Confessions

The Augsburg Confession is a unique document in the history of the Christian church, containing both a succinct summary of the heart of Christian teaching and a defense of the changes in practice introduced by Martin Luther and the Wittenberg reformers. Robert Kolb and Timothy J. Wengert invite readers on an accessible journey into the heart of this foundational confession--as well as the minds of primary author Philip Melanchthon and the other reformers at the heart of the emerging Lutheran movement.

Kolb and Wengert use the version of the Augsburg Confession translated by Eric W. Gritsch for the 2000 Book of Concord, but also offer readers fresh insight into the history and evolution of this document by including cross-references to the editio princeps of 1531, the first official published edition of the confession. In addition to thorough introductions to the document and to each article, readers will benefit from extensive footnotes, extensive marginal comments, and appendices including important variations from the editio princeps, topics for discussion tailored to each article, and suggestions for further reading.

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For 30 years after Luther's death, terrible dissension and doctrinal unrest tore at the Lutheran churches. The Formula of Concord provided unity and concord on the solid base of Holy Scripture. This book arrangement, with its appended set of questions, is ideal for individual readers and group discussions.

This revised and expanded study offers a 13-session examination of the Augsburg Confession and Its Apology as found in Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions. Leaders notes for The Augsburg Confession and Its Aplogy are available in the Leader Guide.

Each session highlights the Law and Gospel and helps participants grow in their knowledge and understanding of the teachings of the Lutheran Church and its relevance to everyday life. This study can be used by groups or for individual study.

More about the Lutheran Confessions series

The Lutheran Confession series presents a comprehensive introduction to major Lutheran writings. It is designed to be a convenient study for use by more advanced students, or small groups who want to take an in-depth look at the teachings of the Lutheran Church. For ease of use and study, each book in this series includes excerpts from the relevant confessional document. These is no need for students--or instructors--to purchase a complete set of catechisms, or copies of the Augsburg Confessions or Book of Concord in order to enjoy and benefit from these studies.

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.

This book deals with Reformation theology in terms of its historical context and its relevance to the late 20th-century theological scene.

A New Look at the Lutheran Confessions distinguishes and discusses the significant differences between Roman and Protestant views, particularly those differences pertinent to contemporary ecumenical encounters. The author also explores the relationship between the private writings of Luther and Melanchthon and the confessional writings that they produced between 1529 and 1537.

An introduction to previous works by other scholars in this field precedes chapters dealing with basic topics