Well… Yeah!?!
Maybe that Martin Luther guy actually knew something when he wrote his catechisms… ya think?
I certainly think so!
And it would seem that, at least in terms of the value of a catechism, some other folks do too. In fact, Tim Challies has just posted on The Benefits of the Catechisms — and it’s a nice read. [HT: Cyberbrethren]
Here’s an excerpt from Luther’s Intro to the Small Catechism, which nicely illustrates why Luther wrote it, what he hoped to accomplish with it, and (most importantly) why it was, is, and always will be a necessary thing:
The deplorable, miserable condition which I discovered lately when I, too, was a visitor, has forced and urged me to prepare [publish] this Catechism, or Christian doctrine, in this small, plain, simple form. Mercy! Good God! what manifold misery I beheld! The common people, especially in the villages, have no knowledge whatever of Christian doctrine, and, alas! many pastors are altogether incapable and incompetent to teach [so much so, that one is ashamed to speak of it]. Nevertheless, all maintain that they are Christians, have been baptized and receive the [common] holy Sacraments. Yet they [do not understand and] cannot [even] recite either the Lord’s Prayer, or the Creed, or the Ten Commandments; they live like dumb brutes and irrational hogs; and yet, now that the Gospel has come, they have nicely learned to abuse all liberty like experts.
O ye bishops! [to whom this charge has been committed by God,] what will ye ever answer to Christ for having so shamefully neglected the people and never for a moment discharged your office? [You are the persons to whom alone this ruin of the Christian religion is due. You have permitted men to err so shamefully; yours is the guilt; for you have ever done anything rather than what your office required you to do.] May all misfortune flee you! [I do not wish at this place to invoke evil on your heads.] You command the Sacrament in one form [but is not this the highest ungodliness coupled with the greatest impudence that you are insisting on the administration of the Sacrament in one form only, and on your traditions] and insist on your human laws, and yet at the same time you do not care in the least [while you are utterly without scruple and concern] whether the people know the Lord’s Prayer, the Creed, the Ten Commandments, or any part of the Word of God. Woe, woe, unto you forever!
Therefore I entreat [and adjure] you all for God’s sake, my dear sirs and brethren, who are pastors or preachers, to devote yourselves heartily to your office, to have pity on the people who are entrusted to you, and to help us inculcate the Catechism upon the people, and especially upon the young. And let those of you who cannot do better [If any of you are so unskilled that you have absolutely no knowledge of these matters, let them not be ashamed to] take these tables and forms and impress them, word for word, on the people, as follows:–
In the first place, let the preacher above all be careful to avoid many kinds of or various texts and forms of the Ten Commandments, the Lord’s Prayer, the Creed, the Sacraments, etc., but choose one form to which he adheres, and which he inculcates all the time, year after year. For [I give this advice, however, because I know that] young and simple people must be taught by uniform, settled texts and forms, otherwise they easily become confused when the teacher to-day teaches them thus, and in a year some other way, as if he wished to make improvements, and thus all effort and labor [which has been expended in teaching] is lost.
Also our blessed fathers understood this well; for they all used the same form of the Lord’s Prayer, the Creed, and the Ten Commandments. Therefore we, too, should [imitate their diligence and be at pains to] teach the young and simple people these parts in such a way as not to change a syllable, or set them forth and repeat them one year differently than in another [no matter how often we teach the Catechism].
Hence, choose whatever form you please, and adhere to it forever. But when you preach in the presence of learned and intelligent men, you may exhibit your skill, and may present these parts in as varied and intricate ways and give them as masterly turns as you are able. But with the young people stick to one fixed, permanent form and manner, and teach them, first of all, these parts, namely, the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, etc., according to the text, word for word, so that they, too, can repeat it in the same manner after you and commit it to memory.
But those who are unwilling to learn it should be told that they deny Christ and are no Christians, neither should they be admitted to the Sacrament, accepted as sponsors at baptism, nor exercise any part of Christian liberty, but should simply be turned back to the Pope and his officials, yea, to the devil himself. Moreover, their parents and employers should refuse them food and drink, and [they would also do well if they were to] notify them that the prince will drive such rude people from the country, etc.
-ghp
God of the Ordinary
The Triune God is hardly “ordinary” — however, as a great posting by Wildboar (aka Vicar Parks) over at Sceleratissimus Lutheranus shows, He is most definitely (and comfortingly) “The God of the Ordinary.”
