Luther Quote For the Week

Here are theses 62-64 of Luther's now famous 95 Theses of 1517.  Notice how this same theme came up in Luther's Heidelberg Disputation of 1518, where he distinguished between the theologian of glory and the theologian of the cross. 62. The true treasure of the Church is the Most Holy Gospel of the glory and …

Late Medieval Catechism vs the Heidelberg Catechism

In the medieval era, the Church had several catechisms for the average church-goer. These were simple Q/A catechisms translated from Latin into the common tongue. One of these (among others) is quite helpful for evaluating the dark spiritual climate of the later middle ages. The Mirror of a Christian Man by Dietrich Kolde (1470; 19 …

Pope Visits US Christian Leaders: Will Your Church Be There?

I always find it interesting to find out who is going to see the Pope when he's around. This year, as he's in the US right now (DC and NY), I saw the following churches (among others) will be representing their denominations in an *ecumenical* prayer service: the RCA, ELCA, UMC, Pentecostal Holiness, the CRC, …

Medieval, Reformation, and Scholastic – The Doctrine of the Holy Supper

Though not mentioned in volume one of Muller's PRRD, the doctrine of the Lord's Supper throughout church history proves Muller's point [see my last post]: the reformers and following scholastics did not outright reject 100% of medieval theology. Did the Reformers reject the Roman doctrine of Transubstantiation? Certainly. Did they reject all previous medieval teaching …

Climbing Up On God’s Desk: Muller, Reformed Dogmatics, and Archetype/Ectype

My 4 volume set of Muller's Post-Reformation Reformed Dogmatics came in yesterday; I was tempted to stay up all night, but Sunday's sermons are more pressing.  By the way - thanks to Matt for pointing this CBD sale out. Here's Muller describing "the relationship between archetypal and ectypal theology - a precondition of Christian doctrine" (I.229).  …