, the development of the Old Testament, the conquest and the king- dom, the prophets, and the post-exilic period. Then Efird focuses on the New Testament, its background as well as the rise of the apocalyptic writings. Bibliu- graphies are given at the end of each chapter to encourage further study. With few exceptions all books suggested for further reading advocate the historical- critical approach to Scripture and even the few he recommends (Bruce and Ladd) have made concessions to a negative form of higher criticism.
    [Show full text]
  • PRESENTATION CHRISTIAN CONVICTION and CULTURAL ACCOMODATION North Carolina Council of Churches Greensboro, North Carolina Februa
    PRESENTATION CHRISTIAN CONVICTION AND CULTURAL ACCOMODATION North Carolina Council of Churches Greensboro, North Carolina February 21, 2011 THE BARMEN DECLARATION (by Bob Osborn) The Barmen Declaration The Declaration was published in May, 1934, by the Confessing Synod of the German Evvangelical (Protestant) church that is, the Reformed, Lutheran and United churches, meeting in the Reformed church of Barmen. The occasion was a critical, threatening division of the church brought about by the German Christian faction within the church. It was drafted by a theological committee appointed by the churches. It consisted of two Lutheran pastors, a Lutheran professor and one Reformed professor, Swiss Professor Karl Barth, of Bonn University. During the nap time of the committee meeting, after lunch, when the others were sleeping, Karl Barth drafted the Declaration. In most respects it is a fine statement of Barth=s theology. At the same time, it brings together concerns of both the Reformed and Lutheran churches, but above all it addresses the problems posed by the German Christians that were threatening the church. In effect it sets forth a doctrine of the church. It has been adopted by Reformed churches throughout the world as a confession of their faith. Lutherans, on the other hand who really acknowledge only one confession, the Augsburg Confession, regarded it as a Declaration of the Confessing Church only for the particular time that it was drafted, that is during the Nazi era. It should be noticed that it did not directly address the political situation, that is Nazism. It spoke to the reality of the of the day only indirectly as it spoke to the church.
    [Show full text]
  • The Postwar Transformation of German Protestantism
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Carolina Digital Repository FAITH AND DEMOCRACY: POLITICAL TRANSFORMATIONS AT THE GERMAN PROTESTANT KIRCHENTAG, 1949-1969 Benjamin Carl Pearson A dissertation submitted to the faculty of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of History. Chapel Hill 2007 Approved by: Dr. Konrad H. Jarausch Dr. Christopher Browning Dr. Chad Bryant Dr. Lloyd Kramer Dr. Terence McIntosh ©2007 Benjamin Carl Pearson ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii ABSTRACT BENJAMIN CARL PEARSON: Faith and Democracy: Political Transformations at the German Protestant Kirchentag, 1949-1969 (Under the direction of Konrad H. Jarausch) In the decades following World War II, German Protestants worked to transform their religious tradition. While this tradition had been previously characterized by rigidly hierarchical institutional structures, strong nationalist leanings, and authoritarian political tendencies, the experiences of dictatorship and defeat caused many Protestants to question their earlier beliefs. Motivated by the desire to overcome the burden of the Nazi past and by the opportunity to play a major role in postwar rebuilding efforts, several groups within the churches worked to reform Protestant social and political attitudes. As a result of their efforts, the churches came to play an important role in the ultimate success and stability of West German democracy. This study examines this transformation at the meetings of the German Protestant Kirchentag, one of the largest and most diverse postwar gatherings of Protestant laity. After situating the Kirchentag within the theological and political debates of the immediate postwar years, it focuses on changing understandings of the role of the church in society, the pluralization of Protestant political attitudes, and the shift from national to international self-understandings within the churches.
