Pastor Foltz is Pastor Emeritus of Saint James Lutheran Church in Gettysburg, PA and author of the the Frontline Study content.
We have come to the last of the five reoccurring themes that I found when hastily rereading the documents of Vatican II. Although my intention was simply to refresh my memory, I was pleasantly surprised to find the five could serve as the framework for a modern Christian narrative. Each addresses our present societal problems […]
The call for unity in diversity emerged as one of the hallmarks of Vatican II. It was used in a variety of contexts during the Council and remains a helpful guideline for a servant church speaking to a global society. I think it initially appeared in the first session when discussing the liturgy. Maximos IV, […]
I am increasingly convinced Vatican II was able to lay the groundwork of a new Christian narrative for our modern age, because for the most part, it looked at our situation with a simple honesty. That honesty recognized the narrative the Church has used to identify and understand herself has changed throughout history. Consequently, it […]
Several times a day, friends lament that they are unable to talk about important issues with people who hold opposing views. Today, one reported that Thanksgiving was awful, because family members got angry discussing politics. Another said bridge club has become uncomfortable, because you have to avoid so many topics that have become divisive. In […]
Years ago, students of technology warned that everything in a technological society becomes entertainment. Usually they were speaking about the evening news, and their prescience is downright obvious there. Today, news has become 24/7 entertainment, political talk show hosts rationalize their inaccuracies by claiming they provide entertainment and not news, and every network is open […]
Perhaps I got ahead of myself last week. I spoke of the need for a new Christian narrative in our technological society and suggested that Vatican II offers us groundwork for developing one. Incidental to that, I observed that I feel the narratives by which Lutherans and Roman Catholics have identified and understood themselves for […]
In marking the anniversary of the Reformation, it became clear to some of us that 500-year-old narratives really do not serve our mission to proclaim the Gospel in our own time. That has put me on a kick to consider what might be a possible new narrative to which I hope some of you will […]
Understanding Luther’s understanding of the Sacrament of the Altar has become more relevant recently as many churches engage in a largely unnoticed ecumenical movement toward full communion. The term is almost a play on words as it primarily means efforts to develop complete relationships. However, the first steps have been official statements that two denominations […]
You get an idea of the critical role played by the sacraments in Lutheran thought by examining Article VII of the Augsburg Confession. It defines the Holy Christian Church as “the assembly of all believers among whom the Gospel is preached in its purity and the holy sacraments are administered according to the Gospel. For […]
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