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IV. The Journey to Full Communion: A. Perspectives on Theology

Lutherans and Moravians have different yet complementary attitudes toward and experience with theological discourse and formulations. Lutherans expect their churches to engage in theological discussions, adhere to creedal-confessional formulations, and teach from doctrinal perspectives. The Lutheran movement originated in theological debate and coalesced about a series of confessional documents. Luther, his associates, and their successors in the sixteenth century developed and deepened their understandings of Law and Gospel, biblical interpretation, liturgical renewal, the sacraments, society, pastoral activity and other major areas of Christian life and witness in the face of and in the heat of theological explorations and disputations with Roman Catholics, other Reformation movements and leaders, and among themselves. Since the sixteenth century Lutherans have retained the attitude that theological debate, clarity, and adherence are vital for the integrity and continuity of the Christian faith. They anticipate that theological discourse, personal piety and intellectual acuity will be balanced and mutually supportive one of the other.

Lutherans are convinced that such theological discourse is more than possible; it is necessary if the Church is to speak and act knowingly as well as feelingly, in seeking to be faithful to the Lord. While Lutherans recognize the importance of social and historical contingencies, they also insist that there are theological consistencies which are to be believed, taught and confessed as essential for understanding, living and transmitting the faith. Christian theology involves disciplined reflection on the Triune God, the human condition, the Church, and the world. The roles of such disciplined reflection include the Church's stating to itself and for its own edification as well as correction what the Christian faith holds true, and how the Church is to be shaped and guided by that faith. Another dimension of theological reflection involves equipping believers for mission and witness in the world. Further, theology has an apologetic function through which Christians seek to make clear where they stand in relations with other religions and claimants for human devotion and allegiance.

While Lutheran theologians may use different methods to carry on the theological tasks, they do so in reference to a threefold authoritative basis. First, they agree that the basis, criteria, and guide for faith, doctrine and practice is the Scripture of the Old and New Testaments. In traditional language; "We believe, teach and confess that the prophetic and apostolic writings of the Old and New Testaments are the only rule and norm according to which all doctrines and teachers alike must be appraised and judged."2 Second and as a valid witness to the Scriptures, Lutherans receive, use and pledge themselves to the Apostles', Nicene and Athanasian Creeds as the "unanimous, catholic, Christian faith and confessions of the orthodox and true church."3 The place of the third component, a set of specific documents composed in the sixteenth century and compiled as the Book of Concord, is more complex.

The documents are the Augsburg Confession, Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Smalcald Articles (with the Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope appended), Large Catechism, Small Catechism, and Formula of Concord. These are regarded as consonant with yet subordinate to the Scriptures. Within the circle of confessional literature, the "Unaltered" Augsburg Confession is regarded as having given Lutherans "a clear and unequivocal Christian witness, setting forth the faith and teaching of the Evangelical Christian churches concerning the chief articles, especially those which were in controversy between them and the popes adherents [W]e abide by the plain, clear, and pure meaning of its words. We consider this Confession a genuinely Christian symbol which all true Christians ought to accept next to the Word of God, just as in ancient times Christian symbols and confessions were formulated in the church of God."4 The first twenty-one articles of the Augsburg Confession deal with matters of faith and doctrine, while the remaining six articles concern issues related to human practices. While the other documents are regarded highly among Lutherans, the two Catechisms hold an especially cherished position.5 We observe that the Formula of Concord and Lutheran practice also give the writings of Martin Luther a significant position as a model for stating the Christian faith.6

The constitutions of the ELCA, its synods and congregations contain a section, "Chapter 2. Confession of Faith," which essentially repeats the positions cited from the Formula Of Concord regarding the roles of the Scriptures, Creeds and the Confessions. It concludes, "This church confesses the Gospel, recorded in the Holy Scriptures and confessed in the ecumenical creeds and Lutheran confessional writings, as the power of God to create and sustain the Church for God's mission in the world" (2.07). At the ordination of a person to the office of the ministry of Word and Sacraments, the bishop states "The Church into which you are to be ordained confesses that the Holy Scriptures are the Word of God and are the norm of faith and life. We accept, teach, and confess the Apostles', the Nicene, and the Athanasian Creeds. We also acknowledge the Lutheran Confessions as true witnesses and faithful expositions of the Holy Scriptures. Will you therefore preach and teach in accordance with the Holy Scriptures and these creeds and confessions?" The candidate's expected response is, "I will, and I ask God to help me."7 It is highly unlikely that Lutherans will add to the corpus of their Confessions. They do, however, develop and discuss theological statements and declarations, sometimes adopting them for guidance. Because of their historical conditioning and theological focus, Lutherans look askance at other faith communities which formulate or add confessions to their theological treasuries, especially when some of those confessions appear to contradict or replace or re-interpret the confessions Lutherans cherish.

