1.
Melancthon, Ontario
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The township does not include the town of Shelburne on its southern border. It has one of the lowest population densities in southwestern Ontario, the primary industry of the township is farming, with limited beef, dairy, sheep and horse farming. It is also home to the Melancthon EcoPower Centre wind farm, the township was founded in 1853 as a part of Grey County and transferred to Dufferin County in 1881. Township council currently comprises a mayor, a deputy mayor and three councillors
2.
Lucas Cranach the Elder
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Lucas Cranach the Elder was a German Renaissance painter and printmaker in woodcut and engraving. He also painted religious subjects, first in the Catholic tradition and he continued throughout his career to paint nude subjects drawn from mythology and religion. He had a workshop and many works exist in different versions, his son Lucas Cranach the Younger. Lucas Cranach the Elder has been considered the most successful German artist of his time and he was born at Kronach in upper Franconia, probably in 1472. His exact date of birth is unknown and he learned the art of drawing from his father Hans Maler. His mother, with surname Hübner, died in 1491, later, the name of his birthplace was used for his surname, another custom of the times. How Cranach was trained is not known, but it was probably with local south German masters, as with his contemporary Matthias Grünewald, there are also suggestions that Cranach spent some time in Vienna around 1500. According to Gunderam Cranach demonstrated his talents as a painter before the close of the 15th century and his work then drew the attention of Duke Friedrich III, Elector of Saxony, known as Frederick the Wise, who attached Cranach to his court in 1504. Cranach was to remain in the service of the Elector and his successors for the rest of his life, Cranach married Barbara Brengbier, the daughter of a burgher of Gotha and also born there, she died at Wittenberg on 26 December 1540. Cranach later owned a house at Gotha, but most likely he got to know Barbara near Wittenberg, where her family owned a house. The first evidence of Cranachs skill as an artist comes in a picture dated 1504, in 1509 Cranach went to the Netherlands, and painted the Emperor Maximilian and the boy who afterwards became Emperor Charles V. Until 1508 Cranach signed his works with his initials, in that year the elector gave him the winged snake as an emblem, or Kleinod, which superseded the initials on his pictures after that date. Cranach was the painter to the electors of Saxony in Wittenberg. His patrons were powerful supporters of Martin Luther, and Cranach used his art as a symbol of the new faith, Cranach made numerous portraits of Luther, and provided woodcut illustrations for Luthers German translation of the Bible. Somewhat later the duke conferred on him the monopoly of the sale of medicines at Wittenberg, Cranachs presses were used by Martin Luther. His apothecary shop was open for centuries, and was only lost by fire in 1871, Cranach, like his patron, was friendly with the Protestant Reformers at a very early stage, yet it is difficult to fix the time of his first meeting with Martin Luther. The oldest reference to Cranach in Luthers correspondence dates from 1520, in a letter written from Worms in 1521, Luther calls him his gossip, warmly alluding to his Gevatterin, the artists wife. He was also godfather to their first child, Johannes Hans Luther, in 1530 Luther lived at the citadel of Veste Coburg under the protection of the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and his room is preserved there along with a painting of him
3.
Bretten
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Bretten is a town in the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located on Bertha Benz Memorial Route, Bretten lies in the centre of a rectangle that is formed by Heidelberg, Karlsruhe, Heilbronn and Stuttgart as corners. It has a population of approximately 28,000, the centre of Bretten consists of many old half-timbered houses around a lively marketplace. Towns and villages under the administration of Bretten include Bauerbach, Büchig, Diedelsheim, Dürrenbüchig, Gölshausen, Neibsheim, Rinklingen, Ruit, Bretten was first mentioned as villa breteheim in the Lorsch codex in 767. Since 1148 Bretten had the right to mint and issue coins, in 1254 Bretten received city rights. In 1492 Bretten was granted to hold four fairs by Pfalzgraf Philipp, Philipp Melanchthon was born in Bretten in 1497. The residents of Bretten successfully sallied against the Swabian besiegers around Ulrich of Württemberg in 1504, in 1803 Bretten became “Badische Amtsstadt”. After the industrial revolution, the economy was dominated by cooker production for many years. In 1975 Bretten was given the status of a Große Kreisstadt, Bretten station is on the Württemberg Western Railway and the Kraichgau Railway. Every two hours there are train connections to Stuttgart and Heidelberg. Many commuters live in Bretten and use S4 services of the Karlsruhe Stadtbahn, in Bretten there are 5 Stadtbahn stations and five more stations in the villages that belong to the district of Bretten. The motorways A5, A6 and A8 are reachable within approximately 30 minutes, the largest event in Bretten is the annual Peter and Paul Festival, which usually attracts up to 80,000 visitors. It is held one weekend in summer. The main attractions are the performances in countless camps and in the medieval lanes in the old town of Bretten. On Sunday, a procession of dressed-up citizens and guest groups takes place. Visitors may be irritated or amused by the mixture of costumes which are related to different centuries and you can see medieval men-at-arms, shepherds, musicians and jugglers, as well as Biedermeier styled families and militias. But the festival has three different sources, the oldest is the successful sally of citizens and men-at-arms on June 28,1504 against Swabian besiegers. Bretten was also the place for a competition called the “shepherds’ jump”
4.
Electoral Palatinate
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Its rulers served as prince-electors from time immemorial, were noted as such in a papal letter of 1261, and were confirmed as electors by the Golden Bull of 1356. The Counts Palatine of the Rhine held the office of Imperial vicars in the territories under Frankish law and their climax and decline is marked by the rule of Elector Palatine Frederick V, whose coronation as King of Bohemia in 1619 sparked the Thirty Years War. After the 1648 Peace of Westphalia, the lands were further afflicted by the Reunion campaigns launched by King Louis XIV of France. Ruled in personal union with the Electorate of Bavaria from 1777, the office of a Count palatine at the Frankish court of King Childebert I was already mentioned about 535. Up to the 10th century, the rule of the Merovingian and Carolingian dynasties was centered at the palace in Aachen. In 985, Herman I, a scion of the Ezzonids, is mentioned as count palatine of Lotharingia and his territories were centered in the Rhineland proper around Cologne and Bonn, but extended south to the Moselle and Nahe Rivers in Lorraine. The southernmost point was near Alzey, from about 1085/86, after the death of the last Ezzonian count palatine Herman II, the Palatinate lost its military importance in Lotharingia. The territorial authority of his successor Henry of Laach was reduced to the counties along the Upper Rhine, various noble dynasties competed to be enfeoffed with the Palatinate by the Holy Roman Emperor, among them the House of Ascania, the House of Salm and the House of Babenberg. The first hereditary Count Palatine of the Rhine was Conrad, a member of the House of Hohenstaufen, the territories attached to this hereditary office in 1156 started from those held by the Hohenstaufens in the Donnersberg, Nahegau, Haardt, Bergstraße and Kraichgau regions. Much of this was from their ancestors, the Salian emperors, and apart from Conrads maternal ancestry. These backgrounds explain the composition of Upper and Rhenish Palatinate in the inheritance centuries onwards, about 1182, Conrad moved his residence from Stahleck Castle near Bacharach up the Rhine River to Heidelberg. Upon Conrads death in 1195, the Palatinate passed to the House of Welf through the—secret—marriage of his daughter Agnes with Henry of Brunswick, when Henrys son Henry the Younger died without heirs in 1214, the Hohenstaufen king Frederick II enfeoffed the Wittelsbach duke Louis I of Bavaria. The Bavarian House of Wittelsbach eventually held the Palatinate territories until 1918, as this region was politically connected to the Rhenish Palatinate, the name Upper Palatinate became common from the early 16th century in contrast to the Lower Palatinate along the Rhine. With the Treaty of Pavia in 1329, the Wittelsbach emperor Louis IV, from that time forth, the Count Palatine of the Rhine was usually known as the Elector Palatine. The Elector Palatine, now based in Heidelberg, adopted Lutheranism in the 1530s, in 1619, Frederick V accepted the throne of Bohemia from the Bohemian estates. He was soon defeated by the forces of Emperor Ferdinand II at the Battle of White Mountain in 1620, called the Winter King because his reign in Bohemia only lasted one winter, Frederick was put under the ban of the Empire in 1623. Frederick Vs territories and his position as Elector were transferred to the Catholic Duke of Bavaria, Maximilian I, although technically Elector Palatine, he was known as the Elector of Bavaria. From 1648 he ruled in Bavaria and the Upper Palatinate alone, but retained all his Electoral dignities, after Frederick Vs death, his wife Elizabeth Stuart, Queen of Bohemia, worked tirelessly to have the Palatinate restored to her family and to the Protestant cause
5.
Holy Roman Empire
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The Holy Roman Empire was a multi-ethnic complex of territories in central Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806. On 25 December 800, Pope Leo III crowned the Frankish king Charlemagne as Emperor, reviving the title in Western Europe, more than three centuries after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The title was revived in 962 when Otto I was crowned emperor, fashioning himself as the successor of Charlemagne, some historians refer to the coronation of Charlemagne as the origin of the empire, while others prefer the coronation of Otto I as its beginning. Scholars generally concur, however, in relating an evolution of the institutions and principles constituting the empire, the office of Holy Roman Emperor was traditionally elective, although frequently controlled by dynasties. Emperor Francis II dissolved the empire on 6 August 1806, after the creation of the Confederation of the Rhine by Napoleon, before 1157, the realm was merely referred to as the Roman Empire. In a decree following the 1512 Diet of Cologne, the name was changed to Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, by the end of the 18th century, the term Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation had fallen out of official use. As Roman power in Gaul declined during the 5th century, local Germanic tribes assumed control, by the middle of the 8th century, however, the Merovingians had been reduced to figureheads, and the Carolingians, led by Charles Martel, had become the de facto rulers. In 751, Martel’s son Pepin became King of the Franks, the Carolingians would maintain a close alliance with the Papacy. In 768 Pepin’s son Charlemagne became King of the Franks and began an expansion of the realm. He eventually incorporated the territories of present-day France, Germany, northern Italy, on Christmas Day of 800, Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne emperor, restoring the title in the west for the first time in over three centuries. After the death of Charles the Fat in 888, however, the Carolingian Empire broke apart, according to Regino of Prüm, the parts of the realm spewed forth kinglets, and each part elected a kinglet from its own bowels. After the death of Charles the Fat, those crowned emperor by the pope controlled only territories in Italy, the last such emperor was Berengar I of Italy, who died in 924. Around 900, autonomous stem duchies reemerged in East Francia, on his deathbed, Conrad yielded the crown to his main rival, Henry the Fowler of Saxony, who was elected king at the Diet of Fritzlar in 919. Henry reached a truce with the raiding Magyars, and in 933 he won a first victory against them in the Battle of Riade, Henry died in 936, but his descendants, the Liudolfing dynasty, would continue to rule the Eastern kingdom for roughly a century. Upon Henry the Fowlers death, Otto, his son and designated successor, was elected King in Aachen in 936 and he overcame a series of revolts from an elder brother and from several dukes. After that, the managed to control the appointment of dukes. In 951, Otto came to the aid of Adelaide, the queen of Italy, defeating her enemies, marrying her. In 955, Otto won a victory over the Magyars in the Battle of Lechfeld
6.
