Large Catechism of Martin Luther - Hardcover

Luther, Martin; Fischer, Robert H.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0800608852 ISBN 13: 9780800608859

Publisher: Augsburg Fortress, 1963

Synopsis

By 1529, the year of publication of Luther's Large Catechism, parishioners took the Gospel for granted. Many had forgotten at what great peril the freedom of their faith had been won. In the Large Catechism Luther set out to inculcate the centrality of the Gospel that was largely neglected and whose freedom was frequently abused. Whether Luther is therefore dealing with the Ten Commandments or the Lord's Supper, the dynamic of the Word of God as Gospel provides the cutting edge for what he says. To obscure the Gospel is to lose everything; to illuminate it is to gain all it promises. But it is not a Gospel with a purely individualistic thrust. To risk all for the Gospel is to relate one's self to society and the Christian community. And it is this corporate dimension of the Gospel, involving him who believes all to serve all, which gives Luther's exposition of the basic ingredients of the Christian faith such significance and relevance. Therefore the Large Catechism is a primary source for an understanding of the Christian ethos in action in Reformation Christianity. The Gospel is particularized. The social situation comes alive in concrete terms in a language whose meaning is unmistakable and clear.

About this title

About the Author:

Martin Luther (1483, 1546) was a German monk, a theologian and church reformer, he is considered to be the founder of Protestantism. Luther was a professor of Bible at the University of Wittenberg when he posted his famous 95 Theses (1517). In addition to writing many books, Luther translated the Bible into German. Luther believed that salvation was only by faith in Jesus, unmediated by the church. He challenged papal authority by emphasing the Bible as the only source of religious authority and believed the church to be a priesthood of all believers.These ideas helped to inspire the Protestant Reformation and changed the course of Western civilization. He married Katharina von Bora thus initiating the practice of clerical marriage within Protestantism.- Publisher.

About this edition

• Publisher: Augsburg Fortress
• Publication date: 1963
• ISBN 10: 0800608852
• ISBN 13: 9780800608859
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 116