As with much (most?) good theology, this is a disarmingly simple, but undeniably powerful, observation. It is also immensely comforting. Much of contemporary American Evangelicalism is focused on the might & power of God (ala the praise song Our God is a Mighty God). This is understandable, given American Evangelicalism’s roots in Reformed/Calvinistic theology, with its emphasis on the Sovereignty of God. What is unfortunate about this emphasis, however, is the fact that (among other things) it tends to downplay the obvious fact that our God is an every-day God.
Martin Luther has been accused of being a bit, shall we say, too earthy for genteel, contemporary tastes. His was a raw (some have said profane and/or vulgar) & polemical style of discourse. He was quite brutal & often even scatological in his descriptive denunciations. It must be noted, however, that he was also undeniably correct & insightful in observing & emphasizing the fact that the Triune God is nothing if not an approachable, personal, and relevant — i.e., every-day — God who, through His incarnation intimately knows & understands what it means to be human.
God knows what it is to be human!
To face daily temptations of the flesh. To struggle. To have faith. To depend on the Father. To call upon the Holy Ghost. To be human.
Our God is not separated from our day-to-day struggle to exist on this earth. Not only did our God become human in order to know us, teach us, and ultimately to save us, but He uses “ordinary” means to provide for us and our daily needs. This is why I hold the Doctrine of Vocation so dear, and find it so comforting — God uses clearly imperfect & flawed instruments to execute His perfect Will regarding all that is encompassed by giving us our “daily bread.”
Our sinful flesh is put off by this ordinariness. Why? Ultimately, because of our own sinful lust for being gods. We cannot countenance that we are not above/beyond the mere ordinary, thus we want our god(s) to be beyond the ordinary. The Triune God is unique in His embrace & use of the ordinary, and for this we rejoice!
Ordinary earthly elements joined with the Word. This is the formula whereby ordinary means deliver extraordinary results. A simple truth. May God always protect us from our sinful desire to grab the glory for ourselves by trying to make the simple complex!
-ghp
Luther the Musician
More good stuff…
From a recent column by UPI’s always informative Uwe Siemon-Netto:
Just in time for the new church year, which will begin this coming Sunday, the first Advent, the traditionalist party in America’s worship war has introduced a new gun against modernist insurgents.
This is a great article about the new 4-CD compendium of Luther’s musical compositions, from CPH. Anytime I can read an article written by Dr. Siemon-Netto, in which he writes about Luther and quotes Rev. Paul McCain, I’m a happy camper!
The Rev. Paul McCain, interim president of the publishing house, proposes comparing this light religious fare with the heavy-duty caliber of, say, “Dear Christians, One and All Rejoice,” the first congregational hymn Luther ever penned.
This paragraph alone makes me want to run right out & get the CD set! Music with theological heft & substance — no 7-11 “praise choruses” need apply!
I’m looking forward to getting a copy of this set soon, and I encourage you to pick one up as soon as you can.
Also, props to Beggars All, for bringing this to my attention.
-ghp
Vocation and Voting
I’m generally going to keep politics out of my own personal blogosphere, as I have found that (for me) the sturm und drang of secular politics is not worth it. Synod politics… well, now, that’s a whole ‘nother ball of wax! ;^)
However, given the season we’re in, and the event that will be coming up on Tuesday, I think I can safely offer up this exception.
I won’t tell you how to vote. I won’t even tell you how I will vote. I will, however, tell you that you should vote.
The Bible is clear that we should be good citizens. Luther elaborated on this topic in his doctrine of the two kingdoms, as well as in his doctrine of vocation.
We all have a vocation in the Kingdom of the Left — that of citizen. In order to carry out that vocation in a God-pleasing manner, such that we work for our neighbors & fellow citizens, the very least we can do is vote. And vote in an informed manner.
Theresa, over at Kiihnworld, has a very good entry today that speaks quite well to this topic. In it, she quotes Rick Warren (about whom I also hold great misgivings) stating that Christians need to be informed participants in our civic arena. Perhaps Warren is making sense because he’s not dealing with theological/Kingdom of the Right topics, but he makes sense nonetheless.
It’s a good read, and something worth keeping in mind as you head to the polls on Tuesday.
-ghp
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