Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons^™

The Function Of Historical Theology In The Theological Training Program, Walter W. Oetting

Concordia Theological Monthly

What is the function of historical theology? Since many of you students are not sold on the value of studying history, to say the least, we need to know at the very outset why it is important for theological students to study the history of the church.

Calvin's Doctrine Of Justification, Thomas Coates

Concordia Theological Monthly

Justification by faith was the great central doctrine of the Reformation, a doctrine which formed the foundation of the entire theological system of Luther and was bequeathed by him to the succeeding generations of Christendom as the great heritage of the Reformation. This doctrine, of course, did not originate with the reformers, but was restored by them to its rightful position as the pivot around which the entire Christian religion revolves - the doctrine which, in a preeminent sense, marks the great cleavage between Christianity and all heathen religions. The unique and distinctive character of Christianity, in contrast with all …

The Secret Of God's Plan, Harry G. Coiner

Concordia Theological Monthly

A restive search is going on today, and almost everyone is engaged in it. The search is for meaning in life, for significance, for purpose. Captured by a meaningless job and caged inside four walls with a TV set for companionship, modern man feels trapped. We need not extend the picture except to suggest that a disintegrating anguish takes possession of people when suddenly they realize that life is empty and sterile, completely lacking in meaning for them. One single devastating question keeps begging for an answer: Why live? The author of Ecclesiastes struggled with this question long ago and …

Polygamy And The Church, Willard Burce

Concordia Theological Monthly

Polygamy is a common practice among the Enga uibcs of Wabag, New Guinea. A survey a few years ago showed that nearly 30 percent of Enga marriages were polygamous.

The Church As The People Of God United In The Word Of God, James W. Mayer

Concordia Theological Monthly

The word "church" has come to mean so many things that it is difficult to think of church with any ontological precision. Our present study is an examination of the nature of the reality that is ekklesia, and the bearing that the unique quality of its being has on certain problems of fellowship. Although we at times use terms borrowed from the philosophers, we have nonetheless set ourselves the task of thinking in strictly Biblical categories, wherein reality cannot be contemplated apart from the personal Lord, by whom and in whom the reality exists; where being cannot be abstracted from …

The Inclusive Nature Of Holy Baptism In Luther's Writings, Harry G. Coiner

Concordia Theological Monthly

Though our action or behavior does not make the sacrament valid, nevertheless legitimate concerns are to be expressed from time to time regarding our understanding and employment of Baptism. Luther reminds us that Baptism is no human trifle devised or invented by men, but it is instituted by God Himself; for He strictly commanded that we must be baptized, or we cannot be saved; let no one regard it as a trivial matter, like putting on a new red coat. He expressed his estimation of Baptism in strong terms.

Theology As Habitus Practicus Theosdotos: A Lutheran Emphasis, Henry J. Eggold

Concordia Theological Monthly

The theologians of the 17th century distinguished between the abstract and the concrete use of the term "theology." Only in an abstract, accidental, and relative sense did they call theology "doctrine ... or even a book or a system exhibiting theology."

The Crisis Of Theological Historicism And How It May Be Overcome, William Mundle, Herbert J. Bouman (Translator)

Concordia Theological Monthly

Our theme, the crisis of theological historicism, is to be taken in a double sense. In the first place, I am thinking of the crisis which the historical approach has precipitated in theology and, in the second place, of the problems created by a consistent application of the historical method in historical research itself. As we shall see, both are related. To limit the theme, I shall confine myself to the questions connected with New Testament exegesis. However, a contest fought out in this arena will naturally have far-reaching consequences for the total understanding of theology.

Religion In America And The Church's Use Of Mass Media, Carl Schalk

Concordia Theological Monthly

There is little doubt that the church today faces a unique opportunity as well as a unique responsibility in communicating the message of God in Christ to man today.

The greatest need is for the churches to listen to what God says to them and through them. Yet the churches have equal responsibility to determine the best ways in which they can pass on to those who do not hear and who do not listen, what they know and believe about their Lord and Savior.

A Brief Statement-Guidelines And Helps For Study, Unknown

Concordia Theological Monthly

Documents such as A Brief Statement are functional; they are intended to perform a service and have validity and worth because, and insofar as, they do perform a service. As Lutherans, who receive and embrace the Holy Scriptures as the pure fountains from which the people of God must drink to live, we live in the conviction that the one functioning power in the life of the church is the Word of God.

