Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons^™

The Eclipse Of Elegance: Towards A Contemporary Lutheran Aesthetics Of Discipleship, Andrew Whaley

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

WHALEY, ANDREW D. “THE ECLISPE OF ELEGANCE: TOWARDS ACONTEMPORARY LUTHERAN AESTHETICS OF DISCIPLESHIP.” Ph.D. diss., Concordia Seminary, 2018. 214 pp.

It is no secret that, from the time of the Reformation Iconoclast controversy through the period of Pietism, and even into the twentieth century, aesthetics has had a troublesome existence in many, if not most, protestant denominations. This, of course, includes my own denomination, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. In such cases, aesthetics has unfortunately been forgotten, ignored, or viewed with such deep suspicion that its place in theology has been outright denied. The result is that the aesthetic aspect of …

Leonardo Boff’S Social-Environmental Ecology Exposition, Analysis, And Appropriation For Lutheran Theology, Alan Furst

Master of Art Theology Thesis

Furst, Alan Diego. “Leonardo Boff’s Social-Environmental Ecology: Exposition, Analysis, and Appropriation for Lutheran Theology.” MA Thesis, Concordia Seminary, 2018. 107pp.

Ecological issues throughout the world present an urgent need for a deepened theological approach to the doctrine of creation. In fact, recent studies have shown that such issues point to a more serious problem with the entire system at work shaping social relations today. This situation calls Christian theologians to rethink the doctrine of creation in light of ecological issues. This includes Lutheran theologians, who still need to address the current situation involving ecological issues and to offer reflections and …

Falling Far From The Tree? God's Rejection Of Cain Outside The Garden Of Eden (Genesis 4:1-16), Mark Remington Squire

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Squire, Mark R. “Falling Far from the Tree?: God’s Rejection of Cain Outside the Garden of Eden.” S.T.M. Thesis, Concordia Seminary, 2018. 105 pp.

This thesis offers a review of the history of interpretation of the account of Gen 4:1–16. Specifically, the focus of this thesis regards the question of why God favored Abel and his sacrifice and not Cain and his sacrifice. The paper provides an original translation of Gen 4:1–16, as well as translation notes. The historical interpretations of the answer to the question of why God favored Abel over Cain are grouped into three broad categories: Cain’s …

Letter From The Chairman Of Student Publications, Jordan Voges

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Why a student journal? The simple answer is: you, you the writers, and you the readers. To those who want an outlet for their mind and creativity, who want to test their work in the public forum, who have something to say in words to the academy, in poetry, in pictures, or in prose, we offer you these pages. And to those who want to read and see the work of Concordia Seminary students, to debate and discuss, to think and question, to appreciate and applaud, and to thereby be enriched and learn, we offer you these pages now filled …

A Lost Prayer, Jaron Melin

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

What can we learn about prayer from a Jew who survived the Holocaust? Even though we face horrors, tragedies, and trials, prayer is part of who we are even when we don’t know why we do it. We also get an existential view of looking at the hidden God in the midst of atrocity. Finally, we see an example of a modern-day lament to God about cruel injustice. So then, we can bring our laments to God about injustice even today. As Christians, we can respond to this lament by saying, “Come quickly, Lord Jesus!”

A Letter Of Hope To The Concordia Seminary Community, John Nunes

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Shortly after the death of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., these remarkably blunt words from Lutheran pastor and civil rights leader, William H. Griffin, were released by Concordia Publishing House: “Unless the church faces up to the racism in its own midst, the witness of the church against the racism outside the church will go unheedeed."

