The Lutheran Confessions: History and Theology of The Book of Concord

by Charles P. Arand, Robert Kolb, James Arne Nestingen

From their formulation in the sixteenth century through the present day, every generation of Lutheran leadership has grappled with the centrality and importance of the Lutheran confessional writings.

In this important new volume, Arand, Kolb, and Nestingen bring the fruit of an entire generation of scholarship to bear on these documents, making it an essential and up-to-date class text.

The Lutheran Confessions places the documents solidly within their political, social, ecclesiastical, and theological contexts, relating them to the world in which they took place, and assists readers in understanding the issues at stake in the narratives, both in their own time and in ours.

Genres: Theology, Christianity

354 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[Glenn Crouch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fascinating book covering the history behind the various confessional documents that make up the Lutheran Book of Concord. Thus it covers the Ecumenical Creeds (Apostles, Nicene and Athanasian), Luther’s Small and Large Catechisms, Augsburg Confession, Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Smalcald Articles and the Formula of Concord.

Whilst I had a reasonable knowledge of the history of the creeds, and of the history of Luther’s life, I must admit I found much that I didn’t know (or hadn’t properly taken on board) when it came to the roughly 25 years following Luther’s Death. Plus it is nice to have all these histories in one place, and nicely connected.

I felt the authors did a fair job when it came to examining both those for and against the various documents, as well as looking at the situations that motivated the documents.

This is also a good book to get a feel for the history of the Lutheran Church in the 16th Century - as opposed to a history of Luther - and I think I was better versed in the latter than the former, so I welcomed my journey with this book.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s a history book and if you’re not interested in this period of history, it’s not super interesting. While it is helpful for understanding the historical context of the Book of Concord, I guess I just find all the politics and debates tiresome. But that’s just me.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Scholarly yet accessible, an interesting overview to where the Book of Concord came from.

[Mmetevelis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great resource! An up to date and comprehensive review of the background to the texts in the Book of Concord. Especially helpful is the thematic way in which each article in the Formula is treated.

[Sakarias Ingolfsson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good and concise introduction to the symbolical books of the Lutheran church

[Luke · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had Drs. Arand and Kolb at the Seminary and this book would have been helpful to have then, as they covered a lot of this material. I've also heard Dr. Nestingen speak and he is always delightful. In covering the historical development of the documents in the Book of Concord, and how the political and religious atmosphere shaped those documents and how those documents shaped the political and religious environment, the book shows how remarkable and important the Book of Concord is. And in our "anything-goes" 21st century, how remarkable to go back to a time when people were willing to fight for their religious beliefs. A remarkable and enjoyable book that help understand and appreciate the Book of Concord even more.

[Arthur O'dell · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent companion volume to the Book of Concord. Extremely useful when read in combination with the Book of Concord and the Sources and Contexts of the Book of Concord.