tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-190715317123789162024-03-07T15:24:36.809-08:00Concordia | The Lutheran ConfessionsAn ongoing study of the Book of ConcordRev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.comBlogger57125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-76917724794832256812010-01-23T20:33:00.000-08:002010-01-24T04:18:28.015-08:00Roundtable 45: The Church (SA Part III, Article XII)This article is what so much comes down to. What is the Church? Is Rome the Church? Ought we to listen to the Pope when he speaks as Bishop of Rome because there is some unique promise attached to his office? Smalcald Articles III, Article XII is joyously clear:"We do not agree with them that they are the Church." (Accent, should be on the Church) "They are not the Church. Nor will we listen to William Weedonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01383850332591975790noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-55780216164417704762009-08-01T07:38:00.000-07:002009-08-01T07:54:50.167-07:00Roundtable 44: The Marriage of Priests (Smalcald Articles Part III, Article XI) Just as we can not make a man, a woman, nor a woman, a man, no matter what modern surgical techniques make possible, so we can not through modern theological "surgery" make a man something other than a man, and demand and require that he renounce marriage before he can serve Christ and His church as a priest/minister/pastor/elder [whatever term you prefer]. The very fact that the Papacy had comeRev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-73417599661967639552009-05-18T14:04:00.000-07:002009-05-18T16:14:18.709-07:00Roundtable 43: Ordination and the Call (Smalcald Articles III X) At the time of the Reformation, it was important for there to be a renewed understanding of the extent of the authority of the Church's bishops and other authorities in matters pertaining to the calling and ordaining of the church's ministers, that is, her pastor/preachers/priests — the title makes no difference. Luther was willing to permit a legitimate role for bishops in the administration ofRev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-38938281976653385182009-03-29T14:03:00.000-07:002009-03-29T15:37:26.392-07:00Roundtable 42: Excommunication (SA III.ix)Every once in a while one still hears Lutheran pastors speak about imposing the "lesser ban" as though there were also a "greater ban." SA III.ix shows that such is not the case. The greater excommunication is something Lutherans regarded merely as a civil penalty; it has no place in the Church herself (and those who think it does are confusing the two swords - getting Christ's government William Weedonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01383850332591975790noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-36186263471998564632009-02-19T03:18:00.000-08:002009-02-19T03:20:46.570-08:00Roundtable 41: The Means of Grace (Smalcald Articles III.iv-viii)Sometimes we hear people ask, “Why do we need the Sacraments if we have the Word?” It’s an understandable question. We tend to think, “If God said He forgives us, and Christ died, why do we need Sacraments?” I’ve heard the question answered this way, “How often do you need to tell your wife you love her? Once?” No, of course not. We tell those whom we love how much we love them, often. And God Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-19233346665086325262009-02-07T10:58:00.000-08:002009-02-07T11:14:28.406-08:00Roundtable 40: Repentance (Smalcald Articles III.iii) Over the years of the Middle Ages the Gospel was corrupted perhaps most dramatically and visibly in regard to the doctrine of Repentance. Medieval Romanism had developed a view that man is not totally corrupted as a result of the Fall into Sin and as a result there was within man still a spark of spiritual ability that could be aroused and awakened by a "dose" of grace, and following that "dose"Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-16387180184873004902008-11-23T11:56:00.000-08:002008-12-07T14:24:06.360-08:00Roundtable 39: The Law: Smalcald Articles III.II In this article Luther sets forth the "chief use" of the Law. Whose use? The Holy Spirit's use. It is all the same "Law" but the Law functions in various ways. First, the Law restrains sin "by threats and the dread of punishment and by the promise offer of grace and blessing." It's rather simple: do not run the red light, if you do you may well kill somebody by hitting then, and if you do, you Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-78547412740018823122008-10-12T06:44:00.000-07:002008-10-12T07:26:29.287-07:00Roundtable 38: Sin (SA III.I) In the third part of the Smalcald Articles, Luther walks through a series of basic points of doctrine, asserting the Lutheran "non-negotiables" on these points. As you read the third part of the Smalcald Articles, it is important to keep in mind that the SA was prepared as "talking points" that the Lutherans would be bringing with them to the Council that