A Bible Study On Leviticus 19_1-2, 9-10, Joshua Ulm

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

As he wrote, spoke, and marched in the name of civil rights, Martin Luther King Jr. constantly addressed the issue of poverty. It was his opinion that equal rights can never be fully realized until poverty and financial inequality are eliminated. Toward the end of his 1967 Southern Christian Leadership Conference Presidential Address, King said: “[L]et us go out with a divine dissatisfaction. Let us be dissatisfied until America will no longer have a high blood pressure of creeds and an anemia of deeds. Let us be dissatisfied until the tragic walls that separate the outer city of wealth and …

Righteousness And Salvation, Tibebu Senbetu

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Some of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) and the Ethiopian Evangelical Church of Mekane Yesus (EECMY) members’ understanding of righteousness and salvation fits into neither Pauline nor Jacobite teaching.1 This short paper examines whether Christians in Ethiopia today correctly understand the whole account of Scripture about righteousness and salvation. It also analyzes what the Scriptures and the Lutheran teachings say on the subject. Knowingly or unknowingly, the full biblical message on soteriology has been neglected by some Christians, which has resulted in a confused understanding of righteousness and salvation. Finally, this paper attempts to bridge the gap between the …

An Excerpt On Slavery From Synodical Proceedings, Christian J. Einertson

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Looking back on the impact and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. the issue of civil rights for minority communities obviously comes to the fore. Historically, King’s work for civil rights is inextricably linked with the Civil War and surrounding events such as the ratification of the thirteenth through fifteenth amendments a century before his time. In an attempt to engage the issue of civil rights theologically, I present a translation of the report on the debate over slavery from the proceedings of the Norwegian Synod’s convention in July 1861 as it is found in Kirkelig Maanedstidende v.6, 258–262.1

Mythical Typology In The Lord Of The Rings, Andrew Jones

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

When considering potential gospel patterns in J. R. R. Tolkien’s work, every critic is met with two conflicting realities. Firstly, the presence of gospel patterns is abundantly apparent in Tolkien’s work. Secondly, Tolkien himself stated rather emphatically that he did not intend to create a Christian allegory. Clyde S. Kilby writes, “The story, says [Tolkien], is ‘not ‘about’ anything but itself ’ and certainly ‘has no allegorical intentions, general, particular or topical, moral, religious or political.’ [Tolkien] declares in fact that he has a ‘cordial dislike’ of allegory.”1

A Map Key To Martin Luther King Jr, Jordan Voges

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

When and if one hears the name Martin Luther King Jr. at a confessional Christian school like Concordia Seminary, it is often only in passing. The most well-known leader of the African-American civil rights movement is treated much like a roadside monument to a rare geological anomaly: something worth pointing out on the way to somewhere else, worth looking at and reading a paragraph or two about, but hardly a destination for contemplation in and of itself. In addition to the casual manner with which his presence is noted along the highway of theological dialogue, most references to the man …

Rethinking Law And Gospel In The Way We Do Preaching, Benjamin Berteau

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

This paper evaluates the impact of C. F. W. Walther’s Law and Gospel and Richard Caemmerer’s goal, malady, means approach to homiletics, also discussing the potential trap of law-gospel reductionism. A suggested pathway forward is a reemphasis on a creedal approach to Lutheran theology and preaching as well as a renewal of rhetoric as foundational to ultimately restoring a positive view of the third use or function of the law in Lutheran preaching. Having done so, the reader may certainly apply this positive view of the law as it relates to preaching on other topics related to the Christian Life …

Under The Power And Control, Chris Heaton

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Jesus has power over the spiritual realm of Satan, who is bound first through Jesus’s ministry and ultimately through his death and resurrection.

That my hearers may endure spiritual testing with full confidence of the victory won over Satan by Jesus, under whose power they are now under in baptism.

Grapho 2018, Jordan Voges

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

The complete Grapho for 2018.

The Practical Orthodoxy Of Balthasar Meisner: The Content And Context Of His Theology, David R. Preus

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

Preus, David R. “Balthasar Meisner’s Practical Orthodoxy: The Content and Context of his Theology.” Ph.D. diss., Concordia Seminary, 2018. 397 pp.

Throughout his tenure at Wittenberg from 1611 to 1626 Balthasar Meisner (1587-1626) contended with defining “theology” in terms of a genuinely practical enterprise. His challenge was to preserve Luther’s evangelical theology, along with its metaphysical and ethical implications, in the crucible of current political realities and shifting intellectual trends. Though drawn from Scripture, Luther’s theology had certain metaphysical and ethical dimensions that simply could not be ignored by the first two generations after his death. In the interest of …