Germany
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Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a federal parliamentary republic in central-western Europe. It includes 16 constituent states, covers an area of 357,021 square kilometres, with about 82 million inhabitants, Germany is the most populous member state of the European Union. After the United States, it is the second most popular destination in the world. Germanys capital and largest metropolis is Berlin, while its largest conurbation is the Ruhr, other major cities include Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf and Leipzig. Various Germanic tribes have inhabited the northern parts of modern Germany since classical antiquity, a region named Germania was documented before 100 AD. During the Migration Period the Germanic tribes expanded southward, beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, northern German regions became the centre of the Protestant Reformation, in 1871, Germany became a nation state when most of the German states unified into the Prussian-dominated German Empire. After World War I and the German Revolution of 1918–1919, the Empire was replaced by the parliamentary Weimar Republic, the establishment of the national socialist dictatorship in 1933 led to World War II and the Holocaust. After a period of Allied occupation, two German states were founded, the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic, in 1990, the country was reunified. In the 21st century, Germany is a power and has the worlds fourth-largest economy by nominal GDP. As a global leader in industrial and technological sectors, it is both the worlds third-largest exporter and importer of goods. Germany is a country with a very high standard of living sustained by a skilled. It upholds a social security and universal health system, environmental protection. Germany was a member of the European Economic Community in 1957. It is part of the Schengen Area, and became a co-founder of the Eurozone in 1999, Germany is a member of the United Nations, NATO, the G8, the G20, and the OECD. The national military expenditure is the 9th highest in the world, the English word Germany derives from the Latin Germania, which came into use after Julius Caesar adopted it for the peoples east of the Rhine. This in turn descends from Proto-Germanic *þiudiskaz popular, derived from *þeudō, descended from Proto-Indo-European *tewtéh₂- people, the discovery of the Mauer 1 mandible shows that ancient humans were present in Germany at least 600,000 years ago. The oldest complete hunting weapons found anywhere in the world were discovered in a mine in Schöningen where three 380, 000-year-old wooden javelins were unearthed
7.
Wittenberg
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Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Situated on the river Elbe, it has a population of about 50,000. Part of the Augustinian monastery in which Luther dwelt, first as a monk and later as owner with his wife, various Luther and Melanchthon memorial sites were added to the UNESCO world heritage list in 1996. Historical documents first mention the settlement in 1180 as a village founded by Flemish colonists under the rule of the House of Ascania. In 1260 this village became the residence of the dukes of Saxe-Wittenberg, Wittenberg developed into an important trade centre during the following several centuries, because of its central location. When the local branch of the Ascanians died out in 1422, several parts of boundaries of the town were extended soon afterward. The second bridge over the Elbe River was built from 1486 through 1490, the Electors palace was rebuilt at the same time. In 1760, during the Seven Years War, the Austrians bombarded the Prussian-occupied town, the French took control in 1806, and Napoleon commanded the refortification of the town in 1813. In 1814 the Prussian Army under Tauentzien stormed Wittenberg, he received the title of von Wittenberg as a reward, in 1815 Wittenberg became part of Prussia, administered within the Province of Saxony. Wittenberg continued to be a fortress of the class until the reorganisation of German defences after the foundation of the new German Empire led to its dismantling in 1873. Unlike many other historic German cities during World War II, Wittenbergs town centre was spared destruction during the conflict. In actuality, the Luther statue was not even present in the square during much of the war, but in storage at Luther Brunnen. Wittenbergs reputation as a town protected from Allied bombing is also not entirely historically accurate, on the outskirts of Wittenberg stood the Arado Flugzeugwerke, which produced components of airplanes for the Luftwaffe. This factory was staffed by Jews, Russians, Poles, political prisoners, despite the prisoner status of its workers, American and British planes bombed the factory near the end of the war, killing one thousand prisoner workers. The 1995 publication of. und morgen war Krieg. by Renate Gruber-Lieblich attempts to document this tragic bombing of Wittenberg, at the end of the war, Soviet forces occupied Wittenberg, it became part of East Germany in 1949. During the East German period, it formed part of Halle District, by means of the peaceful revolution in 1989, the communist régime dissolved and the town has been governed democratically since 1990. The figures are given for the district at the point in time. Up to 1791 the figures are estimated, later figures are from census or local authorities
8.
Electorate of Saxony
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Upon the extinction of the House of Ascania, it was enfeoffed to the Margraves of Meissen from the Wettin dynasty in 1423, who moved the residence up the Elbe river to Dresden. After the Empires dissolution in 1806, the Wettin electors raised Saxony to a kingdom, when Emperor Frederick Barbarossa deposed the Saxon duke Henry the Lion in 1180, the Wittenberg lands belonged to Alberts youngest son Count Bernhard of Anhalt, who assumed the Saxon ducal title. Bernards eldest son, Albert I, ceded Anhalt to his younger brother Henry, retained the ducal title and his sons divided the possessions into the duchies of Saxe-Wittenberg and Saxe-Lauenburg. Louis was succeeded by the Luxembourg king Charles of Bohemia, after being crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 1355, Charles issued the Golden Bull of 1356, the fundamental law of the Empire settling the method of electing the German King by seven Prince-electors. In this way, the country, though small in area, the electoral dignity was connected with it the obligation of male primogeniture, that is, only the eldest son could succeed as ruler. This forbade the division of the territory among several heirs, preventing the disintegration of the country, the importance of this stipulation is shown by the history of most of the fragmented German principalities which were not electorates. Late Alberts Ascanian relative Duke Eric V of Saxe-Lauenburg protested in vain, thus, in 1423, Saxe-Wittenberg, the Margraviate of Meissen and Thuringia were united under one ruler, and the unified territory gradually received the name of Saxony. The partition decisively enfeebled the Wettin dynasty in the rivalry with the rising House of Hohenzollern, the Protestant movement of the 16th century was largely effected under the protection of the Saxon rulers. The Elector did not become at once an adherent of the new opinions, owing to his intervention, Pope Leo X decided against summoning Luther to Rome in 1518, and the Elector secured for Luther Imperial safe-conduct to the 1521 Diet of Worms. When Luther was declared to be under the ban of the empire by Emperor Charles V. Lutheran doctrines spread first in Ernestine Saxony, in 1525, Frederick died and was succeeded by his brother, John the Constant. John was followed in 1532 by his son, John Frederick the Magnanimous, in 1542, he seized the Diocese of Naumburg-Zeitz, and confiscated the secular possessions of the Dioceses of Meissen and Hildesheim. The Catholic faith was forcibly suppressed, after the outbreak of the Schmalkaldic War, Elector John Frederick was placed under the Imperial ban and finally defeated and captured by Emperor Charles V at the Battle of Mühlberg on 24 April 1547. In the Capitulation of Wittenberg of May 19, he was obliged to yield former Saxe-Wittenberg with the dignity to his Albertine cousin Duke Maurice. The Saxon Electorate after the Wittenberg Capitulation consisted of former Saxe-Wittenberg and Meissen together, Maurice secretly shared in all the princely conspiracies against the Emperor, who only escaped capture by flight. During the same year, Charles V was obliged by the Peace of Passau to grant freedom of religion to the Protestant Estates, Maurice died in 1553 at the age of 32. His brother and successor Elector Augustus seized the Catholic dioceses of Merseburg, the last Bishop of Merseburg, Michael Helding called Sidonius, died at Vienna in 1561. In the same manner after the death of Julius von Pflug, the last Catholic Bishop of Naumburg, in 1564 and those cathedral canons who were still Catholic were only permitted to exercise their religion for ten years more
9.
Heidelberg University
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Heidelberg University is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is Germanys oldest university and it was the third university established in the Holy Roman Empire. Heidelberg has been an institution since 1899. The university consists of twelve faculties and offers programmes at undergraduate, graduate. The language of instruction is usually German, while a number of graduate degrees are offered in English. Associated with 31 Nobel Prize laureates, the university places an emphasis on research, modern scientific psychiatry, psychopharmacology, psychiatric genetics, environmental physics, and modern sociology were introduced as scientific disciplines by Heidelberg faculty. Approximately 1,000 doctorates are completed every year, with more than one third of the students coming from abroad. International students from some 130 countries account for more than 20 percent of the student body. The universitys noted alumni include eleven domestic and foreign Heads of State or Heads of Government, the Great Schism of 1378 made it possible for Heidelberg, a relatively small city and capital of the Electorate of the Palatinate, to gain its own university. The Great Schism was initiated by the election of two popes after the death of Pope Gregory XI in the same year, one successor resided in Avignon and the other in Rome. Rupert I recognized the opportunity and initiated talks with the Curia, as specified in the papal charter, the university was modelled after University of Paris and included four faculties, philosophy, theology, jurisprudence, and medicine. On 18 October 1386 a special Pontifical High Mass in the Heiliggeistkirche was the ceremony that established the university, on 19 October 1386 the first lecture was held, making Heidelberg the oldest university in Germany. In November 1386, Marsilius of Inghen was elected first rector of the university, the rector seal motto was semper apertus—i. e. The book of learning is always open, the university grew quickly and in March 1390,185 students were enrolled at the university. This resulted in establishing a reputation for the university and its professors. Due to the influence of Marsilius, the university initially taught the nominalism or via moderna, the transition from scholastic to humanistic culture was effected by the chancellor and bishop Johann von Dalberg in the late 15th century. Humanism was represented at Heidelberg University particularly by the founder of the older German Humanistic School Rudolph Agricola, Conrad Celtes, Jakob Wimpfeling, and Johann Reuchlin. Æneas Silvius Piccolomini was chancellor of the university in his capacity of provost of Worms, in 1482, Pope Sixtus IV permitted laymen and married men to be appointed professors in the ordinary of medicine through a papal dispensation
10.
Reformation
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The period is usually considered to have begun with the publication of the Ninety-five Theses by Luther in 1517 to the Thirty Years War and ended with the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. The Protestant position, however, would come to incorporate doctrinal changes such as sola scriptura, the initial movement within Germany diversified, and other reform impulses arose independently of Luther. The spread of Gutenbergs printing press provided the means for the dissemination of religious materials in the vernacular. The largest groups were the Lutherans and Calvinists, Lutheran churches were founded mostly in Germany, the Baltics and Scandinavia, while the Reformed ones were founded in Switzerland, Hungary, France, the Netherlands and Scotland. The new movement influenced the Church of England decisively after 1547 under Edward VI and Elizabeth I, there were also reformation movements throughout continental Europe known as the Radical Reformation, which gave rise to the Anabaptist, Moravian and other Pietistic movements. The Roman Catholic Church responded with a Counter-Reformation initiated by the Council of Trent, much work in battling Protestantism was done by the well-organised new order of the Jesuits. In general, Northern Europe, with the exception of most of Ireland, southern Europe remained Roman Catholic, while Central Europe was a site of a fierce conflict, culminating in the Thirty Years War, which left it devastated. The oldest Protestant churches, such as the Unitas Fratrum and Moravian Church, the later Protestant Churches generally date their doctrinal separation from the Roman Catholic Church to the 16th century. The Reformation began as an attempt to reform the Roman Catholic Church, by priests who opposed what they perceived as false doctrines and ecclesiastic malpractice. They especially objected to the teaching and the sale of indulgences, and the abuses thereof, and to simony, the reformers saw these practices as evidence of the systemic corruption of the Churchs hierarchy, which included the pope. Unrest due to the Great Schism of Western Christianity excited wars between princes, uprisings among the peasants, and widespread concern over corruption in the Church, New perspectives came from John Wycliffe at Oxford University and from Jan Hus at the Charles University in Prague. Hus rejected indulgences and adopted a doctrine of justification by grace through faith alone, the Roman Catholic Church officially concluded this debate at the Council of Constance by condemning Hus, who was executed by burning despite a promise of safe-conduct. Wycliffe was posthumously condemned as a heretic and his corpse exhumed and burned in 1428, the Council of Constance confirmed and strengthened the traditional medieval conception of church and empire. The council did not address the national tensions or the theological tensions stirred up during the century and could not prevent schism. Pope Sixtus IV established the practice of selling indulgences to be applied to the dead, Pope Alexander VI was one of the most controversial of the Renaissance popes. He was the father of seven children, including Lucrezia and Cesare Borgia, in response to papal corruption, particularly the sale of indulgences, Luther wrote The Ninety-Five Theses. The Reformation was born of Luthers dual declaration – first, the discovering of Jesus and salvation by faith alone, the Protestant reformers were unanimous in agreement and this understanding of prophecy furnished importance to their deeds. It was the point and the battle cry that made the Reformation nearly unassailable
11.