Explicitly and implicitly, Lutheran methods appear to move from Scripture to Creeds and then to Confessions when Lutherans analyze, assess, express and formulate positions, practices, liturgies, and actions. Actually, within the triad is an inner canon. In the realm of Scripture, Pauline positions on justification (as understood by Lutherans) have priority.8 The Augsburg Confession occupies first place among the Confessions.

Moravians, while influenced deeply and positively by Lutheran individuals and Lutheran theology, have also observed debilitating arguments and confusions created by those who thought they possessed God's truth to the exclusion of other insights. Moravians regard theological polemics as contrary to the Savior's will and love. Having been persecuted and vilified, they decline to use those tactics when dealing with others and when coping with problems within their own communion. A 1979 statement on theology by the Joint Theological Commission of the Northern and Southern Provinces, USA puts the Moravian understanding of theology's purpose and role clearly:

Theological reflection in the Moravian tradition is not to be understood as an attempt to arrive at final answers but is a way of thinking about God and His relationship to us so that He can, through His Spirit, draw us to Himself, and to His Son, and we can know Him as the Source of our living. Such reflection should lead to sharing of ideas and experiences, articulation of our faith, new levels of trust toward each other as persons through whom God partially discloses Himself in various ways, stimulation of the Christian life and our attentive waiting upon God for His clarification of our understanding.

If "confessional" describes Lutheran theological methods and purposes, "relational and devotional" fit Moravians. Certainly Moravians insist that theological tasks are to be pursued with intellectual rigor and the best means scholarship provides. Certainly Moravians recognize that a person and a community theologize within historical, social, and ecclesiastical contexts. Certainly Moravians are insightful about the degrees that their vibrant connections to Moravia, Saxony and Pietism still invigorate the Unity. And certainly Moravians have doctrinal, liturgical, and institutional benchmarks to assess positions, proposals and practices. But these are secondary.

Moravian perspectives on the Christian faith generally, and the Unity's distinctive positions particularly, are formed by the affirmation that at heart Christianity is relational and devotional, not abstract or conceptual. The central goal of theology is to foster the Christian life. Theological inquiry is only partially planned and structured by humans; it is also an openness and discipleship to the Savior. For Moravians, prayer and worship are essential components in undertaking theological study and discourse. The Ground Of The Unity, a deliberately revisable statement of principles used by the world-wide Moravian Church, opens with the following:9

1. The Lord Jesus Christ calls His Church into being so that it may serve Him on earth until He comes. The Unitas Fratrum is, therefore, aware of its being called in faith to serve mankind by proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It recognizes this call to be the source of its being and the inspiration of its service. As is the source, so is the aim and end of its being based on the will of its Lord.

2. With the whole of Christendom we share faith in God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. We believe and confess that God has revealed Himself once and for all in His Son Jesus Christ; that our Lord has redeemed us with the whole of mankind by His death and His resurrection; and that there is no salvation apart from Him. We believe that He is present with us in the Word and Sacrament; that He directs and unites us through His Spirit and thus forms us into a Church. We hear Him summoning us to follow Him, and pray Him to use us in His service. He joins us together mutually, so that knowing ourselves to be members of His body we become willing to serve each other.

In the light of divine grace, we recognize ourselves to be a Church of sinners. We require forgiveness daily, and live only through the mercy of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. He redeems us from our isolation and unites us into a living Church of Jesus Christ.

3. The belief of the Church is effected and preserved through the testimony of Jesus Christ and through the work of the Holy Spirit. This testimony calls each individual personally, and leads him to the recognition of sin and to the acceptance of the redemption achieved by Christ. In fellowship with Him the love of Christ becomes more and more the power of the new life, power which penetrates and shapes the entire person. As God's Spirit so effects living belief in the hearts of individuals, He grants them the privilege to share in the fruits of Christ's salvation and membership in His body.