    [Show full text]
  • 1 Reinhart Staats, Hans Asmussen Und Der Deutsche Antisemitismus In
    1 Reinhart Staats, Hans Asmussen und der deutsche Antisemitismus in: ders., Protestanten in der deutschen Geschichte. Geschichtstheologische Rücksichten, Leipzig: EVA 2004, S. 62-72. Ohne Hans Asmussen (1898–1968) wären die Barmer Theologische Erklärung 1934 und die Stuttgar- ter Schulderklärung 1945 nicht zustande gekommen, um nur zwei herausragende Taten dieses Führers der Bekennenden Kirche zu nennen. Dennoch war es auch um diesen bedeutenden Theologen im Nachkriegsdeutschland merkwürdig still geworden. Das lag nicht nur daran, dass Asmussens theolo- gisch virtuoser und unpragmatischer Arbeitsstil („Schwächen in der Administration“) nicht zum kirch- lichen Apparat von Landeskirchen und zum Neubau einer Evangelischen Kirche in Deutschland pas- sen wollte. Schon 1948 war er aus dem Amt des Präsidenten der Kirchenkanzlei bei der EKD ausge- schieden, und 1955 verzichtete er auch auf sein Kieler Propstenamt1, als 57jähriger gezeichnet auch von 12 Jahren Kirchenkampf, von Verfolgung und mehrmaliger Haft. Die seit 1945 gewachsene Distanz der im evangelischen Deutschland tonangebenden Kreise zu As- mussen war aber hauptsächlich in seiner Theologie begründet: Geprägt von einer deutsch-dänischen „Inneren Mission“ in seiner Heimatstadt Flensburg war er alles andere als ein „Neulutheraner“ etwa bayerischen Typs. Auch seine, nicht nur Karl Barths Barmer Erklärung hatte ja erheblich zur Versöh- nung von lutherischen und reformierten Christen geführt, die heute in Deutschland als protestantisch selbstverständlich gilt, die aber von den Erben des alten Konfessionalismus in lutherischen Landeskir- chenämtern immer auch mit ein wenig Argwohn betrachtet wird. Vollends geriet Asmussen ins Ab- seits durch seinen kompromisslosen, nach 1933 und dann auch nach 1945 nicht nachlassenden Kampf gegen den Marxismus. Sowohl im Nationalsozialismus als auch im Marxismus bekämpfte er den säku- laren Fortschrittsglauben als unchristlich schlechthin.
    [Show full text]
  • Hans Treplin – Volksmissionar, Kirchenkämpfer Und Nachkriegspropst Vortrag Im Rahmen Der Ausstellung „Neue Anfänge Nach 1945?“, Christkirche Rendsburg, 25.10.16
    Lars Klehn Pastor für Personal – und Gemeindeentwicklung im KK RD-ECK 1 Hans Treplin – Volksmissionar, Kirchenkämpfer und Nachkriegspropst Vortrag im Rahmen der Ausstellung „Neue Anfänge nach 1945?“, Christkirche Rendsburg, 25.10.16 Gliederung 1. Elia 2. Biografisches und Persönliches 3. „Hans Paster“ und die Volksmission 4. Kirchenkampf 5. Chaos und Neuordnung nach `45 6. Umgang mit der Schuld 7. Rendsburger Propst – Fundstücke aus den Synodenberichten 8. Aus den Hademarscher Gemeindebriefen 9. Fazit: Neue Anfänge? 1. Elia Da trat Elia zu allem Volk und sprach: „Wie lange hinkt ihr auf beiden Seiten? Ist der HERR Gott, so wandelt ihm nach, ist's aber Baal, so wandelt ihm nach.“ (1. Kön 18,21) Elia (oder Elias) ist ein leidenschaftlicher Prophet des Alten Testaments, der eine Dürre für das ganze Land ankündet. Da das Nordreich damals dem Baal von Tyrus diente, ist dies eine Kampfansage an diesen Gott, der als Herrscher über Regen und Fruchtbarkeit galt. Im Gottesurteil am Horeb verspottet Elia die tanzenden Baalspriester. Hans Wilhelm Treplin1, Pastor in Hademarschen und später Propst der Propstei Rendsburg, ist mehrfach mit Elia verglichen worden. Insbesondere im Kirchenkampf hat er auf der Seite der Bekennenden Kirche (BK) große Leidenschaft entwickelt.2 Er hat Widerstand geleistet gegen den Baalsdienst der Deutschen Christen (DC) und aller völkischen Evangeliumsverwässerer. Deutschlandweit waren seine Schriften verbreitet. Er konnte polemisch-zynisch spotten, wie Elia. Seine Predigten zeigen einen leidenschaftlichen Verkündiger mit theatralisch-dramatischer Wucht. Er war ein streitbarer Pastor – unabhängig, nur seinem christlichen Gewissen verpflichtet. Sein Vikar Erich Pörksen berichtet anekdotisch von einer Anhörung vor dem Landesbischof in Kiel während Kirchenkampfes.