Lutheranism
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Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestant Christianity which identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German friar, ecclesiastical reformer and theologian. Luthers efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched the Protestant Reformation in the German-speaking territories of the Holy Roman Empire. Lutheranism advocates a doctrine of justification by grace alone through faith alone on the basis of Scripture alone and this is in contrast to the belief of the Catholic Church, defined at the Council of Trent, concerning authority coming from both the Scriptures and Tradition. In addition, Lutheranism accepts the teachings of the first seven ecumenical councils of the undivided Christian Church, unlike Calvinism, Lutherans retain many of the liturgical practices and sacramental teachings of the pre-Reformation Church, with a particular emphasis on the Eucharist, or Lords Supper. Lutheran theology differs from Reformed theology in Christology, the purpose of Gods Law, the grace, the concept of perseverance of the saints. Today, Lutheranism is one of the largest denominations of Protestantism, with approximately 80 million adherents, it constitutes the third most common Protestant denomination after historically Pentecostal denominations and Anglicanism. The Lutheran World Federation, the largest communion of Lutheran churches, Other Lutheran organizations include the International Lutheran Council and the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference, as well as independent churches. The name Lutheran originated as a term used against Luther by German Scholastic theologian Dr. Johann Maier von Eck during the Leipzig Debate in July 1519. Eck and other Catholics followed the practice of naming a heresy after its leader. Martin Luther always disliked the term Lutheran, preferring the term Evangelical, which was derived from euangelion, the followers of John Calvin, Huldrych Zwingli, and other theologians linked to the Reformed tradition also began to use that term. To distinguish the two groups, others began to refer to the two groups as Evangelical Lutheran and Evangelical Reformed. As time passed by, the word Evangelical was dropped, Lutherans themselves began to use the term Lutheran in the middle of the 16th century, in order to distinguish themselves from other groups such as the Philippists and Calvinists. In 1597, theologians in Wittenberg defined the title Lutheran as referring to the true church, Lutheranism has its roots in the work of Martin Luther, who sought to reform the Western Church to what he considered a more biblical foundation. Lutheranism spread through all of Scandinavia during the 16th century, as the monarch of Denmark–Norway, through Baltic-German and Swedish rule, Lutheranism also spread into Estonia and Latvia. Since 1520, regular Lutheran services have been held in Copenhagen, under the reign of Frederick I, Denmark-Norway remained officially Catholic. Although Frederick initially pledged to persecute Lutherans, he adopted a policy of protecting Lutheran preachers and reformers. During Fredericks reign, Lutheranism made significant inroads in Denmark, at an open meeting in Copenhagen attended by the king in 1536, the people shouted, We will stand by the holy Gospel, and do not want such bishops anymore. Fredericks son Christian was openly Lutheran, which prevented his election to the throne upon his fathers death, however, following his victory in the civil war that followed, in 1537 he became Christian III and advanced the Reformation in Denmark-Norway
12.
Luther rose
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The Luther seal or Luther rose is a widely recognized symbol for Lutheranism. It was the seal that was designed for Martin Luther at the behest of John Frederick of Saxony in 1530, Lazarus Spengler, to whom Luther wrote his interpretation below, sent Luther a drawing of this seal. Luther saw it as a compendium or expression of his theology and faith, Luther informed Philipp Melanchthon on September 15,1530, that the Prince had personally visited him in the Coburg fortress and presented him with a signet ring, presumably displaying the seal. A single rose had been known as Luthers emblem since 1520 when Wolfgang Stöckel in Leipzig published one of Luther’s sermons with a woodcut of the reformer and this was the first contemporary depiction of Martin Luther. Luthers doctors ring displayed a heartlike shield, the symbol of the Holy Trinity, in a July 8,1530 letter to Lazarus Spengler, Luther interprets his seal, The Luther rose is used in many coats of arms. The assumption that Martin Luther had visited any of these places is not confirmed, Rose Rose Rose of Sharon Rosy Cross Sacred Heart Luther, Martin. D. Martin Luthers Werke, Kritische Gesamtausgabe, weimar, Verlag Hermann Böhlaus Nachfolger, 1930-85. St. Louis, Concordia Publishing House, Minneapolis, Fortress Press, Luthers Seal as an Elementary Interpretation of His Theology. In Wengert, Timothy J. Harvesting Martin Luthers reflections on theology, ethics, and the church
13.
Book of Concord
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The Book of Concord or Concordia is the historic doctrinal standard of the Lutheran Church, consisting of ten credal documents recognized as authoritative in Lutheranism since the 16th century. They are also known as the books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. The Book of Concord was published in German on June 25,1580 in Dresden, the authoritative Latin edition was published in 1584 in Leipzig. Those who accept it as their doctrinal standard recognize it to be an exposition of the Bible. The Holy Scriptures are set forth in The Book of Concord to be the sole, divine source and it was intended to replace German territorial collections of doctrinal statements, known as corpora doctrinæ like the Corpus doctrinæ Philippicum or Misnicum. This aim is reflected by the compilers not calling it a corpus doctrinæ although it technically is one, the list of writings predating the Formula of Concord that would be included in The Book of Concord are listed and described in the Rule and Norm section of the Formula. These creeds, the Apostles Creed, Nicene Creed, and Athanasian Creed, were formulated before the East-West Schism of 1054, the other documents come from the earliest years of the Lutheran Reformation. The preface of the Book of Concord was considered to be the preface of the Formula of Concord as well, a recent book on Lutheranism asserts, To this day. The Catalog of Testimonies was added as an appendix in most of the 1580 editions. This follows St. Pauls directive, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you and they contain the truths believed universally by true Christians everywhere, explicitly by all consistent Christians, implicitly even by inconsistent and erring Christians. Christian truth, being one and the same the world over is none other than that which is found in the Lutheran confessions and they often identify themselves as confessional Lutherans. They consider the Book of Concord the norma normata in relation to the Bible, in this view the Book of Concord, on the topics that it addresses, is what the church authoritatively understands Gods authoritative word to say. This is also called a quia subscription to the Lutheran confessions, one who subscribes the Lutheran confessions quatenus, insofar as they are a faithful exposition of the Scriptures, believes that there might be contradictions of the Scriptures in them. The largest Lutheran church to subscribe unconditionally to the Book of Concord is the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland with 4.6 million members, English translations of individual documents of The Book of Concord, notably The Augsburg Confession, were available since the 16th century. The first complete English translation of The Book of Concord was the 1851 Henkel edition followed by an edition in 1854. Henry E. Jacobs and others published the next English version in 1882 with a revised Peoples Edition in 1911, the 1882 edition was accompanied by a companion volume that contained historical introductions and English translations of other documents illustrative of the history of The Book of Concord. Lutheran Church, German-Latin English edited by Friederich Bente and this edition introduced the practice of inserting in square brackets the translations of variant readings of either the Latin translation of the German or the German translation of the Latin text. A smaller edition with just the English text was also published, justus Jonas, who had originally translated the Apology from Latin into German, made use of both the quarto and the octavo editions
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Apostles' Creed
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The Apostles Creed, sometimes entitled Symbol of the Apostles, is an early statement of Christian belief—a creed or symbol. It is also used by Presbyterians, Methodists and Congregationalists, the Apostles Creed is Trinitarian in structure with sections affirming belief in God the Father, Jesus Christ His Son and the Holy Spirit. The Apostles Creed was based on Christian theological understanding of the Canonical gospels and its basis appears to be the old Roman Creed known also as the Old Roman Symbol. Because of the origin of its original form, it does not address some Christological issues defined in the Nicene. It thus says nothing explicitly about the divinity of either Jesus or the Holy Spirit and this makes it acceptable to many Arians and Unitarians. Nor does it address many other questions which became objects of dispute centuries later. The earlier text evolved from simpler texts based on Matthew 28,19, part of the Great Commission, pirminius, written between 710 and 714. Bettenson and Maunder state that it is first from Dicta Abbatis Pirminii de singulis libris canonicis scarapsus and this longer Creed seems to have arisen in what is now France and Spain. Charlemagne imposed it throughout his dominions, and it was accepted in Rome. It has been argued nonetheless that it dates from the half of the 5th century. Some have suggested that the Apostles Creed was spliced together with phrases from the New Testament, for instance, the phrase descendit ad inferos echoes Ephesians 4,9, κατέβη εἰς τὰ κατώτερα μέρη τῆς γῆς. It is of interest that this phrase first appeared in one of the two versions of Rufinus in A. D.390 and then did not appear again in any version of the creed until A. D.650. This phrase and that on the communion of saints are found in the Apostles Creed. Musical settings of the Symbolum Apostolorum as a motet are rare, the French composer Le Brung published one Latin setting in 1540, the Spanish composer Fernando de las Infantas published two in 1578. More recently, in 1979 John Michael Talbot, a Third Order Franciscan, composed and recorded Creed on his album, in 1986 Graham Kendrick published the popular We believe in God the Father, closely based on the Apostles Creed. Rich Mullins and Beaker also composed a musical setting titled Creed, released on Mullins‘1993 album A Liturgy, the song Creed on Petra’s 1990 album Beyond Belief is loosely based on the Apostles Creed. In 1991, GIA Publications published a hymn text directly based on the Apostles’ Creed, called I Believe in God Almighty and it has been sung to hymn tunes from Wales, the Netherlands, and Ireland. In 2014 Hillsong released a version of the Apostles Creed under the title This I Believe on their album No Other Name, in 2016 Keith Getty and Kristyn Getty released an expression of the Apostles Creed under the title We Believe on their album Facing a Task Unfinished
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Nicene Creed
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The Nicene Creed is a Symbol of faith widely used in Christian liturgy. It is called Nicene /ˈnaɪsiːn/ because it was adopted in the city of Nicaea by the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople, the Anglican and many Protestant denominations generally use the singular form, but sometimes use the plural. The Apostles Creed is also used in the Latin West, on Sundays and some other days, one or other of these two creeds is recited in the Roman Rite Mass after the homily. The Nicene Creed is also part of the profession of faith required of those important functions within the Catholic Church. In the Byzantine Rite, the Nicene Creed is sung or recited at the Divine Liturgy, immediately preceding the Anaphora, Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed can stand for the revised version of Constantinople or the later Latin version or various other versions. Icon/Symbol of the Faith is the designation for the revised version of Constantinople 381 in the Orthodox churches. Profession of Faith of the 318 Fathers refers specifically to the version of Nicaea 325, profession of Faith of the 150 Fathers refers specifically to the version of Constantinople 381. In musical settings, particularly when sung in Latin, this Creed is usually referred to by its first word, the purpose of a creed is to provide a doctrinal statement of correct belief, or orthodoxy. For that reason a creed was called in Greek a σύμβολον, a word that meant half of an object which. The Greek word passed through Latin symbolum into English symbol, which later took on the meaning of an outward sign of something. The Nicene Creed was adopted in the face of the Arian controversy, whose leader, Arius objected to Alexanders apparent carelessness in blurring the distinction of nature between the Father and the Son by his emphasis on eternal generation. Alexander accused Arius of denying the divinity of the Son and also of being too Jewish, both Arius and Alexander rejected Gnosticism, Manichaeism and Sabellian formulae. The Nicene Creed was created as a result of the adoption of the doctrine of Arius far outside Alexandria. The Nicene Creed of 325 explicitly affirms the co-essential divinity of the Son, the 381 version speaks of the Holy Spirit as worshipped and glorified with the Father and the Son. The Athanasian Creed describes in much detail the relationship between Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Apostles Creed makes no statements about the divinity of the Son and the Holy Spirit, but, in the view of many who use it. The original Nicene Creed was first adopted in 325 at the First Council of Nicaea, at that time, the text ended with the words We believe in the Holy Spirit, after which various anathemas against Arian propositions were added
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Athanasian Creed
