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Christ for All: Toward a Lutheran Theology Ofreligions

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Christ for All: Toward a Lutheran Theology Ofreligions CHRIST FOR ALL: TOWARD A LUTHERAN THEOLOGY OF RELIGIONS by James Keller, MA, M.Div. A thesis submitted to the Faculty ofMcMaster Divinity College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Christian Theology McMaster Divinity College Hamilton, Ontario 2011 ii Doctor ofPhilosophy MCMASTER DIVINITY COLLEGE Hamilton, Ontario TITLE: Christ for All: Toward a Lutheran Theology ofReligions AUTHOR: James Keller SUPERVISORS: Steven Studebaker and Gordon Heath NUMBER OF PAGES: xxii + 252 iii McMASTER DIVINITY COLLEOE upon the recommendation of an oral examining committee, this Ph.D. dissertation by JAMES KELLER is hereby accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY> External Examiner ~micoean Date: october 17, 2011 iv ABSTRACT "Christ for All: Toward a Lutheran Theology of Religions" James Keller McMaster Divinity College Hamilton, Ontario Doctor of Philosophy in Christian Theology, 2011 Lutherans have, from the earliest days of the movement, expressed evangelical concern for all human beings, Christian and non-Christian alike. Martin Luther had little contact with the religions, and produced no systematic theology of religions, but his many writings on the converting power of the Gospel indicate that he was profoundly interested in mission for the sake of bringing all persons to Christ. Luther's legacy continues to inform Lutheran outreach in a religious milieu that is characterized by remarkable interreligious awareness. Unfortunately, Lutherans have throughout their 500-year history existed in relatively homogeneous Christian contexts, meaning there was until recent decades no practical necessity to ruminate on the religions and their distinctive beliefs and practices. What is by no means clear is the degree to which Christian witness is required so that salvation among the non-Christian traditions may be experienced. As each religious tradition has a theology of religions, whether implicit or explicit, the task of this dissertation is to develop and articulate a Lutheran theology of religions, using Lutheran categories (natural and supernatural theology, atonement v theory, and the theology of religions) and premises (sola gratia, sola Scriptura, sola fide, sola Christus, Law and Gospel) to assess the relative value of the religions. A Christian theology of religions must be concerned not only with the Gospel as preached, but also with the implications ofliving as followers of Christ in a religiously plural world. To this end, Lutherans, by virtue of their commitment to confessionalism and ecclesiology, can give colour and definition to the role Christianity should play in interreligious dialogue. The position confessional Lutherans hold with respect to the religions is a "soft exclusivism," a Christocentric emphasis that rejects inclusivism and pluralism as reductionistic with respect to Christ and the Gospel, and relativistic with respect to the non-Christian traditions. Only when Christ is the unique and exclusive Saviour, revealed by the Spirit and acknowledged, does the Gospel, grace, and the righteousness of God take precedence and build faith. A Lutheran theology of religions requires faith, but should not limit the manner in which it is offered, or God's hand in preserving it. The institutional church is the ordinary vehicle for dissemination of the means of grace, but salvific grace can exist and be attained outside of her, at the behest and discretion of the Holy Spirit. Thus, the sacrifice of Christ, divine righteousness on behalf of human righteousness, can have universal implications (substitutionary and participatory) which demonstrate infinite divine love. This is the essence of a Lutheran theology of religions. vi Table of Contents Introduction.................................................................................. Vlll Part One: Christ for All: Signposts for a Lutheran Theology ofReligions Chapter 1: The Taxonomy ofthe Theology ofReligions............................. I 1.1 The Lutheran Attitude to the Religions.................................... 2 1.2 The Impact of the Second Vatican Council............................... 4 1.3 The Typology ofthe Theology ofReligions.............................. 6 Chapter 2: Defining the Terms............................................................ 12 2.1 "Lutheran" 2.1.1 Confessional............................................................... 12 2.1.2 Non-Confessional......................................................... 19 2.2 "Toward"........................................................................ 28 2.3 "Theology"...................................................................... 