Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons^™

Why Should Our Pastors, Teachers, And Professors Subscribe Unconditionally To The Symbolical Writings Of Our Church?, C. F. Walther

Concordia Theological Monthly

The Symbols are confessions of faith or of the doctrine of the Church and never were intended to be anything more nor less; therefore an unconditional subscription to the Symbols can be interpreted in only one way.

Natural Theology In David Hollaz, Jaroslav Pelikan Jr

Concordia Theological Monthly

Christianity is a religion of supernatural revelation: to this "give all the Prophets witness." It is an assertion of the fact that the true meaning of God lies beyond the ken of the unaided human mind. Indeed, the Christian faith is so bold as to assert that "he that loveth not - and only a Christian is capable of ἀγάπη, true love - knoweth not God, for God is Love" (1 John 4:8).

Missouri's Condition Of Church Fellowship, W. Arndt

Concordia Theological Monthly

When Dr. Behnken, President of the Missouri Synod, had delivered his historic address before the convention of the American Lutheran Conference in Rockford, Ill., November 14, various reactions were voiced in non-Missouri circles. The most notable one which we have seen appeared in the Lutheran Outlook of December, 1946, and was written by the editor, Dr. E. E. Ryden. We believe it will be helpful if we spend a few minutes over some of the remarks of Dr. Ryden to understand his position and to evaluate it properly.

Euthanasia, John H. Fritz

Concordia Theological Monthly

The word euthanasia (eu, well; thanatos, death) was formerly used merely to speak of an easy, painless death. It is now being used in the sense of an intentional cutting short of life in the case of disease, or illness, that may be pronounced incurable and is at the same time very painful-mercy killing. There is little literature on this subject. Consulting a number of encyclopedias, I found that some of them do not consider the subject of sufficient importance and interest to be spoken of at all; even one of the recent encyclopedias does not mention it. And those …

The Communist Manifesto, Paul M. Bretscher

Concordia Theological Monthly

For Communists The Communist Manifesto, joint product of Karl Marx (1818-1883) and Friedrich Engels (1820-1895), is, indeed, an "immortal" document. In the whole realm of communistic literature no other publication has exerted so potent and far-reaching an influence as the Manifesto. In A Handbook of Marxism, the official manual of orthodox Communism, the Manifesto occupies. the first place. The last document in the Handbook, "A Programme of the Communist International" (1928), is, as the "Programme" itself declares, "in a sense a restatement of The Communist Manifesto of 1848 in relation to the imperialist stage of capitalism." The "Programme" repeats verbatim …

The Hades Gospel And The Apocatastasis Gospel, Th. Engelder

Concordia Theological Monthly

The Hades gospel proclaims that some men will get another chance for conversion in yonder life. The apocatastasis gospel proclaims that all inmates of hell, including the fallen angels, will finally be saved.

The Catholic-Protestant Limbus Patrum, Th. Engelder

Concordia Theological Monthly

The Hades theology is concerned with still another class of men. It tells the story how Christ in His descent to Hades delivered the Old Testament saints from the limbus patrum and took them with Him to heaven.

The Author Of Hebrews - A Fresh Approach, E. L. Lueker

Concordia Theological Monthly

The mystery surrounding the origin of the Letter to the Hebrews has led to endless speculation. The addresses have been sought in Jewish congregations in Italy, in Jerusalem, in Palestine as a whole, in Antioch, in Asia Minor, in Alexandria, or even in some unknown hamlet between the Pillars of Hercules and Damascus. Scholars have also maintained that the congregation was not a Jewish congregation at all, but a Gentile-Jewish congregation probably located in Rome. Farthest from the traditions of the fathers are those who hold that the Letter was sent to a Gentile church.

Dr. Walther's Foreword For Volume Xiv Of Lehre Und Wehre, 1888, C. F. Walther, Alex Wm. Guebert

Concordia Theological Monthly

J. Conrad Dannhauer, the venerable theologian of Strassburg and teacher of Spener, wrote the following words a few years before his death in 1666: "Q. Curtius expressed himself correctly when he said: 'You cannot despise any point in an enemy with impunity; for in despising him you neglect him and so strengthen him.’ This very neglect in a former era gave birth to the Antichrist and, while people slept, enabled him to sow his injurious seeds. Because of indolence, weariness, or an eye that is not sufficiently trained, the same neglect fails to see the tricks of the syncretistic spirit …

The Protestant Purgatory, Th. Engelder

Concordia Theological Monthly

The Hades gospel promises various classes of unbelievers that in Hades they will get another opportunity to be converted. See CONCORDIA THEOLOGICAL MONTHLY, 1945, May, June, September, and December issues. But it has a message also for the believers. It tells them that after their death they will be purged in Hades of the remnants of sin still clinging to them and thus be fitted for heaven. This Hades institution is not exactly the Catholic purgatory, but a purgatory it is still, a needed purgatory. - It is known as the Protestant purgatory.