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The Athanasian Creed, also known as Pseudo-Athanasian Creed or Quicunque Vult, is a Christian statement of belief focused on Trinitarian doctrine and Christology. The Latin name of the creed, Quicunque vult, is taken from the opening words, the creed has been used by Christian churches since the sixth century. It is the first creed in which the equality of the three persons of the Trinity is explicitly stated and it differs from the Nicene-Constantinopolitan and Apostles Creeds in the inclusion of anathemas, or condemnations of those who disagree with the creed. It was designed to distinguish Nicene Christianity from the heresy of Arianism, liturgically, this Creed was recited at the Sunday Office of Prime in the Western Church, it is not in common use in the Eastern Church. The creed has never gained acceptance in liturgy among Eastern Christians since it was considered as one of many unorthodox fabrications that contained the Filioque clause, today, the Athanasian Creed is rarely used even in the Western Church. When used, one practice is to use it once a year on Trinity Sunday. A medieval account credited Athanasius of Alexandria, the defender of Nicene theology. According to this account, Athanasius composed it during his exile in Rome and this traditional attribution of the Creed to Athanasius was first called into question in 1642 by Dutch Protestant theologian G. J. Athanasius name seems to have attached to the creed as a sign of its strong declaration of Trinitarian faith. The reasoning for rejecting Athanasius as the author usually relies on a combination of the following, The creed originally was most likely written in Latin, neither Athanasius nor his contemporaries ever mention the Creed. It is not mentioned in any records of the ecumenical councils and it appears to address theological concerns that developed after Athanasius died. It was most widely circulated among Western Christians, the use of the creed in a sermon by Caesarius of Arles, as well as a theological resemblance to works by Vincent of Lérins, point to Southern Gaul as its origin. The most likely time frame is in the fifth or early sixth century AD – at least 100 years after Athanasius. The theology of the creed is firmly rooted in the Augustinian tradition, for example, in the authoritative modern monograph about the creed, J. N. D. Kelly asserts that Vincent of Lérins was not its author, but that it may have come from the same milieu, the oldest surviving manuscripts of the Athanasian Creed date from the late 8th century. The Athanasian Creed is usually divided into two sections, lines 1–28 addressing the doctrine of the Trinity, and lines 29–44 addressing the doctrine of Christology, enumerating the three persons of the Trinity, the first section of the creed ascribes the divine attributes to each individually. Thus, each person of the Trinity is described as uncreated, limitless, eternal, furthermore, although one God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are distinct from each other. For the Father is neither made nor begotten, the Son is not made but is begotten from the Father, the Holy Spirit is neither made nor begotten but proceeds from the Father and the Son
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Augsburg Confession
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The Augsburg Confession was written in both German and Latin and was presented by a number of German rulers and free-cities at the Diet of Augsburg on 25 June 1530. It is the document contained in the Lutheran Book of Concord. On 21 January 1530, Emperor Charles V issued letters from Bologna, although the writ of invitation was couched in very peaceful language, it was received with suspicion by some of the Protestants. This summary has received the name of the Torgau Articles, on 3 April, the elector and reformers started from Torgau, and reached Coburg on 23 April. There, Luther was left behind because he was an outlaw according to the Diet of Worms, the rest reached Augsburg on 2 May. On the journey, Melanchthon worked on an apology, using the Torgau articles, and sent his draft to Luther at Coburg on 11 May, during the diet, the cities of Weißenburg in Bayern, Heilbronn, Kempten, and Windesheim also expressed their concurrence with the confession. The Protestant princes, however, declared that they would not part with the confession until its reading should be allowed, the 25th was then fixed for the day of its presentation. In order to exclude the people, the chapel of the episcopal palace was appointed in place of the spacious city hall. The reading of the German version of the text by Christian Beyer lasted two hours and was so distinct that every word could be heard outside, the reading being over, the copies were handed to the emperor. The German he gave to the chancellor, the Elector of Mainz. Neither of the copies is now extant, the first official publication was edited by Philipp Melanchthon, a professor at the University of Wittenberg and a close colleague and friend of Martin Luther. That in doctrine and ceremonies nothing has been received on our part against Scripture or the Church Catholic, signatures of several secular leaders in Saxony. The Augsburg Confession became the confessional document for the Lutheran movement. Following the public reading of the Augsburg Confession in June 1530, the response by Charles V. However, in September, Charles V declared the response to be sufficient and gave the Lutheran princes until 15 April 1531, in response, Phillipp Melancthon wrote a lengthy and sustained argument both supporting the Augsburg Confession and refuting the arguments made in the Confutation. This document became known as the Apology of the Augsburg Confession and was translated into German and was widely distributed. The Lutheran princes at the diet concurrently agreed to an alliance in the event of action by Charles V known as the Schmalkaldic League. By 1535, the League admitted any city or state to the alliance that gave official assent to the Augsburg Confession and the Apology
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Apology of the Augsburg Confession
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It was intended to be a defense of the Augsburg Confession and a refutation of the Confutation. The major sections of the Apology are listed below, along with the article of the Augsburg Confession that Melanchthon is defending, concerning Love and the Fulfilling of the Law 4. Concerning the Church—Articles VII and VIII5, concerning the Number and Use of the Sacraments—Article XIII8. Concerning Human Traditions in the Church—Article XV9, concerning the Invocation of Saints—Article XXI10. Concerning Both Kinds in the Lords Supper—Article XXII11, concerning the Marriage of Priests—Article XXIII12. Concerning Ecclesiastical Power—Article XXVIII He also refers to some of the articles in the Augsburg Confession which did not require an extensive defense. These articles are I, III, XVI, XVII, XVIII, XIX, the first edition of the Apology of the Augsburg Confession was published in late April-early May 1531 in quarto format. Melanchthon continued to revise it, especially in the article on justification, and issued an edition in September 1531. Some scholars believe the second edition is the edition of the Apology. The Lutheran Churchs formal collection of confessions in the Book of Concord refer to the first edition of the Apology when it is quoted in the Solid Declaration of the Formula of Concord. The 1580 German edition of the Book of Concord used the translation of the Apology prepared by Justus Jonas, the question of which is the official text of the Apology arises in connection with the English translation of the text in the 2000 Kolb-Wengert Edition of The Book of Concord. The translators and editors of this made the octavo edition the main source for their English translation because they believe it to be the official version of The Apology. They included English translations of variant readings of the edition in italics. All other English translations of The Book of Concord utilize the quarto edition, Historical Introductions to the Symbolical Books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. St. Louis, Concordia Publishing House,1995, a New Look at the Lutheran Confessions. St. Louis, Concordia Publishing House,1988, - Contains the best text of the quarto Latin Apology of May 1531, with variants from the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th editions in the footnotes. Concordia Triglotta, Die symbolischen Bücher der evanglish-lutherischen Kirche, st. Louis, Concordia Publishing House,1921. This book contains the first edition, the Quarto edition, and translates it from the Latin 1584 Book of Concord, the Bekenntnisschriften is the critical edition of the Lutheran Confessions, offering the latest academic opinions of the various textual forms of the Lutheran Confessions
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Luther's Large Catechism
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Luthers Large Catechism is a catechism by Martin Luther. It consists of written by Luther and compiled Christian canonical texts. This book was addressed particularly to clergymen to aid them in teaching their congregations, luthers Large Catechism is divided into five parts, The Ten Commandments, The Apostles Creed, The Lords Prayer, Holy Baptism, and The Sacrament of the Eucharist. It and related documents was published in the Book of Concord in 1580, the Large Catechism typifies the emphasis which the churches of the Augsburg Confession placed on the importance of knowledge and understanding of the articles of the Christian faith. Primarily intended as instruction to teachers, especially to parents, the Catechism consists of a series of exhortations on the importance of each topic of the Catechism. It is meant for those who have the capacity to understand, and is not meant to be memorized but to be repeatedly reviewed so that the Small Catechism could be taught with understanding. The catechism, Luther wrote, should consist of instruction in the rule of conduct, which always accuses us because we fail to keep it, the rule of faith, the rule of prayer, and the sacraments
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Smalcald Articles
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Luthers patron, Elector John Frederick of Saxony, asked him to prepare these articles for the Schmalkaldic Leagues meeting in 1537, held again in Schmalkalden. When the Schmalkaldic League met, Luther was taken ill with a severe case of kidney stones. The league ultimately determined not to adopt the articles Luther had written and they were influenced not to adopt the Smalcald Articles by Philipp Melanchthon, who was concerned that Luthers writing would be regarded as divisive by some. Melanchthon was asked to write a statement on the Papacy and this he did. In the Smalcald Articles, Luther summarized what he regarded to be the most important teaching in Christianity, the Articles were highly prized by John Frederick who ordered that they be made a part of his last will and testament. Although the intended Council was never held, the Smalcald Articles were seen as a supplement to the other Confessions of the Lutheran Church and are used today. They are included in the Book of Concord, the first and chief article is this, Jesus Christ, our God and Lord, died for our sins and was raised again for our justification. He alone is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, all have sinned and are justified freely, without their own works and merits, by His grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, in His blood. This cannot be acquired or grasped by any work, law. St. Louis, Concordia Publishing House,1921, kolb, Robert and Timothy J. Wengert, eds. The Book of Concord, The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, ISBN 0-8006-2740-7 McCain, Paul T. Robert C. Baker, Gene Edward Veith, and Edward A. Engelbrecht, Concordia, The Lutheran Confessions — A Readers Edition of the Book of Concord. St. Louis, Concordia Publishing House,2005, ISBN 0-7586-0806-3 Tappert, Theodore G. ed. The Book of Concord, The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, historical Introductions to the Book of Concord. St. Louis, Concordia Publishing House,1965, Luthers Theological Testament, The Schmalkald Articles. Smalcald Articles The Book of Concord, The Lutheran Confessions of 1529-1580, look for, The Smalcald Articles of Martin Luther. The Smalcald Articles public domain audiobook at LibriVox
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Justification (theology)
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Justification, in Christian theology, is Gods act of removing the guilt and penalty of sin while at the same time declaring a sinner righteous through Christs atoning sacrifice. The means of justification is an area of significant difference between Catholicism, Orthodoxy and Protestantism, even within the latter, in Lutheranism and Calvinism, righteousness from God is viewed as being credited to the sinners account through faith alone, without works. Justification is granted to all who exercise faith, and that is viewed as a gift from God by Lutherans and Calvinists, in Methodism, justification refers to pardon and the forgiveness of sins and sanctification is the consequent process that together, will ultimately lead to ones salvation. Catholics, Orthodox and Methodists use James 2, 14-26, Galatians 5, 19-21, Justification is often seen as being the theological fault line that divided Catholic from the Lutheran and Reformed traditions of Protestantism during the Reformation. Jesus used the idea of ransom, or redemption when referring to his work on earth, Christs death and resurrection provide justification for believers before God. His righteousness becomes theirs, and his death becomes an offering to God in their place, According to Protestants this justification is by faith alone - not through good deeds - and is a gift from God through Christ. But also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead and he was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God, if you would enter life, keep the commandments. You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. You see that a person is justified by what he does, but faith without works is dead. When the justified live in Christ and act in the grace they receive, they bring forth, in biblical terms, since Christians struggle against sin their entire lives, this consequence of justification is also for them an obligation they must fulfill. Thus both Jesus and the apostolic Scriptures admonish Christians to bring forth the works of love, an example can be cited from section 4.7 no. 38-39, when Catholics affirm the character of good works, they wish to say that, according to the biblical witness. They do emphasize that righteousness as acceptance by God and sharing in the righteousness of Christ is always complete, at the same time, they state that there can be growth in its effects in Christian living. Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food, if one of you says to him, Go, I wish you well, keep warm and well fed, but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it. In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead, but someone will say, You have faith, I have deeds
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Law and Gospel
