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Marks of the Body of Christ
Martin Luther once listed seven "marks" of the church-those defining ecclesial features that show where the true church is to be found. This insightful volume brings together essays by ten leading Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, Methodist, and Orthodox theologians, each analyzing one of the seven traditional marks of the church and discussing how it is found, or not found, in today's churches. Writing about each "mark" of the church are these scholars: Gerhard O. Forde and Richard Lischer on proclamation; Susan K. Wood and John H. Erickson on baptism; K. Paul Wesche and Richard A. Norris Jr. on the eucharist; David S. Yeago on the office of the Keys; Carl E. Braaten on ordination; Robert W. Jenson on catechesis; and William J. Abraham on discipleship. The picture of contemporary church life that is developed by these authors is grim, but their analyses and practical suggestions are both constructive and necessary.
- GenresTheology
179 pages, Paperback
First published December 31, 1998
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 5, 2024
Jenson's chapter is excellent: an informative and winsome look at a serious matter. Thoroughly enjoyed it. The rest of the chapters (each written by a different theologian) ranged from beautiful imagery to some thing less. I give the book 3.5 stars. I do believe this was written more for Lutherans and I often felt like an outsider looking in, but still worth the Jenson chapter.
August 29, 2024
This collection brings together an array of essays, each reflecting on one of Martin Luther's seven “marks” of the church. Notably, Wesche’s “The Eucharist as the Criterion of Orthodoxy” and Jenson’s “Catechesis for Our Time” stand out as exceptional contributions.
January 19, 2018
This book comprises essays by theologians of various denominations of Christianity. William J. Abraham, in his essay “On Making Disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ”, describes these: “One theologian who goes so far as to make discipleship a mark of the church is none other than Martin Luther. For Luther, discipleship is the last item in a list of seven marks of the church. The first sisx are, in order: possession of the holy Word of God; the sacrament of baptism; the sacrament of the altar; the offices of the keys exercised publicly; the possession of consecrated ministers; and the offering of prayer, public praise, and thanksgiving to God.” Below are some interesting passages from the other essays. All in all, this is an interesting book for those with deep theological understanding and interest, but probably a bit beyond those without deep expertise (such as myself).
Gerhard O. Forde – “The Word That Kills and Makes Alive”
The proclamation of justification by works, however, has the opposite effect. It thinks to render the church visible. But then the church always threatens to become tyrannical. If you are saved by works, you must have something to show for it, some evidence of transformation, perhaps a building or two to put your name on, and so forth. Thus you are exposed to the scrutiny of the judge and the ecclesiastical tyrant and limited to the sort of visible boundaries that make sectarianism inevitable. (3)
Historically speaking, the single most important passage for the interpretation and functioning of the scriptural Word in the church is that from 2 Corinthians 3:4-6, where St. Paul claims that our sufficiency is not from ourselves but from God who has qualified us to be ministers of a new covenant, not in the letter but in the Spirit, for the letter kills but the Spirit gives life. (7)
Richard Lischer – “Resurrection and Rhetoric”
Quote by Robert Frost: “I gave up fire for form/till I was cold.”
Susan K. Wood – “Baptism as a Mark of the Church”
Baptism orders us within a priestly community, confirmation orders us within a prophetic community, and the sacrament of orders bestows the ability to represent the church and Christ in the governance and sacramental life of the church. (32)
K. Paul Wesche – “The Eucharist as the Criterion of Orthodoxy”
I do not believe that the infiltration of these heretical ideas within the gates of the church is the real crisis facing Christians today. The real crisis is the theological confusion and wrangling one finds this infiltration provoking among those who would claim to be keepers of the gates. This confusion is the result of an inability to agree on what should be upheld as essential to Christian belief and praxis, and what should be relegated to the pile of adiaphora; and this inability to settle on what is authentically Christian exposes the real cause of the crisis facing Christians today: Do they really know the criterion by which to distinguish authentic Christian belief and praxis from what is not? (61)
David S. Yeago – “The Office of the Keys”
The office of the Keys thus plays a double role: it serves the Spirit’s work of sanctifying the fallen, and at the same time plays a part in the church’s mission of confession before the world. (98)
The full impact on church discipline of modernity’s reformulation of the divine-human relation was felt only as the modern self devolved from conqueror to victim. (111)
We identify the graciousness of divine presence precisely with its difference to what we are and how we live. This is the chief historical peculiarity of contemporary mainline Christianity; never before in Christian history has the notion of salvation been so completely divorced from the notion of a hopeful discipline of life. (113)
The disappearance of corporate discipline is more than the abandonment of ancient custom now grown uncouth; it marks the point at which a whole array of fears and confusions and wayward cultural codes conspire to alienate us from the faith and the mission of the apostolic church. This alienation is deep enough that it must seriously call into question the capacity of mainline churches, as presently constituted, to represent the reign of the crucified and risen Christ before the world. Nor is there any prospect of immediate reform. God can always surprise us, but humanly speaking, it seems profoundly improbable that mainline churches will recover in our lifetimes the sort of vigorous public exercise of the Keys that Luther envisioned. (118)
Robert W. Jenson – “Catechesis for Our Time”
The Christian church has rites that she is not permitted to change: she initiates into her fellowship by washing in the triune name of her specific God; she is to maintain the telling of a specific message, that the God of Israel – and none other – has raised his servant Jesus – and none other – from the dead; she has her own identity as she offers a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving for Jesus, to his Father, invoking their Spirit, with sharing of bread and the cup of wine. (143)
See my other reviews here!