God's Direction In Our Lives And The Element Of Chance, E. W. Hinrichs

Concordia Theological Monthly

The topic "God's Direction in Our Lives and the Element of Chance," theologically considered, belongs to the field of dogmatics, more particularly to the section treating of 'divine providence.

In order to set the stage for an acceptable presentation of the Scriptural teaching relative to the topic, let us briefly consider some of the basic truths concerning divine providence.

Dispensationalism Examined And Found Wanting, F. E. Mayer

Concordia Theological Monthly

Premillennialism is currently very popular with the Fundamentalists. The doctrinal statements of all Fundamentalist associations profess belief in the premillennial coming of Christ and of His visible rule on earth during the millennium. Likewise, the Holiness and Pentecostal bodies teach the premillennial coming of Christ. "Christ, the coming king," is one of the four main points of the Foursquare Gospel.

Kenotic Ignorance Or Accommodation, P. E. Kretzmann

Concordia Theological Monthly

The term kenoticism fills the Lutheran theologian with apprehension, if not with horror. It is a term which has been used by our dogmaticians to designate the false teaching of the kenosis of Christ, one not in agreement with Phil. 2:7. From the days of Thomasius, who has been called the father of kenoticism, down through the writings of Luthardt, Gess, von Hofmann, Frank, and others, this insidious poison has been spread in modem theology until the point has been reached where errors concerning the person of Christ, and therefore also of His office, have vitiated the doctrine of the …

Some Remarks On The Question Of The Salvation Of The Heathen, Th. Engelder

Concordia Theological Monthly

''In order to save universal grace before the forum of the human understanding, some have thought that the Gentiles will be saved for Christ's sake, without faith in the Gospel, on account of their moral aspirations (thus, for example, Hofmann). Others have assumed that after this life an opportunity to hear the Gospel and to believe will be offered (Martensen, Kliefoth, etc.). But these are human speculations, without any basis in Scripture" (Pieper, Christliche Dogmatik, II, p. 35). Millions of men have died who never in their life heard the Gospel of Christ, their Savior. Shall we say that they …

Trends And Tendencies Of The Times, Arnold Guebert

Concordia Theological Monthly

We tum now to a discussion of trends in the social and economic field. It has become almost a habit to refer to our times as a period of crisis or transition. Writers on social subjects invariably predict great changes in the entire structure of our society. An English economist recently summed up the situation in this way: "It is my profound conviction that we are standing today at the turning point between two civilizations, one of those turning-points in history not unlike the first or second century, the Renaissance, or the 17th century in England. The transition from an …

Trends And Tendencies Of The Times, A. Guebert

Concordia Theological Monthly

Ours is a complex civilization. Indeed it may be said that the world has never been as complex as it is today. There are in almost every field of human endeavor so many trends and tendencies that we would have material for many conferences if each of them were treated even briefly. We shall, therefore, limit ourselves to a treatment of such matters as seem to be of peculiar interest and significance at this time.

The Evil Of The Hades Gospel, Th. Engelder

Concordia Theological Monthly

Men are asking and imploring the Church to accept the teaching that some of those who have died in unbelief will get another opportunity to hear the Gospel in Hades. E. H. Plumptre tells us that it is our sacred duty to restore this "'lost article," this "'priceless, but forgotten truth," this ''truth of wider, happier thoughts," and charges those who refuse to do it with having a ''narrow, unloving'' mind. (The Spirits in. Prison, pp. 4, 17, 25, 28.) J. Paterson-Smyth "regrets that the indignant Reformers, in sweeping away the falsehood and the absurdities connected with the Roman purgatory …

Christian Fellowship, C. August Hardt

Concordia Theological Monthly

After having dwelt at some length on the manifestations of Christian fellowship, we now come to consider restrictions upon such manifestations. Let us begin by stating the obvious: There are restrictions; not man-made, originating in the decrees of church councils or in synodical resolutions, to be sure, but imposed by God Himself, the Head of the Church. To us this may seem self-evident, yet it is not conceded by all who lay claim to the name "Christian." There are those who aver that Christian fellowship must be unrestricted.

Keeping The Doctrine Pure, J, H. Fritz

Concordia Theological Monthly

In the year 1924 a book was published entitled Great Preachers As Seen by a Journalist. In closing the last chapter of the book the author said, ''I believe that the creeds within Protestantism are more shell-like and fragile than appears on the surface. Some of these ministers I have written about in this book were born in one creed and preach now in another. Ask me at the end of my work what conclusion stands out in my mind, and I must say, 'I have found plenty of signs that the Protestant Churches of America will one day be …

Christian Fellowship, C. August Hardt

Concordia Theological Monthly

The following article on "Christian Fellowship" is the second part of the essay “The Scriptural Content of χοινωνία, Its Manifestations and Restrictions upon Such Manifestations," the first part of which: Fellowship with God," appeared. in the CONCODIA THEOLOGICAL MONTHLY, Vol. XV, 505 ff. To give the reader an overview and enable him to follow the line of thought more easily, we epitomize the contents in the subjoined outline.