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In Protestant Christianity, the relationship between Law and Gospel—Gods Law and the Gospel of Jesus Christ—is a major topic in Lutheran and Reformed theology. It is used as a principle of biblical interpretation and a guiding principle in homiletics. It is the supersession of the Old Covenant by the New Covenant, sometimes the issue is discussed under the headings of Law and Grace, Sin and Grace, Spirit and Letter, and ministry of death/condemnation and ministry of the Spirit/righteousness. Martin Luther wrote, Hence, whoever knows well this art of distinguishing between Law and Gospel, him place at the head and call him a doctor of Holy Scripture, throughout the Lutheran Age of Orthodoxy this hermeneutical discipline was considered foundational and important by Lutheran theologians. This distinction was the first article in Patricks Places by Patrick Hamilton, the Formula of Concord distinguished three uses, or purposes, in the Law in Article VI. It states, he Law was given to men for three reasons and that thereby outward discipline might be maintained against wild, disobedient men that men thereby may be led to the knowledge of their sins that after they are regenerate. Confessional Lutheranism teaches that the Law cannot be used to deny the Gospel, the three uses of the Law are, Curb - Through fear of punishment, the Law keeps the sinful nature of both Christians and non-Christians under check. This does not stop sin, since the sin is committed when the heart desires to do what is wrong. Mirror - The Law serves as a reflection of what God created the human heart. It shows anyone who compares his/her life to Gods requirement for perfection that he/she is sinful, guide - This use of the law that applies only to Christians. The law becomes the believers helper, empowered by the gospel truth of forgiveness and righteousness in Christ, the believers new self eagerly desires to live to please the Triune God. The distinction between law and gospel is a standard formulation in Reformed theology, though in recent years some have characterized it as distinctively Lutheran, zacharias Ursinus sharply contrasted the law and gospel as the chief and general divisions of the holy scriptures in his commentary on the Heidelberg Catechism. Louis Berkhof called the law and the gospel the two parts of the Word of God as a means of grace, Law and Gospel are found in both testaments. In his Institutes of the Christian Religion, the Reformer John Calvin distinguished three uses in the Law, Calvin wrote the following, o make the whole matter clearer, let us survey briefly the function and use of what is called the moral law. Now, so far as I understand it, it consists of three parts and it warns, informs, convicts, and lastly condemns, every man of his own unrighteousness. It functions by fear of punishment to restrain certain men who are untouched by any care for what is just and it admonishes believers and urges them on in well-doing. This scheme is the same as the Formula of Concord, with the exception that the first, in later Reformed scholasticism the order is the same as for Lutherans. The three uses are called, The usus politicus sive civilis, the political or civil use, is a restraint on sin and it is part of Gods general revelation or common grace for unbelievers as well as believers
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Sola scriptura
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Sola scriptura is a Christian theological doctrine which holds that the Christian Scriptures are the sole infallible rule of faith and practice. However, sola scriptura rejects any original infallible authority other than the Bible, in this view, all secondary authority is derived from the authority of the Scriptures and is therefore subject to reform when compared to the teaching of the Bible. Sola scriptura is a principle of many Protestant Christian denominations. The Catholic Church regards the Apostolic preaching and writing as equal since both came from the Apostles, the Catholic Church describe this as one common source. With two distinct modes of transmission, while some Protestant authors call it a source of revelation. Sola scriptura is one of the five solas, considered by some Protestant groups to be the pillars of the Reformation. Luther said, a simple layman armed with Scripture is greater than the mightiest pope without it, the intention of the Reformation was to correct what he asserted to be the errors of the Catholic Church by appeal to the uniqueness of the Bibles textual authority. Catholic doctrine is based in Church tradition, as well as Scripture, Sola scriptura meant rejecting the infallible authority given to the Magisterium to interpret both Scripture and Church tradition. Sola scriptura, however, does not ignore Christian history, tradition, rather, it sees the church as the Bibles interpreter, the regula fidei as the interpretive context, and Scripture as the only final authority in matters of faith and practice. As Luther said, The true rule is this, Gods Word shall establish articles of faith, Lutheranism teaches that the Bible of the Old and New Testaments is the only divinely inspired book and the only source of divinely revealed knowledge. Scripture alone is the principle of the faith in Lutheranism, the final authority for all matters of faith and morals because of its inspiration, authority, clarity, efficacy. Lutheranism teaches that the Bible does not merely contain the Word of God, but every word of it is, because of verbal inspiration, as Lutherans confess in the Nicene Creed, the Holy Spirit spoke through the prophets. The Apology of the Augsburg Confession identifies Holy Scripture with the Word of God, a mistranslation is not Gods word, and no human authority can invest it with divine authority. Holy Scripture, the Word of God, carries the authority of God in Lutheranism, every single statement of the Bible calls for instant. Every doctrine of the Bible is the teaching of God and therefore requires full agreement, every promise of the Bible calls for unshakable trust in its fulfillment, every command of the Bible is the directive of God himself and therefore demands willing observance. It also teaches that readers must understand the language Gods Word is presented in and it teaches that, consequently, no one needs to wait for any clergy, and pope, scholar, or ecumenical council to explain the real meaning of any part of the Bible. Lutheranism teaches that Scripture is united with the power of the Holy Spirit and with it, not only demands and this teaching produces faith and obedience. Holy Scripture is not a letter, but rather, the power of the Holy Spirit is inherent in it
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Scholastic Lutheran Christology
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Scholastic Lutheran Christology is the orthodox Lutheran theology of Jesus Christ, developed using the methodology of Lutheran scholasticism. These new features relate to the communion of the two natures, and to the states and the offices of Christ, the communicatio idiomatum means the communication of attributes or properties of one nature to the other, or to the whole person. It is derived from the unio personalis and the communio naturarum, the genus apotelesmaticum, whereby the redemptory functions and actions which belong to the whole person are predicated only of one or the other nature. The genus auchematicum, or maiestaticum, whereby the human nature is clothed with, a fourth kind would be the genus kenoticum, or tapeinoticum, Phil. 7,8, i. e. a communication of the properties of the nature to the divine nature. The third genus can never be carried out, unless the humanity of Christ is also eternalized. The attributes, moreover, are not an outside appendix, but inherent qualities of the substance to which they belong, hence a communication of attributes would imply a communication or mixture of natures. The divine and human natures can indeed hold free and intimate intercourse with each other, Christ possessed all the attributes of both natures, but the natures, nevertheless, remain separate and distinct. This is the state of humiliation and the state of exaltation and this doctrine is based upon Phil. But here, again, the two confessions differ very considerably, first as to the descent into Hades. It is properly the turning-point from the one state to the other, secondly, the Lutheran Confessions of the Book of Concord refer the two states only to the human nature of Christ, regarding the divine as not susceptible of any humiliation or exaltation. With them the incarnation itself is the beginning of the state of humiliation, finally, the Scholastic Lutherans regard the humiliation only as a partial concealment of the actual use of the divine attributes by the incarnate Logos. The prophetical office includes teaching and the miracles of Christ, the priestly office consists of the satisfaction made for the sins of the world by the death on the cross, and in the continued intercession of the exalted Savior for his people. The kingly office, whereby Christ founded his kingdom, defends his Church against all enemies, the threefold office or function of Christ was first presented by Eusebius of Caesarea. The theologians who followed Luther and Melanchthon down to the middle of the seventeenth century treat Christs saving work under the two heads of king and priest. Calvin, in the first edition of his Institutes, did the same, and it was not till the third edition and this convenient threefold division of the office of Christ was used by the theologians of both confessions during the seventeenth century. Ernesti opposed it, but Schleiermacher restored it, extra calvinisticum This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Jackson, Samuel Macauley, ed. article name needed. New Schaff–Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, london and New York, Funk and Wagnalls
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Two kingdoms doctrine
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The two kingdoms doctrine is a Protestant Christian doctrine that teaches that God is the ruler of the whole world, and that he rules in two ways. The doctrine is held by Lutherans and has historically been the view of Calvinists, according to the doctrine, God rules the worldly or left-hand kingdom through secular government, by means of law ) and in the heavenly or right-hand kingdom through the gospel or grace. The two kingdoms doctrine is simply another form of the distinctive Lutheran teaching of Law and Gospel, in that sermon he states that the worldly Kingdom includes everything we can see and do in our bodies. This fully and especially includes whatever is done in the church and this is taught so that it is clear that in the Heavenly Kingdom, the only thing that is included there is alone faith in Christ. Christ alone and faith alone are Lutheran slogans that are reflected in this way, the biblical basis for this doctrine, is the distinction St Paul makes in Romans 8 between the physical body and the spirit. This marks Martin Luthers break with the traditional understanding of Romans 8. The Scholastics understood that in this dichotomy the flesh was vice, profane and secular, while the spirit was virtue, sacred, Martin Luther used the phrase two governments rather than two kingdoms. Augustines model of the City of God was the foundation for Luthers doctrine, Luther was confronted with seemingly contradictory types of statements in the Bible. Some biblical passages exhort Christians to obey rulers placed over them and to evil with retribution. Instead, Luther taught that the world is divided into true Christians and non-Christians, the spiritual kingdom, made up of true Christians, does not need the sword. The biblical passages dealing with justice and retribution, therefore, are only in reference to the first kingdom, Christians, however, should only use the sword against evildoers, and never amongst themselves. Luther also uses this idea to describe the relationship of the church to the state, the temporal kingdom has no authority to coerce in matters pertaining to the spiritual kingdom. Luther had in mind the way in which the Roman Catholic Church had involved itself in secular affairs, for over the soul God can and will let no one rule but himself. Therefore, where temporal power presumes to prescribe laws for the soul, it encroaches upon Gods government and only misleads, temporal authority and government extend no further than to matters which are external and corporeal. Due to the influence of neo-Calvinism, it is believed that the Reformed have historically held a significantly different view, known as transformationalism. High orthodox theologians such as Samuel Rutherford also used the concepts, the Reformed application of the doctrine differed from the Lutheran in the matter of the external government of the church. Lutherans were content to allow the state to control the administration of the church, in general, however, the Reformed followed Calvins lead in insisting that the churchs external administration, including the right to excommunicate, not be handed over to the state. Luthers articulation of the two kingdoms doctrine had little effect on the reality of church government in Lutheran territories during the Reformation
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Churches Militant, Penitent, and Triumphant
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These divisions are known as the three states of the Church, especially within Catholic ecclesiology. In systems of theology which reject the doctrine of Purgatory, such as Low-Church Lutheranism, the Churches Militant and Triumphant are together known as the two states of the Church. The members of the Church Militant, i. e. those Christians on earth, are engaged in warfare against sin in order that. The term penitent means repenting, being sorry and those who constitute the Church Penitent are in Purgatory to satisfy whatever portion of the temporal punishment due for their sins was not satisfied before death. They are in a process of purging their imperfections before entering heaven and it is held that all members of the Church Penitent will eventually join the Church Triumphant. The alternate term suffering emphasizes the nature of experience in Purgatory. The other alternative, expectant, emphasizes that the souls of Purgatory are awaiting expectantly the beatific vision of heaven, the term triumphant, means exulting, rejoicing exceedingly, taken from a figurative usage of triumphus, originally designating the Roman triumph. Those who constitute the Church Triumphant rejoice eternally in the glory of God, anglicans believe that. the Church on earth is united with the Church in heaven. They speak of the Church Militant here on earth and the Church triumphant in heaven and they worship God together with angels and archangels, and with all the company of heaven. The Catholic Church commemorates the Church Triumphant and the Church Penitent in its liturgy on two days, All Saints Day on November 1 and All Souls Day on November 2. These terms are not used in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, however, the teaching these terms represent is precisely restated, quoting Lumen gentium, The three states of the Church. When the Lord comes in glory, and all his angels with him, death will be no more, but at the present time some of his disciples are pilgrims on earth. Others have died and are being purified, while others are in glory, contemplating in full light, God himself triune and one. Eric Lund, a Lutheran professor, described an analogy relating the Old Testament to the New Testament, fire was transferred from the outer one to the inner one. God also assembled a twofold church, the militant and the church triumphant. The fire of love will someday be transferred from the militant to the church triumphant. As such, within Lutheranism, That is called the Church militant, which in life is still fighting, under the banner of Christ, against Satan, the world. It defines the Church Militant as inclusive of all Christian denominations, among them Methodism, Presbyterianism, Baptist churches, Congregational churches, Anglicanism, among many others
