Pastor Foltz is Pastor Emeritus of Saint James Lutheran Church in Gettysburg, PA and author of the the Frontline Study content.
Undoubtedly, the most controversial part of Fratelli Tutti is its economic critique. Although he might not label it as such, the Pope recognizes we operate in a political economy. Kurt Anderson uses the term in his Evil Geniuses to indicate people, not the market, decide how an economy operates. He argues those who call for […]
We expect a Pope to talk about transcendental values, but until rather recently, we would never hear him put these in a democratic context. Popes expounded eternal truths entrusted to the Christian church. They might speak of them as natural reason but assumed they were revealed to special, authorized, devout, right-thinking males. The voice of […]
I was surprised, even startled, at the response to last week’s lesson. I thought I was laying the foundation for examining Pope Francis’ ideas about social friendship. I simply wanted to maintain that he built on the definition of love in Jesus’ Parable of the Good Samaritan in constructing an institutional ethic. However, everyone latched […]
You can readily see the division that splits every major Christian body in the response given this encyclical. The Pope’s belief that Christianity is primarily about relationships is very evident in this letter about social justice. He repeatedly speaks of the need for unity. His critics want no part in this, because they believe doctrines […]
I intend to examine Pope Francis’ latest encyclical, Fratelli Tutti, in the next few weeks believing that he offers an extremely important guideline for our troubled times. People have pretty much missed the challenge he makes to world views taken for granted in our current society, perhaps because they have difficulty getting beyond the burdensome […]
Let’s be honest. I started this series after trying to understand how so many people could support leaders who profess and practice values I regard as unChristian. I had noticed that a theology of the cross, a central part of my Lutheran background, was conspicuously absent in everything I was reading. Now after investigating this […]
If Christian love is unconditional, it is also ubiquitous. St. Paul describes it as the only virtue that is essential in all Christian actions. In I Corinthians 12- 14, he is describing the Church as a community in which each individual shares her spiritual gifts with others. In the very middle of the passage, he […]
Once we define Christian love as unconditional compassion and unconditional forgiveness, we recognize it is gracious. Christians have no trouble speaking of God’s love as the grace that saves us. We are hesitant, however, to see our own loving behavior as grace that transforms the world, especially since Freud created a culture of suspicion. Nonetheless, […]
Understanding Christian love from the perspective of the crucifixion highlights Jesus’ most radical words. Compassion becomes unconditional compassion. Love your neighbor becomes love your enemy. The same goes for forgiveness, the second characteristic. Hearing Jesus pray from the Cross that God would forgive his executioners reminds us that during his ministry he advocated forgiving our […]
Lupe has prompted me to make clear that I do not mean to advocate 16th century concepts. When I refer to Martin Luther’s theology of the cross helping me understand the problems of the contemporary church, I don’t mean much more than the need to consider the implications of Jesus’ crucifixion when talking about Christian […]
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