    [Show full text]
  • AGENDA 5 | Bibliothek Des Konservatismus
    Agenda Ausgabe 16 | 2018 | Dezember InformationsbriefAGENDA der Bibliothek des Konservatismus Rembrandt van Rijn: Simeon und Hanna im Tempel (1627), Öl auf Eichenholz (Ausschnitt), Kunsthalle Hamburg Editorial Wenn im christlichen Kulturkreis schrecken muß, die früher zu den die Geburt Jesu gefeiert wird, Verteidigern der Kirche gehörten: Inhalt dann feiern diejenigen nicht mit, die Konservativen. denen dieses Wunder vor allem galt: die Juden. Jahrhundertelang Dabei kann Weihnachten gerade Porträt .......................................2 hatten sie den Messias (gr.: chri- Konservativen neue Perspekti- stós) erwartet. In Weissagungen ven eröffnen. Denn es lehrt, die Aus unserem Magazin ..............4 wurde ihnen seine Ankunft an- Geister zu unterscheiden und im gekündigt. Doch als er geboren rechten Moment die Zeichen der Neuerscheinungen ...................5 wurde, erkannten sie ihn nicht. Zeit zu erkennen. Es lehrt, daß Die Zahl der Juden, die Christus sich ein Ausweg aus hoffnungs- Rückblick ...................................6 als ihren Messias annahmen, war los scheinender Lage über Nacht und ist überschaubar. Das Licht, einstellen kann. Und es fordert, Ausblick .....................................7 von dem das Neue Testament das, was sich als Ausweg anbie- spricht, ist im wesentlichen zum tet, an der Überlieferung und Termine ......................................7 Licht der Heiden geworden. Der ihren überzeitlichen Maßstäben „Sohn Gottes“ verwandelte den zu prüfen. Ein solcher Konserva- BdK - Intern ...............................8
    [Show full text]
  • Der Theologische Beitrag Von Hans Asmussen (1898-1968) in Den Jahren 1933 Und 1934 Auszüge Aus: Enno Konukiewitz, Hans Asmussen
    Der theologische Beitrag von Hans Asmussen (1898-1968) in den Jahren 1933 und 1934 Auszüge aus: Enno Konukiewitz, Hans Asmussen. Ein lutherischer Theologe im Kirchen- kampf, Gütersloh. Gerd Mohn 1984, S. 83-95. Die mit steigender Aggressivität der DC einhergehende Zuspitzung der kirchenpolitischen Fronten gegen Ende des Jahres [1933] sorgte dafür, daß Asmussen sich wieder stärker in den Reihen der kirchlichen Opposition engagierte. Inzwischen hatte der Einbruch der DC auch vor dem einst geschlossenen Altonaer Pastorenkreis keinen Halt gemacht. Auf der Mitgliederliste der Notgemeinschaft in der Altonaer Propstei vom 9. November fanden sich nur noch 11 Na- men von den [21] Pfarrern, die einst das Altonaer Bekenntnis unterzeichnet hatten.1 Asmussens während der Zeiten des Arbeitsausschusses ihm eng verbundener Kollege Has- selmann war im Zuge der von der neuen Kirchenleitung vorgenommenen Umbildung wichti- ger Kirchenämter als DC-Parteigänger Propst in Flensburg geworden.2 Kurz nach der Sport- palastkundgebung der DC am 13. November in Berlin, auf der ihr Berliner Gauobmann Rein- hold Krause sich offen zur völkischen Religion des nationalsozialistischen Chefideologen Alfred Rosenberg bekannte und damit den rapiden Verfall der DC einleitete3, wurde Asmus- sen am 18. November zusammen mit dem Führerrat der Notgemeinschaft bei Landesbischof Paulsen und dem Präsidenten des Landeskirchenamtes, Traugott Freiherr von Heintze, vor- stellig, um einige „Mindestforderungen zur Herstellung des kirchlichen Friedens hier im Lan- de“4 vorzutragen. Die Ereignisse in Berlin zeigten mit großer Deutlichkeit, daß in Deutsch- land das Bekenntnis gefährdet sei. Deshalb laute ihre Forderung, solche Leute gleichberech- tigt an der Kirchenleitung zu beteiligen, die nicht den DC angehörten. Ferner müsse der Wille der Kirchenleitung zum Ausdruck kommen, der Irrlehre zukünftig keinen Raum mehr zu las- sen.