Gerhard O. Forde – “The Word That Kills and Makes Alive”
The proclamation of justification by works, however, has the opposite effect. It thinks to render the church visible. But then the church always threatens to become tyrannical. If you are saved by works, you must have something to show for it, some evidence of transformation, perhaps a building or two to put your name on, and so forth. Thus you are exposed to the scrutiny of the judge and the ecclesiastical tyrant and limited to the sort of visible boundaries that make sectarianism inevitable. (3)
Historically speaking, the single most important passage for the interpretation and functioning of the scriptural Word in the church is that from 2 Corinthians 3:4-6, where St. Paul claims that our sufficiency is not from ourselves but from God who has qualified us to be ministers of a new covenant, not in the letter but in the Spirit, for the letter kills but the Spirit gives life. (7)
Richard Lischer – “Resurrection and Rhetoric”
Quote by Robert Frost: “I gave up fire for form/till I was cold.”
Susan K. Wood – “Baptism as a Mark of the Church”
Baptism orders us within a priestly community, confirmation orders us within a prophetic community, and the sacrament of orders bestows the ability to represent the church and Christ in the governance and sacramental life of the church. (32)
K. Paul Wesche – “The Eucharist as the Criterion of Orthodoxy”
I do not believe that the infiltration of these heretical ideas within the gates of the church is the real crisis facing Christians today. The real crisis is the theological confusion and wrangling one finds this infiltration provoking among those who would claim to be keepers of the gates. This confusion is the result of an inability to agree on what should be upheld as essential to Christian belief and praxis, and what should be relegated to the pile of adiaphora; and this inability to settle on what is authentically Christian exposes the real cause of the crisis facing Christians today: Do they really know the criterion by which to distinguish authentic Christian belief and praxis from what is not? (61)
David S. Yeago – “The Office of the Keys”
The office of the Keys thus plays a double role: it serves the Spirit’s work of sanctifying the fallen, and at the same time plays a part in the church’s mission of confession before the world. (98)
The full impact on church discipline of modernity’s reformulation of the divine-human relation was felt only as the modern self devolved from conqueror to victim. (111)
We identify the graciousness of divine presence precisely with its difference to what we are and how we live. This is the chief historical peculiarity of contemporary mainline Christianity; never before in Christian history has the notion of salvation been so completely divorced from the notion of a hopeful discipline of life. (113)
The disappearance of corporate discipline is more than the abandonment of ancient custom now grown uncouth; it marks the point at which a whole array of fears and confusions and wayward cultural codes conspire to alienate us from the faith and the mission of the apostolic church. This alienation is deep enough that it must seriously call into question the capacity of mainline churches, as presently constituted, to represent the reign of the crucified and risen Christ before the world. Nor is there any prospect of immediate reform. God can always surprise us, but humanly speaking, it seems profoundly improbable that mainline churches will recover in our lifetimes the sort of vigorous public exercise of the Keys that Luther envisioned. (118)
Robert W. Jenson – “Catechesis for Our Time”
The Christian church has rites that she is not permitted to change: she initiates into her fellowship by washing in the triune name of her specific God; she is to maintain the telling of a specific message, that the God of Israel – and none other – has raised his servant Jesus – and none other – from the dead; she has her own identity as she offers a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving for Jesus, to his Father, invoking their Spirit, with sharing of bread and the cup of wine. (143)
See my other reviews here!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews