Richtschnur und Lebensmittel: Systematische Fallstudien zum lutherischen Lehrverstandnis

Tobias Graßmann examines the basic dogmatic problem of the church's binding teaching, its scope, and its validity from a Lutheran perspective. He reconstructs two important stages in the development of a Lutheran understanding of doctrine and shows that the problem of teaching has not been resolved in the present. He also investigates R. Bultmann's kerygmatheology and its history of influence, pointing to a factor for the modern transformations of the Protestant understanding of doctrine that has so far mostly been ignored. The final chapter unfolds an agonistic understanding of teaching that draws attention less to the wording of individual doctrinal statements than to the dynamic processes of articulation, officialization, and criticism of church teaching.

Format: Hardback
Length: 684 pages
Publication date: 10 October 2022
Publisher: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht GmbH & Co KG

Tobias Graßmann delves into the fundamental doctrinal conundrum faced by the church, encompassing its scope and validity from a Lutheran perspective. His book is structured into six core chapters, which can be read as standalone case studies, yet they are intricately interconnected. Graßmann begins by adopting a first approach, drawing from the external perspective of cultural anthropological and sociological theories of religion (C. Geertz, P. Bourdieu). He then reconstructs two crucial stages in the development of a distinctly Lutheran understanding of doctrine, drawing upon the Reformation creeds and the Baroque theologian J.C. Dannhauer. However, Graßmann reveals that the problem of teaching remains unresolved in the present, despite a certain forgetfulness of teaching within the church and theology. To address this, he conducts an investigation into R. Bultmann's kerygmatheology and its historical influence, shedding light on a factor that has largely been overlooked in the modern transformations of the Protestant understanding of doctrine. By integrating cultural-anthropological, sociological, and philosophical insights into a guiding dogmatic perspective, the final chapter unfolds an agonistic understanding of teaching that emphasizes the dynamic processes of articulation, officialization, and criticism of church teaching rather than solely focusing on the wording of individual doctrinal statements. A central feature of this teaching is its inherent connection to lived piety, which grants it validity and distinguishes it from mere abstract norms.

Dimension: 235 x 160 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9783525573426