    [Show full text]
  • Structural Change and Democratization of Schleswig-Holstein’S Agriculture, 1945-1973
    STRUCTURAL CHANGE AND DEMOCRATIZATION OF SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN’S AGRICULTURE, 1945-1973. George Gerolimatos A Dissertation submitted to the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of History Chapel Hill 2014 Approved by: Christopher Browning Chad Bryant Konrad Jarausch Terence McIntosh Donald Raleigh © 2014 George Gerolimatos ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii ABSTRACT George Gerolimatos: Structural Change and Democratization of Schleswig-Holstein’s Agriculture, 1945-1973 (Under the direction of Christopher Browning) This dissertation investigates the economic and political transformation of agriculture in Schleswig-Holstein after 1945. The Federal Republic’s economic boom smoothed the political transition from the National Socialism to British occupation to democracy in West Germany. Democracy was more palatable to farmers in Schleswig-Holstein than it had been during the economic uncertainty and upheaval of the Weimar Republic. At that time, farmers in Schleswig- Holstein resorted to political extremism, such as support for the National Socialist German Workers’ Party (Nazi). Although farmers underwent economic hardship after 1945 to adjust to globalization, modernization and European integration, they realized that radical right-wing politics would not solve their problems. Instead, farmers realized that political parties like the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) represented their interests. Farmers in Schleswig-Holstein felt part of the political fabric of the Federal Republic. One of the key economic changes I investigate is the increased use of machines, such as threshers, tractors, and milking machines. My main finding was that agriculture went from a labor- to capital-intensive business.
    [Show full text]
  • The German Evangelical Church and the Nazi State
    NO “SPOKE IN THE WHEEL”: THE GERMAN EVANGELICAL CHURCH AND THE NAZI STATE By HANNAH D’ANNE COMODECA Bachelor of Arts in History and Political Science Oklahoma Baptist University Shawnee, OK 2012 Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate College of the Oklahoma State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS May, 2014 NO “SPOKE IN THE WHEEL”: THE GERMAN EVANGELICAL CHURCH AND THE NAZI STATE Thesis Approved: Dr. Joseph F. Byrnes Thesis Adviser Dr. Ronald A. Petrin Dr. John te Velde ii Name: HANNAH D’ANNE COMODECA Date of Degree: MAY, 2014 Title of Study: NO “SPOKE IN THE WHEEL’: THE GERMAN EVANGELICAL CHURCH AND THE NAZI STATE Major Field: HISTORY Abstract: This study focuses on the relationship between the German Evangelical Church and the Nazi state from 1933-1945 and the reasons why the Church did not oppose state policies of persecution of the Jews. Through primary sources of sermons, synodal decisions, and memoirs, this study finds that during the years of the Third Reich, the German Evangelical Church retreated into itself. The internal conflicts that some historians have termed “the Church Struggle” distracted the Church from problems in the state. While some individuals within the Church did oppose state policies, the German Evangelical Church, as an institution, only protested when it felt directly threatened by the state. iii There are three possible ways in which the church can act towards the state: in the first place, as has been said, it can ask the state whether its actions are legitimate and in accordance with its character as state, i.e.
    [Show full text]