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Universal priesthood
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The exact meaning of this belief and its implications vary widely among denominations. The universal priesthood is a concept of Protestantism. In this way we are all priests, as many of us as are Christians, there are indeed priests whom we call ministers. They are chosen from among us, and who do everything in our name and that is a priesthood which is nothing else than the Ministry. Thus 1 Corinthians 4,1, No one should regard us as anything else than ministers of Christ and dispensers of the mysteries of God. The Bible passage considered to be the basis of belief is the First Epistle of Peter,2,9, But you are not like that. You are royal priests, a nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, other relevant Scripture passages include Exodus 19, 5–6, First Peter 2, 4–8, Book of Revelation 1, 4–6,5, 6–10, and the Epistle to the Hebrews. In ancient Israel, priests acted as mediators between God and people and they ministered according to Gods instruction and they offered sacrifices to God on behalf of the people. Once a year, the high priest would enter the holiest part of the temple and offer a sacrifice for the sins of all the people, including all the priests. Although many religions use priests, most Protestant faiths reject the idea of a priesthood as a group that is distinct from lay people. They typically employ professional clergy who perform many of the functions as priests such as clarifying doctrine, administering communion, performing baptisms, marriages. In many instances, Protestants see professional clergy as servants acting on behalf of the local believers and this is in contrast to the priest, whom some Protestants see as having a distinct authority and spiritual role different from that of ordinary believers. Most Protestants today recognize only Christ as a mediator between themselves and God, the Epistle to the Hebrews calls Jesus the supreme high priest, who offered himself as a perfect sacrifice. Protestants believe that through Christ they have given direct access to God, just like a priest. God is equally accessible to all the faithful, and every Christian has equal potential to minister for God and this doctrine stands in opposition to the concept of a spiritual aristocracy or hierarchy within Christianity. The belief in the priesthood of all believers does not preclude order, for example, Lutheranism maintains the biblical doctrine of the preaching office or the office of the holy ministry established by God in the Christian Church. To obtain such faith God instituted the office of preaching, giving the gospel, through these, as through means, he gives the Holy Spirit who produces faith, where and when he wills, in those who hear the gospel
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Divine providence
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In theology, divine providence, or just providence, is Gods intervention in the world. The term Divine Providence is also used as a title of God, miracles generally fall in the latter category. The word comes from Latin providentia foresight, prudence, from pro- ahead, the current use of the word has the sense of knowledge of the future or omniscience, understood as an attribute of God. In Acts 17 Paul says, t is he who gives to life and breath. In him we live and move and have our being, augustine of Hippo is perhaps most famously associated with the doctrine of Divine Providence in the Latin West. However, Christian teaching on providence in the high Middle Ages was most fully developed by Thomas Aquinas in the Summa Theologica. The concept of providence as care exercised by God over the universe, his foresight, in it, he presents and solves, according to Catholic doctrine, the most difficult issues as related to providence. This term is an part of John Calvins theological framework known as Calvinism, which emphasizes the total depravity of man. Gods plan for the world and every soul that he has created is guided by his will, in this mode of thought, providence is related to predestination. This concept remains prominent among many Protestant denominations that identify with Calvinism, in Lutheran theology, divine providence refers to Gods preservation of creation, his cooperation with everything that happens, and his guiding of the universe. While God cooperates with both good and evil deeds, with the deeds he does so only inasmuch as they are deeds. God concurs with an effect, but he does not cooperate in the corruption of an act or the evil of its effect. Lutherans believe everything exists for the sake of the Christian Church, according to Martin Luther, divine providence began when God created the world with everything needed for human life, including both physical things and natural laws. Of the services others provide us through family, government, and work, he writes, we receive these blessings not from them, since God uses everyones useful tasks for good, people should look not down upon some useful vocations as being less worthy than others. Instead people should honor others, no matter how lowly, as being the means God uses to work in the world, Divine Providence is a book published by Emanuel Swedenborg in 1764 which describes his systematic theology regarding providence, free will, theodicy, and other related topics. Both meanings of providence are applicable in Swedenborgs theology, in that providence encompasses understanding, intent, Divine providence relative to man is foresight, and relative to the Lord is providence. Swedenborg proposes that one law of divine providence is that man should act from freedom according to reason, Divine providence is discussed throughout Rabbinic literature, and in particular by the classical Jewish philosophers. These writings maintain that divine providence means that God is directing every minute detail of creation and this analysis thus underpins much of Orthodox Judaisms world view, particularly as regards questions of interaction with the natural world
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Luther's Marian theology
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Luthers Marian theology is derived from his views of Mary, the mother of Jesus. It was developed out of the deep Christian Marian devotion on which he was reared, Lutherans hold Mary in high esteem. By the end of Luthers theological development, his emphasis was placed on Mary as merely a receiver of Gods love. He held fast to the belief that Mary was a virgin and the Theotokos. Special attention is given to the assertion that Luther, some three-hundred years before the dogmatization of the Immaculate Conception by Pope Pius IX in 1854, was an adherent of that view. Regarding the Assumption of Mary, he stated that the Bible did not say anything about it, important to him was the belief that Mary and the saints do live on after death. He believed that Mary is the Theotokos the God-bearer, Martin Luther said, he became the Mother of God, in which work so many and such great good things are bestowed on her as pass mans understanding. Hence men have crowded all her glory into a single word, calling her the Mother of God. None can say of her nor announce to her greater things, even though he had as many tongues as the earth possesses flowers and blades of grass, the sky, stars, and the sea, grains of sand. It needs to be pondered in the heart what it means to be the Mother of God and this belief was officially confessed by Lutherans in their Formula of Concord, Solid Declaration, article VIII. He demonstrated his divine majesty even in his mothers womb in that he was born of a virgin without violating her virginity, therefore she is truly the mother of God and yet remained a virgin. Luther accepted the idea of the virginity of Mary. It is implicit in his Christian Dogmatics that belief in Marys perpetual virginity is the older, some American Lutheran groups such as the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod later found no difficulty with the view that Mary and Joseph themselves together had other children. In 1544 Luther said, God has formed the soul and body of the Virgin Mary full of the Holy Spirit, so that she is without all sins, for she has conceived, elsewhere, All seed except Mary was vitiated. The Holy Spirit permitted the Virgin Mary to remain a true, natural human being of flesh and blood, however, he warded off sin from her flesh and blood so that she became the mother of a pure child, not poisoned by sin as we are. For in that moment when she conceived, she was a holy mother filled with the Holy Spirit and her fruit is a holy pure fruit, at once God and truly man, in one person. Throughout his lifetime, Luther referred to Mary as the Queen of Heaven, before 1516, Luthers belief that Mary is a mediatrix between God and humanity was driven by his fear of Jesus being the implacable judge of all people. The Virgin Mary remains in the middle between Christ and humankind, for in the very moment he was conceived and lived, he was full of grace
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Theology of the Cross
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It is contrasted with the Theology of Glory, which places greater emphasis on human abilities and human reason. Paragraph 2015 of the CCC describes the way of perfection as passing by way of the Cross, there is no holiness without renunciation and spiritual battle. Spiritual progress entails the ascesis and mortification that gradually leads to living in the peace, the term theologia crucis was used very rarely by Luther. He first used the term, and explicitly defined it in contrast to the theology of glory, during this debate, he represented the Augustinians and presented his theses that later came to define the Reformation movement. The pertinent theological theses of the debate are, The law of God, the most salutary doctrine of life, cannot advance man on his way to righteousness, but rather hinders him. Much less can human works, which are done over and over again with the aid of natural precepts, so to speak, although the works of man always appear attractive and good, they are nevertheless likely to be mortal sins. Although the works of God always seem unattractive and appear evil, the works of men are thus not mortal sins, as though they were crimes. The works of God are thus not merits, as though they were sinless, the works of the righteous would be mortal sins if they would not be feared as mortal sins by the righteous themselves out of pious fear of God. By so much more are the works of man mortal sins when they are done without fear and in unadulterated, to say that works without Christ are dead, but not mortal, appears to constitute a perilous surrender of the fear of God. Indeed, it is difficult to see how a work can be dead and at the same time not a harmful. Arrogance cannot be avoided or true hope be present unless the judgment of condemnation is feared in every work, in the sight of God sins are then truly venial when they are feared by men to be mortal. Free will, after the fall, exists in name only, Free will, after the fall, has power to do good only in a passive capacity, but it can do evil in an active capacity. Nor could the free will endure in a state of innocence, much less do good, in an active capacity, the person who believes that he can obtain grace by doing what is in him adds sin to sin so that he becomes doubly guilty. Nor does speaking in this manner give cause for despair, but for arousing the desire to humble oneself and it is certain that man must utterly despair of his own ability before he is prepared to receive the grace of Christ. That person does not deserve to be called a theologian who looks upon the things of God as though they were clearly perceptible in those things that have happened. He deserves to be called a theologian, however, who comprehends the visible and manifest things of God seen through suffering, a theologian of glory calls evil good and good evil. A theologian of the cross calls the things what it is and that wisdom that sees the invisible things of God in works as perceived by man is completely puffed up, blinded, and hardened. The law brings the wrath of God, kills, reviles, accuses, judges, yet that wisdom is not of itself evil, nor is the law to be evaded, but without the theology of the cross man misuses the best in the worst manner
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Sacramental union
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In Protestant sacramental theology, sacramental union is the relationship between the outward substance or sign of a sacrament and the thing signified by the sacrament. Lutherans believe the sign and thing signified to be locally united, Reformed Christians believe the sign and thing signified to be inseparable, but to be united spiritually rather than locally and bodily. Lutherans maintain that what they believe to be the doctrine of the manducatio indignorum supports this doctrine as well as any other doctrine affirming the Real Presence. The manducatio indignorum is the contention that even unbelievers eating and drinking in the Eucharist really eat and drink the body and blood of Christ. Here, too, out of two kinds of objects a union has taken place, which I shall call a sacramental union, because Christ’s body and this is not a natural or personal union, as is the case with God and Christ. It is also perhaps a different union from that which the dove has with the Holy Spirit, and the flame with the angel and it is asserted in the Wittenberg Concord of 1536 and in the Formula of Concord. The Formula of Concord couples the term with the circumlocution used among Lutherans to further define their view, For the reason why, in addition to the expressions of Christ and St. The term consubstantiation has been associated with such a local inclusion of the Body and Blood of Christ in the sacramental bread, Martin Luther distinguished this doctrine from that of transubstantiation and impanation in this way. We do not make Christs body out of the bread, nor do we say that his body comes into existence out of the bread. We say that his body, which long ago was made and came into existence, is present when we say, for Christ commands us to say not, Let this become my body, or, Make my body there, but, This is my body. The Lutheran doctrine of the union is also distinct from the Reformed view. The Calvinistic view of Christs presence in the Lords Supper is that Christ is truly present at the meal and this is in line with their general belief that the finite is not capacious for the infinite. Lutherans, on the hand, describe the Personal Union of the two natures in Christ as sharing their predicates or attributes more fully. The doctrine of the union is more consistent with this type of Christology. Confession Concerning Christs Supper Crypto-Calvinism Eucharistic theologies contrasted Marburg Colloquy Martin Luther Real Presence Luther, D. Martin Luthers Werke, Kritische Gesamtausgabe. Weimar, Verlag Hermann Böhlaus Nochfolger, 1883-, pelikan, and Helmut T. Lehmann, gen. eds.55 vols. St. Louis, Concordia Publishing House, Philadelphia, Fortress Press, triglot Concordia, The Symbolical Books of the Ev
