The Catholicity of the Reformation - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0802842208 ISBN 13: 9780802842206

Publisher: William B Eerdmans Publishing Co, 1996

Synopsis

As the title of this engaging book suggests, "catholicity" was the true intent of the Reformation. The Reformers did not set out to create what later came to be known as Protestant Christianity. Theirs was a quest for reformation and renewal in continuity with the "one holy catholic and apostolic church" of ancient times. The authors of the essays collected here demonstrate this catholicity of the Reformers and stress the importance of recovering the church's catholic tradition today. Contributors: Robert W. Jenson, David S. Yeago, Frank C. Senn, Carl E. Braaten, James R. Crumley, Robert L. Wilken, Günther Gassmann

About this title

About the Authors

Carl E. Braaten is professor emeritus of systematic theology at Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago and former executive director of the Center for Catholic and Evangelical Theology.

Robert W. Jenson (1930-2017) was a senior scholar for research at the Center of Theological Inquiry in Princeton, New Jersey. He was also cofounder and associate director of the Center for Catholic and Evangelical Theology and cofounder and coeditor of the journal Pro Ecclesia. He was renowned for his work on ecumenical, systematic, and Trinitarian theology.

From the Back Cover

As the title of this engaging book suggests, "catholicity" was the true intent of the Reformation. The Reformers did not set out to create what later came to be known as Protestant Christianity. Theirs was a quest for reformation and renewal in continuity with the "one holy catholic and apostolic church" of ancient times. The authors of the essays collected here demonstrate this catholicity of the Reformers and stress the importance of recovering the church's catholic tradition today. Robert W. Jenson examines communio ecclesiology, describing ecumenical thought on this ecclesiology and developing it in a number of areas. David S. Yeago proposes a new way of reading Luther, suggesting that the shift in Luther's thought actually brought him closer to the church's catholic tradition. Frank C. Senn discusses the Reformers' changes to the order of the mass, which restored the people's participation and regular preaching on biblical texts. Carl E. Braaten explores the problems that arise from the lack of an office of teaching authority in Protestant churches. James R. Crumley examines various perspectives on the office of pastor, seeking to clarify the notion of ministry in the catholic tradition. Robert L. Wilken looks at Pietism, showing that this movement sought to recover lost aspects of medieval spirituality and called for a deepening of personal piety. Finally, Gunther Gassmann discusses the ways in which the church universal is and should be a communion of churches.

Edition details

• Publisher: William B Eerdmans Publishing Co
• Publication date: 1996
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0802842208
• ISBN 13: 9780802842206
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 120
• Editor: Braaten Carl E., Jenson Robert W.