Lutheranism is a movement of reform within the Christian Church, with clear biblical, creedal and confessional commitments. Scripture, the ecumenical creeds and the Lutheran Confessions (collected in The Book of Concord, 1580) are viewed as normative resources for the life and mission of the Church. The ELCA and other Lutheran bodies expect its leaders to pursue their ministries in accordance with these norms. It is crucial, therefore, that such leaders explore and become conversant with the Lutheran confessional heritage; have a lively sense of what in it is life-giving and a gift to the Church and the world (and what in it may require repentance and rethinking); understand how it can inform issues of Church and society (with the help of recent ecumenical, denominational and global Lutheran experience); and clarify the significance of that heritage for their own faith journeys.

In this course, you will gain fluency in the core theological commitments of Lutheranism and reflect on their meaning for today’s church and world. You’ll examine the formative documents of the tradition, consider how Lutheran theology intersects with social and ecclesial issues, and critically engage its relevance to your own spiritual journey. You’ll also be invited to discern how the confessional tradition can be both a compass and a conversation partner in shaping faithful and thoughtful ministry.

Candace Kohli is an Assistant Professor of Lutheran Systematic Theology and Global Lutheranism. She joined LSTC in 2022 and teaches courses on Luther and the sixteenth-century Reformations, Lutheran theology, and systematic and historical theology. She has a deep and abiding interest in the socio-cultural impact and relevance of theology historically and brings that interpretive lens to her research questions and methods. In addition to expertise in Luther, Dr. Kohli specializes in and has published on medieval Scholastic and Nominalist theology, theological anthropology, pneumatology, and political theology. Her current research investigates the interdependence of theology and racialized thinking in Luther’s anti-Islamic polemics and the distribution of those ideas in early modern Europe. With a background in adult online learning, Dr. Kohli also directs LSTC’s distance learning initiatives. Before coming to LSTC, Dr. Kohli worked in the nonprofit sector and taught at Montreat College, Northwestern University, and across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. Dr. Kohli was a Fulbright Fellow in the Evangelical Theology Faculty at Eberhard-Karls-University in Tuebingen, Germany and a Visiting Researcher in the School of Culture and Society at Aarhus University in Denmark. Her first book, Human Agency Under Law and Gospel, will be published with Wipf and Stock in 2023.

M1: Luther and Lutheranism

WHAT IS LUTHERANISM?

In this module, we consider the religious tradition guided by the Lutheran confessional texts by introducing Martin Luther and the historical origins of Lutheranism. With an eye to the ways theology and culture shape one another, we will cover Lutheranism today, the historical context of the reformation, Luther and his late-medieval world, and Luther himself. By looking at Martin Luther, we can see how his new approach to reading the Bible and his concerns about spiritual assurance set the stage for a religious movement with global reach today.

• MO1L Outline Martin Luther's history and how Lutheranism came to be.
• MO2: Describe the historical reform movements in Lutheranism.
• MO3: Describe Martin Luther's relationship with the Bible and his influence on economics.
• MO4: Discuss how Lutheranism developed into the movement we know today.
• MO5: Examine the historical context from which Lutheranism emerged.
• MO6: Argue your viewpoint on whose Lutheranism is being followed.

M2: Creeds and Confessions

WHAT ARE THE LUTHERAN CONFESSIONS?

In this module, we will clarify the nature and purpose of the Lutheran confessional writings by looking at them in relation to other Christian creeds and confessions. We will define both creeds and confessions, while examining the historical development and use of key creeds from early Christianity: The Nicene-Constantinople, Athanasian, and Apostles Creeds. We will also look at the Lutheran confessional texts specifically, including the development of the Book of Concord, it's global adoption, and the role of controversy in shaping its interpretation.

• MO1: Explain what a creed and a confession is.
• MO2: Examine various creeds in Lutheran history.
• MO3: Describe the Lutheran Confessional writings within the broader genre of Christian creeds in confessional texts.
• MO4: Examine the Book of Concord and the global adoption thereof.

M3: The Godhead: God, Christ, Spirit

In this module, we will explore Lutheran understandings of God by asking two questions:

How is god conceptualized in the Lutheran Confessional texts and how does this understanding of God then shape the rest of Lutheran theology?

To answer these questions, we will examine the concept of the trinity and divine persons in the Nicene creed, ideas about the immanent and economic, Luther's medieval understanding of God, and how these ideas drove Luther's quest for assurance of salvation. We will also explore Lutheran conceptions of the person of Christ by looking at the influence of Chalcedonian Christology in the Book of Concord.

• MO1: Explain the Nicene Creed as a basis for how God is understood.
• MO2: Outline Luther’s God and the late medieval world as a means to understand God.
• MO3: Examine how you know that you are saved.
• MO4: Outline Chalcedonian Christology as a means to understand Christ.
• MO5: Analyze Lutheran approaches to the trinity, Christology and pneumatology in light of the intellectual environment within which these ideas emerged.

M4: Human Person and Sin

The Lutheran Confessional writings work to describe the relationship between God and human beings. How do the Lutheran Confessional writings understand the human side of that relationship?

In this module, we will answer this question. To answer this question, we will explore concepts of human personhood and sin that emerge out of the confessional texts. We will look at how human beings reflect the functions of the divine persons in their moral decision-making and how the Lutheran confessional writings depict sin to disrupt those functions.