To balance what might be perceived as a tilt toward the "internal," or "subjective" or "heart theology," the Ground continues with "external," or "objective," or "mind" factors:

4. The Triune God as revealed in the Holy Scripture of the Old and New Testament is the only source of our life and salvation; and this Scripture is the sole standard of the doctrine and faith of the Unitas Fratrum and therefore shapes our life.

The Unitas Fratrum recognizes the Word of the Cross as the center of Holy Scripture and of all preaching of the Gospel and sees its primary mission, and its reason for being, to consist in bearing witness to this joyful message. We ask our Lord for power never to stray from this.

The Unitas Fratrum takes part in the continual search for sound doctrine. In interpreting the Scripture and in the communication of doctrine in the Church, we look to two millennia of ecumenical Christian tradition and the wisdom of our Moravian forebears in the faith to guide us as we pray for fuller understanding and ever clearer proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. But just as the Holy Scripture does not contain any doctrinal system, so the Unitas Fratrum also has not developed any of its own, because it knows that the mystery of Jesus Christ which is attested to in the Bible, cannot be comprehended completely by any human mind or expressed completely in any human statement. Also it is true that through the Holy Spirit the recognition of God's will for salvation in the Bible is revealed completely and clearly.

5. The Unitas Fratrum recognizes in the creeds of the Church the thankful acclaim of the Body of Christ. These creeds aid the Church in formulating a Scriptural confession, in marking the boundary of heresies, and in exhorting believers to an obedient and fearless testimony in every age. The Unitas Fratrum maintains that all creeds formulated by the Christian Church stand in need of constant testing in the light of the Holy Scriptures. It acknowledges as such true professions of faith the early Christian witness: "Jesus Christ is Lord!" and also especially the ancient Christian creeds and the fundamental creeds of the Reformation.*

*Note: In the various provinces of the Renewed Unitas Fratrum the following creeds in particular gained special importance, because in them the main doctrines of the Christian faith find clear and simple expression:
The Apostles' Creed
The Athanasian Creed
The Nicene Creed
The Confession of the Unity of the Bohemian Brethren of 1535
The Twenty-One Articles of the unaltered Augsburg Confession
The Shorter Catechism of Martin Luther
The Synod of Berne of 1532
The Thirty-Nine Articles of the Church of England
The Theological Declaration of Barmen of 1934
The Heidelberg Catechism

Moravians consider truth neither as a quantity to possess nor as able to be finalized in formulas. Truth involves a personal journey in the company of other believers toward the fulfillment God promises in the crucified and risen Lord who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. The Christian community is part and parcel of the Unity's theological method and purposes. That "company" is a "living Church" which witnesses for Christ to the world." Again from the Ground:

52. A church is and remains a living one when it: is attentive to God's Word, confesses its sins and accepts forgiveness for them, seeks and maintains fellowship with its Lord and Redeemer by means of the Sacraments, places its whole life under His rule and daily leading, ministers to its neighbour and seeks brotherhood with all who confess Christ, proclaims to the world the tidings concerning the Saviour, awaits whole-heartedly the coming of its Lord as King.

Moravians, wary of concretizing the Christian faith in humanly developed theological statements, encourage both structure and freedom in theological discourse. Their openness to the personal and devotional dimensions of theological methods is a reminder of the arid arguments of 16th-18th century successors to the Reformers, and places a lively emphasis on the Spirit's activity in theological methods and discussions. Recollection and narration of historical experience, both communal and personal, and worship shape theological method and expression. While worship reflects theology in most communions, the Moravian worship shapes and empowers theology as relational and devotional, and recalls significant events in the Unity's history. The Easter Liturgy, for example, is designed to be a confessional service. Citations from the Small Catechism's Explanations to the Apostles' Creed are prominent in the service. Perhaps we may draw a rough analogy between Lutherans and Moravians at this point: what the Confessions are to Lutherans, the Unity's history and worship are to Moravians.