they were told would very soon be calledRev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-48197891083682740482008-08-31T10:39:00.000-07:002008-09-02T02:51:40.830-07:00Roundtable 37: Articles for Reasonable Discussion with Reasonable People The third part of the Smalcald Articles begins, in light the circumstances, with a rather droll assertion: "We may be able to discuss the following articles with learned and reasonable people, or among ourselves. The pope and his government do not care much about these. With them conscience is nothing, but money, honors, and power are everything." The picture here, by the way, is the Council of Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-58741960818154304532008-07-26T11:04:00.000-07:002008-12-09T00:28:45.067-08:00Roundtable 36: The Papacy (Smalcald Articles II.iv) The most vigorous rejection of the office of the papacy in the Book of Concord is found in this portion of the Smalcald Articles. Luther asserts that the Papacy is the Antichrist. This is a statement that shocks most modern Christian ears, striking many as an outrageous excess of rhetoric. Confessional Lutherans must be sensitive to the degree to which this assertion in our Book of Concord is Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-29185853687345212522008-06-08T06:24:00.000-07:002008-12-09T00:28:45.196-08:00Roundtable 35: The Smalcald Articles: Part II: Article III: Chapters and CloistersWe tend to forget that Martin Luther spent many years as a monk, in the Augustinian cloister in Erfurt, Germany. He had his choice of several different orders he could have joined, but elected to join the "Black Friars," an order known for its particularly stringent ascetic practices. Leaving behind a promising career in the law, he entered the walls of the monastery on July 17, 1505. It was onlyRev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-3546116653544706012008-05-25T05:43:00.000-07:002008-12-09T00:28:45.340-08:00Roundtable 34: The Smalcald Articles: Article II: The Mass"The Mass in the papacy has to be the greatest and most horrible abomination, since it directly and powerfully conflicts with the chief article." Thus Luther launches into perhaps the second most important portion of the Smalcald Articles. For it is precisely in the way Rome regards the service of the Lord's Supper that one finds the most dramatic example of Roman Catholicism's misunderstanding Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-36757524641130222882008-05-11T05:26:00.001-07:002008-12-09T00:28:45.650-08:00Roundtable 33: The Smalcald Articles: The Chief ArticleIt is appropriate that we have come the point in our conversation about the Book of Concord that we are treating in this post the very heart of the Book of Concord: a bold confession of the chief article: the Gospel. And we do so on Pentecost Sunday, May 11, 2008, most appropriately indeed!Has the Gospel become cliche? The dictionary defines "cliche" as "something that has become overly familiar Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-52355046875370083732008-03-30T14:16:00.000-07:002008-12-09T00:28:45.818-08:00Roundtable 32: The Smalcald Articles: The First Part"The Awe-Inspiring Articles on the Divine Majesty" is how the first part of the Smalcald Articles is described. Repeated here are the historic creedal formulas that confess the Holy Trinity, and the two natures in Christ. Luther saw no point in spending any time discussing these truths, since "both sides confess them" and concerning these articles "there is no argument or dispute." To this day, Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-60729159438722909312008-01-27T15:24:00.001-08:002008-12-09T00:28:45.943-08:00Roundtable 31: Preface to the Smalcald Articles"I have decided to publish these articles in plain print in case I should die before there would be a council (as I fully expect and hope)." (SA Preface, 3; Concordia, p. 259). This is the assumption of Martin Luther as he composed what we know today as the Smalcald Articles. His prince, Johann Frederick the Magnanimous, asked Luther to put together this statement of "non-negotiables" that the Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-30798752063548588532008-01-13T11:40:00.000-08:002008-12-09T00:28:47.043-08:00Roundtable 30: Introduction to the Smalcald ArticlesWe have come to the conclusion of our roundtable discussions about the Augsburg Confession and will now turn our attention to the Smalcald Articles. You may read them on-line at bookofconcord.org. The purpose of this post is to offer an introduction to the historical context of the Smalcald Articles; in words and pictures, providing a brief overview of the events that led to the writing of these Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-60892522244467971022008-01-06T08:53:00.000-08:002008-12-09T00:28:47.176-08:00Roundtable 29: Church AuthorityA dispute arose among the Apostles, on more than one occasion, over the question of power, authority and rights. The desire for power and control is an