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Criticism of Protestantism
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Anti-Protestantism is bias, hatred or distrust against some or all branches of Protestantism and its followers. The Reformed faith was not recognized until the Peace of Westphalia of 1648, other states, such as France, made similar agreements in the early stages of the Reformation. Poland-Lithuania had a history of religious tolerance. Anabaptism arose as a part of the Radical Reformation, lacking support of the state Lutheranism and Calvinism enjoyed, theological disagreement initially led to a Lutheran-Reformed rivalry in the Reformation. Protestantism in Latin America was largely ostracized until the abolishment of certain restrictions in the 20th century and it spreads with Evangelicalism and Pentecostalism gaining the majority of followers. North America became a shelter for Protestants who were fleeing Europe after the persecution increased, persecution of Protestants in Asia can be put under a common shild of the persecution Christians in the Middle East and northern Africa, dominated by Islam is also a part of this phenomenon. Martin Luthers Proclamation occurred in 1517, by 1540, Pope Paul III had sanctioned the first society pledged to extinguish Protestantism. Christian Protestantism was denounced as heresy, and those supporting these doctrines excommunicated as heretics and this movement was started by the reigning Pope at that time and various political rulers with a more political stake in the controversy then a religious one. Eastern Orthodoxy had comparatively little contact with Protestantism for geographic, linguistic, Protestant attempts to ally with Eastern Orthodoxy proved problematic. In general, most Orthodox had the impression that Protestantism was a new heresy that arose from various previous heresies, the book forecast the end of Protestantism by 1825 and was published in at least 15 editions and several languages. In recent eras Orthodox anti-Protestantism has grown due to aggressive Protestant proselytization in predominantly Orthodox countries, anti-Protestantism originated in a reaction by the Catholic Church against the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. Protestants were denounced as heretics and subject to persecution in those territories, such as Spain, Italy and this movement was orchestrated by Popes and Princes as the Counter Reformation. This resulted in wars and eruptions of sectarian hatred such as the St Bartholomews Day Massacre of 1572. In Francos authoritarian Spanish State, Protestantism was deliberately marginalized and persecuted, during the Civil War, Francos regime persecuted the countrys 30,000 Protestants, and forced many Protestant pastors to leave the country. Once authoritarian rule was established, non-Catholic Bibles were confiscated by police and these perceptions are often linked to highly publicized events, such as the decision to endorse same-sex marriage by the United Church of Christ. Some critics have suggested that evangelicals are a kind of fifth column aimed at turning the United States or other nations into Christian theocracies. Cultural progressive activists have indicated fear of a potential Christian theocracy as one of the reasons for their opposition to the Christian Right, many evangelicals reject Dispensationalism and support peace efforts in the Middle East, however. Some Christian groups focused on the Bible have been derided as Bible thumpers, depictions of evangelicals as uneducated rubes or hypocrites are common in Hollywood movies and television shows, such as Saved
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Lutheran sacraments
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The Lutheran sacraments are sacred acts of divine institution. They teach that God earnestly offers to all who receive the sacrament forgiveness of sins and they teach that God also works in the recipients to get them to accept these blessings and to increase the assurance of their possession. For humanly instituted rites are not sacraments, properly speaking, because human beings do not have the authority to promise grace, therefore signs instituted without the command of God are not sure signs of grace, even though they perhaps serve to teach or admonish the common folk. The Sacrament of Holy Baptism is the sacrament by which one is initiated into the Christian faith, Lutherans teach that at Baptism, they receive Gods promise of salvation. At the same time, they receive the faith they need to be open to Gods grace, Lutherans baptize by sprinkling or pouring water on the head of the person as the Trinitarian formula is spoken. Lutherans teach baptism to be necessary, but not absolutely necessary, what that means is that although baptism is indeed necessary for salvation, it is, as Luther said, contempt for the sacraments that condemns, not lack of the sacraments. Therefore, one is not denied salvation merely because one may have never had the opportunity to be baptized and this is what is meant by saying that baptism is necessary—but not absolutely necessary—to salvation. The Sacrament of the Eucharist is where communicants eat and drink the true Body and Blood of Christ Himself, in, with and under the forms of the consecrated bread and this Eucharistic theology is known as the Sacramental Union. The rite of Penance is not universally observed as a sacrament in the Lutheran Church, the Sacrament has two forms, the General Confession that is done at the beginning of the Eucharistic service. In historic Lutheran practice, Holy Absolution is expected before first partaking of the Eucharist, General confession, as well as Holy Absolution, are still contained in the Lutheran hymnals. Two works which are part of the Book of Concord, the Confessions of the Lutheran Church, the Apology of the Augsburg Confession acknowledges outright that Holy Absolution is a sacrament, referring to it as the sacrament of penitence. In the Large Catechism, Luther calls Holy Absolution the third sacrament, confirmation is a public profession of faith prepared for by long and careful instruction. In English, it is known as the affirmation of baptism, the German language uses for Lutheran confirmation a different word from the word used for the same Sacrament in the Catholic Church. An average catechism class lasts about two years, Holy matrimony is a union between a man and woman, acknowledging the grace of God in their life. Some Lutheran church bodies also recognize or acknowledge same-sex marriage, Lutherans, on the whole, reject the Roman Catholic teaching of Holy Orders because they do not think sacerdotalism is supported by the Bible. Martin Luther taught that each individual was expected to fulfill his God-appointed task in everyday life, the modern usage of the term vocation as a life-task was first employed by Martin Luther. However, in some Lutheran churches, Holy Orders refers to the three orders of bishop, priest and deacon, and the sacrament or rite by which candidates are ordained to those orders, is retained. The Lutheran Church, like others, use James 5, 14–15 as biblical reference for Anointing of the Sick, the process of this rite consists of laying on of hands and/or anointing with oil, while the form consists of prayers
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Baptism
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Baptism is a Christian sacrament of admission and adoption, almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally. The canonical Gospels report that Jesus was baptized—a historical event to which a degree of certainty can be assigned. Baptism has been called a sacrament and an ordinance of Jesus Christ. In some denominations, baptism is also called christening, but for others the word christening is reserved for the baptism of infants, Baptism has also given its name to the Baptist churches and denominations. The usual form of baptism among the earliest Christians was for the candidate to be immersed, in v.16, Matthew will speak of Jesus coming up out of the water. The traditional depiction in Christian art of John the Baptist pouring water over Jesus head may therefore be based on later Christian practice, other common forms of baptism now in use include pouring water three times on the forehead, a method called affusion. Martyrdom was identified early in Church history as baptism by blood, later, the Catholic Church identified a baptism of desire, by which those preparing for baptism who die before actually receiving the sacrament are considered saved. Today, some Christians, particularly Christian Scientists, Quakers, The Salvation Army, and Unitarians, do not see baptism as necessary, among those that do, differences can be found in the manner and mode of baptizing and in the understanding of the significance of the rite. Most Christians baptize in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, much more than half of all Christians baptize infants, many others hold that only believers baptism is true baptism. Some insist on submersion or at least partial immersion of the person who is baptized, others consider that any form of washing by water, as long as the water flows on the head, is sufficient. The term baptism has also used to refer to any ceremony, trial, or experience by which a person is initiated, purified. The Greek verb baptō, dip, from which the verb baptizo is derived, is in turn hypothetically traced to a reconstructed Indo-European root *gʷabh-, the Greek words are used in a great variety of meanings. John the Baptist, who is considered a forerunner to Christianity, the apostle Paul distinguished between the baptism of John, and baptism in the name of Jesus, and it is questionable whether Christian baptism was in some way linked with that of John. Christians consider Jesus to have instituted the sacrament of baptism, though whether Jesus intended to institute a continuing, the earliest Christian baptisms were probably normally by immersion, complete or partial. Though other modes may have also been used, at the hour in which the cock crows, they shall first pray over the water. When they come to the water, the water shall be pure and flowing, that is, then they shall take off all their clothes. The children shall be baptized first, all of the children who can answer for themselves, let them answer. If there are any children who cannot answer for themselves, let their parents answer for them, after this, the men will be baptized
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Eucharist in Lutheranism
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The Eucharist in the Lutheran Church refers to the liturgical commemoration of the Last Supper. Martin Luther saw the main basis for the Eucharist to be found in Matthew 26, 26–28, Mark 14, 22–24, Luke 22, 19-20, the Lutheran doctrine of the Real Presence is also known as the sacramental union. This theology was first formally and publicly confessed in the Wittenberg Concord and it has also been called consubstantiation but most Lutheran theologians reject the use of this term as it creates confusion with an earlier doctrine of the same name. Some Lutherans do believe in consubstantiation, for Lutherans the Eucharist is not considered to be a valid sacrament unless the elements are used according to Christs mandate and institution. This was first formulated in the Wittenberg Concord of 1536 in the formula, to remove any scruple of doubt or superstition, the reliquiæ traditionally are either consumed, poured into the earth, or reserved. Today, many Lutheran churches offer the Eucharist weekly, while others offer it less often, weddings and funerals sometimes include the celebration of the Eucharist in Lutheran churches. At the ordinations of pastors/priests and the consecration of bishops, the Eucharist is always offered, for Lutherans in general, confession and absolution are considered proper preparation for receiving the sacrament. However, the practice among Lutherans of preparation by private confession and absolution is rarely found in American Lutheran congregations. For this reason, often an order or corporate rite of confession and absolution is included at the beginning of Lutheran liturgies. Most other ELCA congregations offer First Communion instruction to children in the 5th grade, in other Lutheran churches, the person must have receive confirmation before receiving the Eucharist. Infants and children who havent received the instruction may be brought to the Eucharistic distribution by their parents to be blessed by the pastor. The manner of receiving the Eucharist differs throughout the world, the congregation departs and may make the sign of the cross. In other Lutheran churches, the process is much like the Post-Vatican II revised rite of the Roman Catholic Church, the eucharistic minister and his assistants line up, with the eucharistic minister in the center holding the hosts and the two assistants on either side holding the chalices. The people process to the front in lines and receive the Eucharist standing, following this, the people make the sign of the cross and return to their places in the congregation. The bread is commonly a thin unleavened wafer, but leavened wafers may also be used, some parishes use intinction, the dipping of the host into the chalice. Placing the host in the hand of the communicant is commonly practiced, the wine is commonly administered via a chalice, but many congregations use individual cups. These may be either prefilled or filled from the chalice during the distribution of the Eucharist, some ELCA congregations make grape juice available for children and those who are abstaining from alcohol and some will accommodate those with an allergy to wheat or grapes. Lutheran Eucharistic adoration is not commonly practiced, but when it occurs it is only from the moment of consecration to reception
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Confession (Lutheran Church)