In summary, Lutheran and Moravian theological methods differ from each other, yet we venture to conclude that the differences are mutually supportive and complementary. If Moravians counsel Lutherans about the divisive and self-defeating risks of doctrinal polemics, Lutherans counsel Moravians about the need to develop greater clarity and consistency in stating their interpretations of the faith. Both approaches need each other in order to undertake theological efforts which are carefully formulated and open to the power of God for the Church and the world. We turn now to some key Mutual Affirmations, and Complementarities.

2 Formula of Concord, Epitome, Part I, 1. Note that all references to the documents contained in the Lutheran Confessions are from The Book Of Concord. The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, translated and edited by Theodore G. Tappert, Philadelphia: Fortress Press, published originally in 1959.

3 Formula of Concord, Epitome, Part 1, 2.

4 Formula of Concord, Solid Declaration, Rule and Norm, 3 and 4. Philip Melanchthon, author- compiler of the Augsburg Confession, re-edited and modified portions after 1530. While the original text and details about the presentation of the original Confession before Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Augsburg are uncertain, Lutherans have settled on a textus receptus in Latin and German which is termed the Unaltered Augsburg Confession.

5 See Formula of Concord, Solid Declaration, Rule and Norm, 8.

6 See Formula of Concord, Solid Declaration, Rule and Norm, 6 and 8.

7 Occasional Services, Minneapolis: Augsburg-Fortress, 1982, pg. 194 from the rite of ordination.

8 Especially Romans, Galatians and Ephesians.

9 The most recent text of the Ground Of The Unity is that revised by the Unity Synod (the international assembly of the Unity) which was held in 1995 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The revision concerned Para. 4 "God's Word and Doctrine." The following note accompanied the revision: "The difficulty experienced with the formulation of 1957 was a wording adopted by the Synod which had never been used by the Moravian Church before. Moravians have always called Scripture 'the only rule (norm, standard) of faith and doctrine.' In the statement of 1957 it was for the first time also called 'the only source' which was interpreted by some Moravians as meaning 'the only source of information about everything.' Moravians have also always believed that God was the source of their life, not just the book, as important as it is, which bears witness about God. Jesus in John 5:39 says that people search Scriptures because they think to have eternal life in them, but rather do they bear witness to him, the One who is the source of life." For further information concerning the Ground prior to the changes of 1995, see C. Daniel Crews, Confessing Our Unity In Christ. Historical and Theological Background to "The Ground of the Unity," prepared for presentation to the Moravian Clergy Association (January 6, 1994) and published at the request of the Provincial Elders Conference, Southern Province. The changes in #4 were proposed by the Northern and Southern Provinces in their 1994 and 1995 meetings prior to the international Synod, further suggestions were proposed by the Theological College in Mbeya, Tanzania, and then Unity Synod modified the text in the process of accepting it. As a source of doctrine we also call attention to the Church Order of the Unitas Fratrum (Moravian Church), published by the Moravian Church, Unitas Fratrum,: Lansdowne, Republic of South Africa, 1988, The present version of this is as revised by the Unity Synod in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, in 1995. This document, which is foundational for the Church Orders of all the provinces, includes The Ground of the Unity, Essential Features of the Unity, Constitution of the Unitas Fratrum, Church Life in the Unitas Fratrum, and Mission Outreach. The section on Church Life includes subsections on the important areas of sacraments and ministry.

Besides these sources of doctrinal reflection and understanding, Moravians would call attention to the Book of Worship, especially the Easter Morning Liturgy which is primarily a confession of the faith of the Church. Moravian Churches around the world may use various catechisms and there is a history of various catechisms used in the North American Moravian Church, the last revision being: Catechism of the Moravian Church, Published by Order of the Provincial Synod of 1956. On the history of Catechisms in the Moravian Church see "Catechisms in the Moravian Church in America: A Brief Preliminary Report to the Interprovincial Faith and Order Commission" by C. Daniel Crews, November. 1994 (unpublished).

There is also the Moravian Covenant for Christian Living (previously called the Brotherly Agreement) which is supposedly signed by members of Moravian congregations and over the years has undergone numerous changes. This has its origin in the manorial rules signed by the congregation in Herrnhut in 1727. Since the 1960s this has had a doctrinal section at the beginning partially based on the Ground of the Unity."

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