UOJ and the Resurrection, Rambach, Stephan, Walther, and Webber

Easter Absolution and Pietism < Must read

Brethren: It has been brought to my attention by an LCMS pastor friend that the doctrine of Objective Justification can also be taught under the Second Article, in the explanation of the Resurrection of Christ.


With reference to the Synodical Conference synods Catechisms prior to 1966, these were my findings when I examined the Second Article in the Catechisms (caps added:)


1912 LCMS (Schwan) Catechism, Second Article, the Resurrection of Christ, "Qu. 163: Why is the resurrection of Christ so comforting to us?  A: Because it conclusive evidence,--1, That Christ is the Son of God, and that His doctrine is the truth; 2. That God the Father has accepted the sacrifice of His Son FOR THE RECONCILIATION OF THE WORLD; 3. That all believers shall rise unto eternal life."


1943 LCMS (Intersynodical) Catechism: "Qu. 152: Why is the resurrection of Christ of such importance and comfort to us?  A: Christ's resurrection definitely proves--A. That Christ is the Son of God;  B. That His doctrine is the truth; C. That God the Father has accepted the sacrifice of His Son for the RECONCILIATION OF THE WORLD; D. That all believers shall rise unto eternal life."


The other Catechisms when speaking of the Resurrection of Christ used terminology which indicated that the Atonement of Christ was being referred to rather than to an Objective Justification of all people, so there seems to have been a difference between the Catechisms about how to teach the benefits of the Resurrection if Christ which has continued to this day.  Of the 16 different Synodical Conference synod Catechisms which I consulted, 8 apparently taught the doctrine of Objective Justification under the Second Article and 8 under the Third Article, the Forgiveness of Sins.  Some Catechisms taught it under both Articles, the rest only under the Third Article.  The 2017 LCMS Catechism was vague regarding both Articles.



I sincerely apologize for not having checked the Second Article before sharing my earlier findings; I have ONLY heard of Objective Justification being taught under the Third Article, and even then--as an adult convert to TALC, then the LCMS--only when I attended the Fort Wayne seminary.  Prior to that I had only been taught JBFA.  


A final thought: I noticed in my research that a crucial element in the teaching of Objective/Subjective Justification in the Catechisms was to "move" the IMPUTATION of Christ's righteousness from when a person is brought to faith in Christ by the Holy Spirit through the Gospel in the Means of Grace (JBFA) to the "Easter Declaration," by which God the Father justified and reconciled and forgave the whole human race at the SAME time as imputing Christ's righteousness to them.  --WM

Links from the Small Catechism Quotations Here. Gideon - And Many Others - Appreciate the Catechism Data.

Pastor Jackson,

After reading the survey of catechism texts, I was reminded that these are actually facts not mere opinions that demonstrate the shift of American Lutheranism since the 19th century.

There it is.   Makes me feel like a Catholic— or maybe marginally better than one.

Indeed, what one sees when studying the change through the decades is a microcosm of the theological shift in the Catholic Church herself through her first 1500 years.

You don’t want to believe it, but there it is.  The TRUTH never changes, but institutions do.

SDG,

Gideon

Links to Historic Small Catechism Quotations

First Catechisms - The Changes, Oh Oh

Apology of the Book of Concord - JBF

Loehe Catechism

More Small Catechism Quotations

Easter Absolution and UOJ in the Catechism

Moving the Big Leafy Weeds, Planting Bubls, Logrolling

  This Hidden Lily (tumeric) plant is not the same as willd ginger. Most of the season, large green leaves grow up and multiply with the water supply. The stalks of flowers came up in the spring when I put the plants in the sunniest location.

When people order bulbs, they are looking at colorful, glossy photos of the flowers, not at shovels to be employed in digging them in.

I ordered some for us, Ranger Bob, and our lawn crew. So Bob showed up with bags of additional bulbs - oh, my aching back.

But first we had fun digging up a double stand of Wild Ginger Hidden Lily, which I call Big Leafy Weeds. They have a lot of appeal, because I got them on sale for almost nothing, and they multiply like Canna. The best part - they are cold hardy. I gave some to the lawn crew, some to the dentist's wife, and I still had more than I first planted. I am using them for green fencing now.

Earlier, I brought the Cinnabon shrub (Summersweet - Clethra) to the rose garden, leaving gaps in the bird feeding area. We adopted the two craters for the BLWs. The tall plants will thrive and multiply with watering. Another bonus - they were easy to dig up. They also seem useful along the western fence, where I would like more growth but not a lot of bending, stooping, weeding, etc.

After stalling with the BLWs, we attacked a promising spot in the front of the rose garden. Promised rain had not arrived - twice, but we had a fairly damp clay area to dig up. We dug and cleared a wide hole about six inches deep.

I opened the box for various bulbs:

1. Daffodils - colorful, yukky to animals, multiplying in time.
2. Iris - interesting, but I do not buy them myself.
3. Hyacinth - expensive and good for one year of good blooms. Why? They are fragrant so I planted them.
4. Crocus - I gave up on them because squirrels love them, dig them and replant them. They come up in the strangest places.

We ran out of back muscle but not bulbs. I get to select and soften a spot for our next attempt. Blooming bulbs are great fun and represent an investment in time and muscles. Several times people have stopped to tell me how much they enjoyed the spring display.

Our helper laughed with me about the dead Chaste Tree that is currently leafing out like it is spring.

Ranger Bob had me come over and give his roses Milky Spore, to kill off Japanese Beetles. That natural cure increases in value as the grubs die and spread the disease, which only hurts white grubs.

I was happy to receive some giant Alium (garlic) bulbs from Bob. His brother Mike came over to help load logs into the truck. I have conceded that the lumber got in the way in the garden. I noticed the soil creatures really ate into them, so I harvested bark to use as mulch. Bark also serves as potential toad shade.