35 2.4 "Religion"....................................................................... 37 2.5 Exclusivism: Ecclesiocentrism/Christocentrism ........................... 42 2.6 Inclusivism: Agnosticism/Accessibilism .................................... 52 2. 7 Pluralism: Religious Instrumentalism/Relativism .......................... 64 2.8 Conclusion....................................................................... 74 Chapter 3: Sola Fide: The Context for a Lutheran Theology ofReligions.......... 77 3.1.1 Early Christianity and the Theology ofReligions.................. 77 3.1.2 Lutheran Fathers on Missions and the Religions..................... 88 3.1.3 Martin Luther............................................................. 89 3.1.4 Martin Chemnitz. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. .. ... .. ... .. .. ... .. 99 3.1.5 JohannGerhard........................................................... 103 3.1.6 Nicholas Ludwig von Zinzendorf... .................................. 107 3.I.7 Luther's and Lutheran Missional Attitudes.......................... 112 3.1.8 Lutheran Theology ofReligions/Grace-Focused Christocentrisrn 118 Part Two: Christ for All: Implications ofa Lutheran Theology ofReligions Chapter 4: Sola Scriptura: The Lutheran Understanding ofNatural and Supernatural Revelation through the Word, and their Roles in the Theology of Religions....... 126 4.1 General and Special Revelation.............................................. 126 4.2 General Revelation in Thomas Aquinas.................................... 129 4.3 The Emil Brunner- Karl Barth Debate..................................... 133 4.4 Lutherans on General Revelation............................................ 138 4.4.1 Luther and the Lutheran Confessions.................................. 138 4.4.2 Franz Pieper................................................................ 142 4.4.3 Wolfhart Pannenberg.... .. .............. ... .. ... .. .. ... .. .. .. ...... 145 4.5 Is Natural Theology or General Revelation Salvific?........................... 149 vii 4.6 Comments........................................................................ 157 Chapter 5: Sola Gratia: Atonement and Redemption in the Lutheran Theology of Religions. 161 5.1 Lutherans and Universalism ................................................... 162 5.2 Lutheran Atonement Theory... .. 167 5.3 Lutherans and the Ordo Salutis............................................. .. 183 5.4 Salvation, the Theology ofthe Cross, and the Theology ofReligions... 194 Chapter 6: Sola Christus: The Lutheran Attitude toward Interreligious Dialogue 202 6.1 The purpose ofDialogue....................................................... 203 6.2 Dialogue in History..............................................................205 6.3 The Impact ofthe World Council of Churches (WCC) .................... 208 6.4 Roman Catholicism and Interreligious Dialogue ............................212 6.5 Toward a Lutheran Theology ofDialogue.................................. 219 6.6 Some Final Considerations .................................................... 226 Conclusion.................................................................................... 230 Bibliography.................................................................................. 23 7 viii Introduction Lutherans share and articulate evangelical concern for the eternal welfare of all persons. Martin Luther (1483-1546) focused much of his energy on doctrine in parallel with and on occasion in contrast to that ofthe Roman Catholic Church of his age. He felt compelled to not only summarize and explicate the faith, but also to exhort Christians of all stripes to share Jesus Christ with the entire world. That Luther did not produce a completed missiology before his death in 1547 should not elicit the charge that he was not interested in sharing the Gospel with non-Christians. His many writings on the converting power of the Gospel militate against that reductionist view. Luther did not write extensively on ''religion" or "the religions," owing most especially to his lack of engagement with them. He did direct polemics toward the Jews and "the Turks," and while these may sound intolerant to modem ears, they were consistent with the conventional wisdom of the day. After the passing of the first generation of Lutheran fathers, Christians that called themselves "Lutherans" showed interest in evangelism, to a greater or lesser degree. The Thirty Years War ( 1617-164 7) devastated Europe, and decimated two generations of western European Christendom. In the war years, sharing the Gospel was seen by very few as a priority. By the beginning of the eighteenth century, the Lutherans could once again look beyond themselves toward the unchurched. Lutheran Pietists re-ignited an evangelical flame in the hearts and
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