A Re-Examination Of The Lutheran Doctrine Of The Real Presence, P. E. Kretzmann

Concordia Theological Monthly

If one glances through the history of dogma, especially as offered in some of the larger compends, as well as in the more important encyclopedias of theology and religion, one is bound to notice the comprehensive discussions which are contained in these monographs and articles on the subject of the Lord's Supper, or the Eucharist. It is clear that the enemies of the truth, and in particular the archenemy of Christ's Word and institutions, have singled out the doctrine pertaining to this Sacrament for an unusual measure of vicious attacks, until finally large denominations of Christendom have, in their official …

The Argument In Support Of The Hades Gospel, Th. Engelder

Concordia Theological Monthly

The Hades theologians deny that man's death puts an end to the period of grace and offer a lot of proof for their thesis that God provides opportunities for hearing the Gospel in Hades. Let us examine 21 of these arguments.

Propositions On Unevangelical Practice, H. C. Schwan

Concordia Theological Monthly

Evangelical practice consists not in this, that we teach and treat nothing except the evangelical message (the Gospel), but in this, that we treat everything in evangelical fashion.

The Hades Gospel, Th. Engelder

Concordia Theological Monthly

The Gospel of a second probation, of salvation in Hades, of the possibility of conversion after death, is very popular today. Most of the modern theologians, liberals and conservatives, have become its heralds. It has found its way into the Reformed churches. It has found its way into the Lutheran Church.

Objective Justification, E. W. Koehler

Concordia Theological Monthly

The doctrine of justification is rightly regarded to be the central doctrine of the Scriptures. All other teachings of the Bible either point to it, or they radiate from it. We can understand neither the work of Christ's redemption nor the work of the Spirit's sanctification if we do not understand the doctrine of justification. Luther calls it "diesen einigen und festen Felsen," and says: "In meinem Herzen herrscht allein dieser Artikel, naemlich der Glaube on Christum, aus welchem, durch welchen und zu welchem alle meine theologischen Gedanken fliessen und zurueckfliessen." (Luthers Vorrede zum Galaterbrief, St. Louis, IX: 9.) Let …

Forgiveness In The Lxx, Richard T. Du Brau

Concordia Theological Monthly

The Messianic 130th Psalm sings in its key verse: "There is forgiveness with Thee." The Hebrew salach (forgiveness, to forgive) is generally rendered in the Septuagint ι̇λασυός ι̇λάσχομαι. Its primary significance is to shelter, to cover. The classics transposed its meaning to the religious procedure of the conciliation of the gods; with them ι̇λάσχομαι denotes obtaining the favor of the gods. Homer always uses it so.

A Definite Need In The Field Of New Testament Textual Criticism, W. Arndt

Concordia Theological Monthly

There are a number of desiderata that a person who is interested in New Testament textual criticism becomes aware of; and my caption must not be interpreted as signifying that we have arrived at that happy stage of development in this field where all difficulties have disappeared excepting one and all hands can now be summoned to dispose of this one disturbing element. Without much trouble rather many needs that should be supplied could be enumerated. This afternoon I should like to specify one of these. It is, to say it at once, a more accurate classification of the manuscripts …

The Sola Scriptura And Its Modem Antithesis, John Theodore Mueller

Concordia Theological Monthly

It is indeed correct to say that the outstanding achievement of Luther's Reformation was the recovery, clarification, and vindication of the sola gratia (sola fide). That truly was a pre-eminent accomplishment, an almost miraculous attainment, as it appears to everyone who considers how thoroughly Rome had succeeded in burying this articulus omnium fundamentalissimus under the rubbish of its extreme work-righteousness program.

Catholic Tributes To Luther, William Dallman

Concordia Theological Monthly

In the centuries immediately preceding the Reformation the preaching monks regaled their hearers with tales of Troy and silly stories of the saints in order to catch the penny collection, and ''penny preachers" they were called by Brother Berthold of Regensburg in the thirteenth century.

A Review Of Moehlman's "School And Church: The American Way.", O. C. Rupprecht

Concordia Theological Monthly

Which is ''the American way" for the religious training of American children? According to Dr. C.H. Moehlman, Professor of the History of Christianity at the Colgate-Rochester Divinity School, the American way is a different one from that pursued in Christian parochial schools. It is different, too, from the plan of "various religious groups" who "are conducting a vigorous propaganda for the return of the formal teaching of religion to the public classroom" (p. ix). The American way is to let public schools (in preference to parochial schools) and churches exist side by side, and to encourage them in at least …