Cosmology, Ontology, And The Travail Of Biblical Language, Langdon B. Gilkey

Concordia Theological Monthly

This is a paper on the intelligibility of some of the concepts of what we commonly call "biblical theology," or sometimes "the biblical point of view," or "the biblical faith." Although my remarks relate only to the Old Testament and at some points concern only two distinguished American representatives of the "biblical viewpoint," G. E. Wright and B. Anderson, the number of scholars of both testaments whose thoughts are based on the so-called "biblical view," and so who share the difficulties outlined below, is very great indeed.

The Nature Of Spiritual Illness, William Edward Hulme

Concordia Theological Monthly

Our purpose this morning is to describe the nature of spiritual illness, a theological perspective of the person - as this person lives in our kind of world. All of us are sick to a degree, and so, when I talk about the nature of spiritual illness, I believe that you will see yourself in some of the things I say. In a sense, then, we are holding up a mirror. Since we have such a glorious answer to the spiritual illness this need not be the cause for despair as it would be if we had not the good …

The Total Ministry Of The Church, C. Thomas Spitz

Concordia Theological Monthly

Our topic is an imposing one. Entire books and whole sections of libraries have been devoted to it. It forced an early decision in the development of this paper. Should we be talking and thinking about all of the ways in which the ministry of the church expresses itself or should we be looking at the total reality of the ministry of the church and then be dealing with essence rather than expression?

The Distinction Between Law And Gospel, Robert C. Schultz

Concordia Theological Monthly

The distinction between law and Gospel is one of the clearest systematic expressions of the doctrine of justification through faith without works formulated by the Lutheran Reformation. The reformers' understanding of the bondage of the will, of conversion and repentance, and of the Christian as being at one and the same time a righteous man and a sinner is directly related to this distinction. It is also one of their basic hermeneutical principles.

Walther's Editorial In The First Issue Of Der Lutheraner, Alex W. Guebert

Concordia Theological Monthly

The German population of the western part of America is evidently growing day by day. Consequently there is also an increasing number of those who profess the same faith that Luther once proclaimed. Yet the members of no other church body are so forlorn as those of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Even those who still call themselves Lutheran live so far apart and are in such poor circumstances that in many places they are in no position to organize a congregation and call a Lutheran pastor who can minister to their spiritual needs.

Rudolf Bultmann And The Sacrament Of Holy Baptism, John H. Elliott

Concordia Theological Monthly

In the fullness of time God sent forth His Son, a pre-existent divine Being, who appears on earth as a man. He dies the death of a sinner on the cross and makes atonement for the sins of men. His resurrection marks the beginning of the cosmic catastrophe … all who belong to Christ's Church and are joined to the Lord by Baptism and the Eucharist are certain of resurrection to salvation. . .. "

Functions Of Symbols And Of Doctrinal Statements, Erwin L. Lueker

Concordia Theological Monthly

The following outline was given to the faculty of Concordia Seminary, Saint Louis, Oct. 9, 1959, as a guide for discussions of the functions served by confessional statements. In this presentation the writer did not attempt to give a complete historical survey of confessions, or to treat the most important confessions and statements, but to concentrate on the study of functions. Selections were made to show a variety of functions. Explanatory notes have been added for the orientation of the reader.

The Theology Of The Word Of God In The Old Testament, Walter R. Roehrs

Concordia Theological Monthly

In attempting to describe the Word of God we soon become aware of resorting to a process which from a purely logical point of view may be regarded as reasoning in a circle.

Report On Spiritual Speaking. Reprint From The Living Church, Bishop Burrill, William H. Nes

Concordia Theological Monthly

From age to age the Church, in her fulfillment of the mission committed to her by our Lord, must seek with fervent effort to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. From the point of view of history in its totality, the Church must have made plain the wholeness and the fullness of God's truth and of God's love, and it is our faith that God will give his Church power to do this.

Kerygma And Didache In Christian Education, Richard R. Caemmerer

Concordia Theological Monthly

The present topic enables the discussion of a number of crucial questions. Kerygma, "proclamation," designates the message of the Christian Gospel. Didache, "instruction," has been employed to summarize the teaching of the Bible concerning Christian behavior. Are these terms employed with due attention to their Biblical usage? What is the relation of the one to the other? How are they to be used in religious education? Is religious education adequately structured by these two concepts in combination and in sequence? If so, what is the sequence to be?