• MO1: Describe the human person by defining the inner and outer person.
• MO2: Examine sin by looking at the divine command, moral decision-making and moral psychology.
• MO3: Identify the potential problems and opportunities that arise from sin concepts.
• MO4: Describe the Lutheran theological anthropology and hamartiology within their medieval intellectual context.
• MO5: Examine the social implications of sin concepts for minoritized persons.

M5: Justification and the Law-Gospel Framework

The Lutheran Confessional writings articulate an approach to the God-human relationship that aims to resolve the relational problem of human sin. How do the texts structure this relationship?

In this module, we will look at Lutheran approaches to the doctrine of justification alongside other Christian theories of atonement and examine how the Lutheran idea of law and gospel structure divine and human ways of being in relation.

• MO1: Describe justification by comparing the various Christian theories of atonement.
• MO2: Compare forensic and ontological interpretations of what happens in the soul.
• MO3: Explain how the Law-Gospel framework grows out of Lutheran hermeneutics.
• MO4: Assess how the Law-Gospel framework structures Lutheran approaches to justification.

M6: Human Responses to God: Free Will, Good Works, Faith & Election

What does justification do to the human person?

In this module, we will look at human subjectivity and justification. We will discuss human capacity for free will and good works in relation to the medieval penitential system, as well as Lutheran concepts of faith and election.

• MO1: Explain human agency in the justification and sanctification processes in Lutheran perspective using the concepts of free will, good works, faith and election.
• MO2: Outline the medieval penitential process and the Osiandrian controversy.
• MO3: Examine logic, free will and the logical problems of the doctrine of election.

M7: Humans in Relation to God and the World: Two Kingdoms & Three Estates

How are human social and political relations structured in light of the human relation to God?

In this module, we will explore how the Lutheran confessions talk about human social and political relationships in doctrines known as the Two Kingdoms and Three Estates. We will explore the historical roots of these concepts and how they have impacted modern societies.

• MO1: Compare human relational structures within Lutheran theology known as the Two Kingdoms and Three Estates doctrines.
• MO2: Write an updated version of the barmen declaration for the 21st century.
• MO3: Explain where you have noticed the threefold division assumed in your life as a Lutheran.

M8: The Means of Grace: Ecclesiology & Sacraments

How is Divine Grace shared with the world?

In this module, we will look at the means of grace in the Lutheran confessions, including a Lutheran concept of the church and its sacraments. We will then look at the context and logic of sacraments to better understand what a sacrament does.

• MO1: Describe ecclesiology and the creedal church.
• MO2: Explain the various domains of temporal human life.
• MO3: Identify the marks of the church.
• MO4: Examine what sacraments are and how they are used in the church.
• MO5: Explain how human beings access divine grace through the worshipping community and the sacraments.

M9: Vocation, Universal Priesthood & Ministry

How do human beings serve God through their work?

In this module, we will define vocation as a key social concept within the Lutheran confessions. By looking at vocation within the domains of temporal human life and the medieval questions about clerical marriage, we will see how the confessional writings opened up the priesthood and ministry as work of all Christians. Along the way, we will continue to consider the question: How do you feel a calling?

• MO1: Explain vocation in terms of domains of temporal human life.
• MO2: Consider what it means to feel a calling.
• MO3: Describe Lutheran notions of human work and service in the world.
• MO4: Evaluate a personal sense of purpose and calling within Lutheran frameworks.

M10: Addressing Harms: Lutheran Ecumenical & Interreligious Relations

In this module, we will be looking at addressing harms: Lutheran ecumenical and interreligious relations with various groups. We will dive into the condemnations in the Lutheran Confessional writings and the 16th century context. We will explore the theological disagreements, the condemnations, and the aftermaths of the Anabaptists, Calvinists, Turks and Jews. We will then explore the contemporary responses by looking at the dialogues with Mennonites, Muslims and Jews.

• MO1: Outline the history and context of the 16th century condemnations in the Lutheran history.
• MO2: Examine the theological disagreements, condemnations and aftermaths of various interreligious relations.
• MO3: Describe the interfaith and interreligious dialogues with Mennonites, Muslims and Jews.

M11: Adiaphora

Much of the Lutheran Confessional texts turn to the bible to settle debates and disagreements. But what should church leaders do when biblical texts are silent on an issue?

In this module, we will examine the topic of adiaphora, or "things indifferent", in the Lutheran confessional texts. We will look at the historical roots of this idea in the adiaphoristc controversy by looking at the concerns of the Phillipists and Gnesio-Lutherans. Adiaphora is also a useful concept today. We will also consider some uses of this concept to address contextual concerns in our societies today.

• MO1: Identify what adiaphora is.
• MO2: Describe how Adiaphora assisted in solving intractable disagreements between early Lutherans.
• MO3: Examine the sola scriptura principle.
• MO4: Extrapolate the relevance of "things indifferent" to address pressing issues in the church today.

M12: Global Lutheranism Today

How did we get here?

In this module, we will explore the growth and expansion of Lutheranism from its origins in a small, rural town in Germany to a global tradition today. We will look at how Lutheranism shaped Western cultures through a process called confessionalization and we will also look at the Lutheran World Federation and Lutheranism in the United States.

• MO1: Outline the spread and expansion of Lutheranism through the world.
• MO2: Explain the Lutheran World Federation activities and work.
• MO3: Describe Lutheranism in the United States.
• MO4: Examine the spread and evolution of Lutheranism to its global context today.