ancient evil temptation that plagues humanity; and so, it should come as no surprise that it also has been an ongoing subject of concern, debate, discussion and intense disagreement in the Church. Our Lord Jesus Christ, in Matthew 20, says, "It Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-50078618001147925822008-01-03T16:40:00.000-08:002008-01-03T17:29:36.156-08:00A Blessed New YearA very blessed and holy Christmastide to you all, and a happy New Year in our Lord. You will notice a new header for our blog site, provided by "Orthodoxy Hunter." She did a really great job, incorporating elements from the Concordia edition of the Book of Concord, with some sharp graphics I sent her way, including on the left, a picture of the title page of the first edition of the Book of Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-56667870418314694692007-11-11T12:07:00.000-08:002008-12-09T00:28:47.247-08:00Roundtable 28: Monastic VowsTo appreciate the impact Article XXVII of the Augsburg Confession had, and how particularly upsetting it was to common understandings of the time, the reader has to realize how extensive monasticism was across Germany. By the way, the image here is of two Medieval monks the one giving the other the distinctive "tonsure" or shaving the top of the head, as a sign of having taken vows. Monasticism Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-22131325878839188722007-10-13T18:00:00.000-07:002008-12-09T00:28:47.378-08:00Roundtable 27: The Distinction of MeatsIt is difficult for 21st century Christians to appreciate fully the subject under discussion here probably because, both among Roman Catholics and non-Roman Catholics, the impact of canon laws governing what can, and can not, be eaten and at what times one must fast, and not fast, has become more of a historic relic of the past. Choosing not to eat a certain food, at a certain time, is a matter Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-40182790840209543712007-09-29T11:22:00.000-07:002008-12-09T00:28:47.613-08:00Roundtable 26: ConfessionThe Lutheran Reformation has its root cause in the confessional. People coming to make their confession to Father Martin Luther began to tell him that they needn't worry any longer about forgiveness, or about what they might, or might not do, because they had purchased an indulgence, and considered it a "get out of hell free" card that assured them of God's grace and mercy in spite of anything Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-19368823240562296642007-09-10T19:23:00.000-07:002008-12-09T00:28:47.749-08:00Roundtable 25: The Mass"Our churches are falsely accused of abolishing the Mass. The Mass is held among us and celebrated with the highest reverence. Nearly all the usual ceremonies are also preserved..."So begins Article XXIV. Here's a rather unbiased observer's notes on what the Lutherans were up to back then. Musculous, the south German, writes:Eisenach, May 14, 1536, Cantate Sunday: the so-called "Office of William Weedonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01383850332591975790noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-68272480420292610372007-08-27T11:27:00.001-07:002008-12-09T00:28:47.796-08:00Roundtable 24: The Marriage of PriestsBy the time of the Reformation in the 16th century, forced celibacy was the rule for all men who wanted to serve as priests [pastors] in the church, and in any position of ministry. Canon law requiring such was put into place in Germany some four hundred years previous to the Augsburg Confession. But much earlier, enforced celibacy was enacted. At a Roman council held by Pope Siricius in 386 an Rev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-78984328681762455672007-08-07T08:34:00.000-07:002008-12-09T00:28:48.017-08:00Roundtable 23: Various Abuses Corrected -- Communion under Both KindsThe Augsburg Confession concludes its presentation on various doctrinal points and moves into a presentation on the "various abuses" that have been "corrected" by the Lutherans. Obviously, these "abuses," as the Lutherans refer to them, struck a very raw nerve among Roman Catholic theologians and princes. The topics dealt with in this section of the Augsburg Confession are, in the following orderRev. Paul T. McCainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04846468267196335350noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19071531712378916.post-84206525338939295192007-07-23T15:14:00.000-07:002008-12-09T00:28:48.218-08:00Roundtable 22: Worship of the SaintsCharles Porterfield Krauth notes that the doctrinal sections of the AC begin with God and end with the saints. Most fitting. There is undue fear of the saints in current Lutheranism (a bit of reaction, I suppose, to Roman excesses) that would have surprised and shocked the Augsburg Confessors. Instead of ignoring the saints (or pretending "they're just the same as you and me"), the Confession William Weedonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01383850332591975790noreply@blogger.com13