The Unity Of Scripture, Walter R. Roehrs

Concordia Theological Monthly

The unity of Scripture is an article of faith. This unity is also an objective fact that exists apart from faith and does not become a fact merely when I believe it (existentialist theology). But it is more than an arithmetic problem. It is not a mere unit sum at which we arrive by adding a number of given parts and fractions into a whole. This means that it is more than the addition of demonstrable facts and figures.

The Theological Implications Of Confirmation, Arthur C. Repp

Concordia Theological Monthly

Since the Christian's whole life is a continuous spiritual Baptism, what is the relationship of the Word and the Lord's Supper in Baptism? Are they subordinate to it? Not at all. As Regin Prenter points out, it is just because the baptismal covenant, God's promise of man's salvation and man's faith in God's promise, implies the necessity of a lifelong exercise of man's faith in that covenant that there is a need for a continuous sanctifying activity of the living Word, not in competition with, but in consequence of the regenerating activity of the living Word in Baptism. ln this …

Luther's Christ, Paul M. Bretscher

Concordia Theological Monthly

For Luther, Christianity centered in the Lord Jesus Christ. First of all, in Christ as the Son of God. For no one else, he says, can overcome the wrath of God, destroy the power of death and devil, and grant eternal life. Whoever, therefore, sells short anything of this article "will in course of time lose all of Christianity and ultimately become a Turk." One may nor, therefore, tamper with the divine Word.

Prolegomena According To Karl Barth, Robert D. Preus

Concordia Theological Monthly

In a former article I pointed out by way of introduction that Karl Barth by his raking cognizance of both exegesis and church history ranks rightfully above most of his contemporaries as a dogmatician of stature. In the present article I shall try to examine Barth's opinion on the subjects of theology and dogmatics more specifically. We shall find that Barth takes a position on the matter of prolegomena very close to that of the 16th- and 17th-cenrury Lutheran and Reformed teachers, that his position is in the main both Scriptural and sane. Here, although we shall perhaps discern nothing …

The Theological Implications Of Confirmation, Arthur C. Repp

Concordia Theological Monthly

The Lutheran practice of confirmation can hardly be described as uniform during its long history. The differences varied greatly both in number and in kind as many accretions attached themselves to this practice. Because there was no Biblical basis for confirmation, the Lutheran Church did not hesitate to warrant new emphases and directions with changing circumstances and needs. As confirmation is practiced today, especially in the United States, it is cluttered with the remnants of such additions, the origins of which are rarely recognized. Just as the Reformation Church thought it was restoring confirmation in accord with the tradition of …

The Ecumenical Movement And The Lutheran Church, Hermann Sasse

Concordia Theological Monthly

Church history knows of great movements which sweep through the whole of Christendom, irrespective of national and denominational lines, and bring about profound changes in the inner life and the outward appearance of all churches. Such movements were Pietism and Rationalism in the 17th and 18th centuries, and the great European Awakening in the 19th century. Such a movement is the Ecumenical Movement, which in our time is penetrating all churches of Christendom, including Rome and the Eastern churches. The effects may prove to be as far-reaching as those of the great movement of the 16th century which we call …

America, Listen And Live! A Special Lutheran Hour Address, Oswald C. Hoffmann

Concordia Theological Monthly

It is not my purpose to comment on the political results of Mr. Khruschchev's visit to the United States. I am a firm adherent of the doctrine of two realms, limiting the spheres of church and state. It is a Biblical truth, as well as a fact of human history, that God rules in both realms, although He does so in different ways.

Toward An Evangelical Philosophy Of Science: The Historical And Recent Background, Oscar T. Walle

Concordia Theological Monthly

The general title of our discussions indicates that we are interested in the search for a unifying discipline or point of view which may bridge or fuse what Carl Henry calls. "the cleavage between science and religion . . . one of the defacing characteristics of our culture." This author ably states the case when he says, "Evangelical theology, if it is to make a major contribution to synthesis, must propound a Christian philosophy of science tracing the implications of the sovereignty of God for all branches of science." It is the purpose of this presentation to call attention to …

Do We Need Another Reformation?, Lewis W. Spitz

Concordia Theological Monthly

In view of the tremendous progress of our age in all areas of human endeavor and the problems it has created, the question has been asked: "Do we need another Reformation?" After all, nearly four and a half centuries have passed since Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of the Castle Church at Wittenberg.

The Christian Answer To The Ethical Problem: A Study Of Catechism Question Number 170, Dale E. Griffin

Concordia Theological Monthly

The Reformation doctrine of justification by faith without the deeds of the Law has been frequently questioned and declared to be injurious to the moral and ethical lives of the children of God.