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The Lutheran Church practices Confession and Absolution with the emphasis on the absolution, which is Gods word of forgiveness. Indeed, Lutherans highly regard Holy Absolution and they, like Roman Catholics, see James 5,16 and John 20, 22-23 as biblical evidence for confession. Confession and absolution is done in private to the pastor, called the confessor with the person confessing known as the penitent, in confession, the penitent makes an act of contrition, as the pastor, acting in persona Christi, announces the formula of absolution. Prior to the confession, the penitent is to review the Ten Commandments to examine his or her conscience, in the Lutheran Church, like the Roman Catholic Church, the pastor is bound by the Seal of the Confessional. Luthers Small Catechism says the pastor is pledged not to anyone else of sins to him in private confession. If the Seal is broken, it will result in excommunication, in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, private confession fell into disuse, at the present time, it is, for example, expected before partaking of the Eucharist for the first time. It is also encouraged to be frequently in a year. In many churches, times are set for the pastor to hear confessions, the definition of sacrament in the Apology of the Augsburg Confession lists Absolution as one of them. Luther went to all his life. Although Lutherans do not consider the other four rites as sacraments, now, concerning this faith, which obtains the remission of sins, there is not a syllable in so great a mass of regulations, glosses, summaries, books of confession. In his 1529 catechisms, Martin Luther praised confession for the sake of absolution, the Roman Catholic church held confession to be composed of three parts, contritio cordis, confessio oris, and satisfactio operis. Faith or trust in Jesus complete active and passive satisfaction is what receives the forgiveness and salvation won by him, I, a poor sinner, plead guilty before God of all sins. I have lived as if God did not matter and as if I mattered most and my Lords name I have not honored as I should, my worship and prayers have faltered. I have not let His love have its way with me, there are those whom I have hurt, and those whom I have failed to help. My thoughts and desires have been spoiled with sin, what troubles me particularly is that. Here, the penitent is to confess whatever they have done against the commandments of God, I am sorry for all of this and ask for grace. The pastor continues, God be merciful to you and strengthen your faith, do you believe that my forgiveness is Gods forgiveness. I, a sinner, confess myself before God guilty of all sins, especially I confess before you that I am a manservant
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Confirmation (Lutheran Church)
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Confirmation in the Lutheran Church is a public profession of faith prepared for by long and careful instruction. In English, it is called affirmation of baptism, and is a mature, then they laid hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. Note, Prior to admission to the Eucharist, it is necessary to be instructed in the Christian faith. Confirmation teaches Baptized Christians who wish to become Lutheran Martin Luthers theology on the Ten Commandments, the Apostles Creed, the Lords Prayer, Baptism, Confession, and the Eucharist. At the conclusion of this instruction, young persons traditionally make a public profession of their faith in a public ceremony. Students often begin taking classes at about age twelve and are usually confirmed at age fourteen. Some Lutheran pastors and theologians are now beginning to ask whether it is permissible to adopt the practice of the Eastern church and to confirm/chrismate at baptism, Lutherans do not accept that only a bishop can confirm as is the custom in the Anglicanism. Even in countries where Lutherans claim to apostolic succession such as Estonia, Sweden, Finland. A priest is allowed to confirm, Lutheran sacraments Confirmation Christian Questions with Their Answers
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Christian views on marriage
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Most Christian authorities and bodies view marriage as a state instituted and ordained by God for the lifelong relationship between one man as husband and one woman as wife. They consider it the most intimate of human relationships, a gift from God, Protestants consider it to be sacred, holy, and even central to the community of faith, while Catholics and Eastern Orthodox Christians consider it a Sacrament. Biblically, it is to be held in honour among all…, Jesus maintained the importance and sacredness of lifelong marriage in his own teachings. He quoted from both Genesis 1 and 2, stating in Matthew 19, 3-6 that God had created humanity as male and female, so they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let no one separate, in most states with a traditionally majority Christian population, civil laws recognize marriage as having social and political statuses. Christian theology affirms the secular status of marriage, but additionally views it from a moral, while marriage is honored and affirmed among Christians and throughout the Bible, there is no suggestion that it is necessary for everyone. Single people who either have chosen to remain unmarried or who have lost their spouse for some reason are neither incomplete in Christ nor personal failures, God himself is the author of marriage. The vocation to marriage is written in the nature of man and woman as they came from the hand of the Creator. By this grace they help one another to attain holiness in their married life, Christ is the source of this grace. Just as of old God encountered his people with a covenant of love and fidelity, so our Savior and it calls sex with the wife of another, or sex with someone else other than the husband, the sin of adultery. Christians seek to uphold the seriousness of wedding vows, while the voice of God had said, I hate divorce, some authorities believe the divorce rate in the church is nearly comparable to that of the culture at large. Roles in Christian marriages between opposite-sex couples challenge deep-rooted beliefs, teachings, and traditions—most dating from biblical days and its proponents teach the fundamental biblical principle of the equality of all human beings before God. Complementarianism prescribes a husband-headship male-dominant hierarchy and this views core beliefs call for a husband’s loving, humble headship and the wife’s intelligent, willing submission to his headship. Without necessarily using the term obey, they believe women have different, Biblical patriarchy prescribes a strict male-dominant hierarchy. Their organizations first tenet is that God reveals Himself as masculine, God is the eternal Father and the eternal Son, the Holy Spirit is also addressed as He, and Jesus Christ is a male. They consider the husband-father to be sovereign over his household—the family leader, provider and they call for a wife to be obedient to her head. Christians today hold three competing views as to what is the biblically ordained relationship between husbands and wives, the great debate about marriage in contemporary Christian circles is among three primary groups—Christian egalitarians, Complementarians, and Biblical patriarchists. The Code, with variations, occurs in four epistles by the Apostle Paul, the Roman law of Manus gave the husband nearly absolute autocratic power over his wife, including life and death
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Anointing of the Sick
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Anointing of the sick, known also by other names, is a form of religious anointing or unction for the benefit of a sick person. It is practiced by many Christian churches and denominations, Anointing of the sick was a customary practice in many civilizations, including among the ancient Greeks and early Jewish communities. The use of oil for healing purposes is referred to in the writings of Hippocrates and it does not, of course, forbid the use of other names, for example the more archaic term Unction of the Sick or the term Extreme Unction. Cardinal Walter Kasper used the term in his intervention at the 2005 Assembly of the Synod of Bishops. However, the Church declared that Extreme unction, may also and more fittingly be called anointing of the sick, and has itself adopted the latter term, while not outlawing the former. Extreme Unction was the name for the sacrament in the West from the late twelfth century until 1972. Peter Lombard is the first writer known to have used the term, which did not become the name in the West till towards the end of the twelfth century. The word extreme indicated either that it was the last of the sacramental unctions or because at that time it was administered only when a patient was in extremis. Other names used in the West include the unction or blessing of consecrated oil, the unction of God, and the office of the unction. Among some Protestant bodies, who do not consider it a sacrament, in the Greek Church the sacrament is called Euchelaion. Other names are used, such as ἅγιον ἔλαιον, ἡγιασμένον ἔλαιον. The Community of Christ uses the term administration to the sick, the normal order of administration is, first Penance, next, Anointing, finally, Viaticum. The chief Biblical text concerning the rite is James 5, 14-15, matthew 10,8, Luke 10, 8-9 and Mark 6,13 are also quoted in this regard. The Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and Coptic and Old Catholic Churches consider this anointing to be a sacrament, other Christians too, in particular Anglicans, Lutherans and some Protestant and other Christian communities use a rite of anointing the sick, without necessarily classifying it as a sacrament. In the Churches mentioned here by name, the oil used is blessed specifically for this purpose, an extensive account of the teaching of the Catholic Church on Anointing of the Sick is given in Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1499–1532. Anointing of the Sick is one of the seven Sacraments recognized by the Catholic Church, only ordained priests can administer it, and any priest may carry the holy oil with him, so that in a case of necessity he can administer the sacrament of anointing of the sick. The Catholic Church sees the effects of the sacrament as follows, as the sacrament of Marriage gives grace for the married state, the sacrament of Anointing of the Sick gives grace for the state into which people enter through sickness. The duly blessed oil used in the sacrament is, as laid down in the Apostolic Constitution Sacram unctionem infirmorum and it is blessed by the bishop of the diocese at the Chrism Mass he celebrates on Holy Thursday or on a day close to it
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Holy orders
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In the Christian churches, Holy Orders are ordained ministries such as bishop, priest or deacon. Except for Lutherans and some Anglicans, these churches regard ordination as a sacrament, the Anglo-Catholic tradition within Anglicanism identifies more with the Roman Catholic position about the sacramental nature of ordination. Denominations have varied conceptions of Holy Orders, in the Anglican churches and some Lutheran churches the traditional orders of bishop, priest and deacon are bestowed using ordination rites. The extent to which ordination is considered sacramental in these traditions has, however, many other denominations do not consider ministry as being sacramental in nature and would not think of it in terms of holy orders as such. Historically, the word order designated a civil body or corporation with a hierarchy. The word holy refers to the Church, in context, therefore, a holy order is set apart for ministry in the Church. The Eastern Orthodox Church considers ordination to be a Sacred Mystery, although all other mysteries may be performed by a presbyter, ordination may only be conferred by a bishop, and ordination of a bishop may only be performed by several bishops together. Cheirotonia always takes place during the Divine Liturgy and it was the mission of the Apostles to go forth into all the world and preach the Gospel, baptizing those who believed in the name of the Holy Trinity. In the Early Church those who presided over congregations were referred to variously as episcopos or presbyteros and this link is believed to continue in unbroken succession to this day. Over time, the ministry of bishops and presbyters or priests came to be distinguished, in Orthodox terminology, priesthood or sacerdotal refers to the ministry of bishops and priests. A bishop is the Teacher of the Faith, the carrier of Sacred Tradition, a bishop is consecrated through the laying on of hands by several bishops. The consecration of a bishop takes place near the beginning of the Liturgy, since a bishop can, in addition to performing the Mystery of the Eucharist, also ordain priests and deacons. Customarily, the consecrated bishop ordains a priest and a deacon at the Liturgy during which he is consecrated. A priest may serve only at the pleasure of his bishop, a bishop bestows faculties giving a priest chrism and an antimins, he may withdraw faculties and demand the return of these items. After the Aër is taken from the candidate to cover the chalice and diskos, the candidate is then taken to the southeast corner of the Holy Table and kneels on both knees, resting his forehead on the edge of the Holy Table. Afterwards, the bishop brings the newly ordained priest to stand in the Holy Doors and he then clothes the priest in each of his sacerdotal vestments, at each of which the people sing, Worthy. A deacon may not perform any Sacrament and performs no liturgical services on his own but serves only as an assistant to a priest and may not even vest without the blessing of a priest. After being vested as a deacon and given a liturgical fan, the Anglican churches hold their bishops to be in apostolic succession, although there is some difference of opinion with regard to whether ordination is to be regarded as a sacrament
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Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference
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The Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference is an international conference of Confessional Lutheran national churches. The CELC is headquartered in Waukesha, Wisconsin, founded in 1993 with thirteen church bodies as members, the Conference has grown to twenty members today. Plenary sessions are held three years. To date there have been seven plenary meetings, with meetings held in the intervening years. The organization rejects the 1999 Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification signed between the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church, members cannot be in fellowship with church bodies whose doctrine or practice deviate from the confessional standard of the CELC
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. ISBN 978-952-10-9447-7.
