What Are You Reading?

What are you reading? I have a couple books on my current reading list, but before I get to them I want to mention one book I am eyeing which is a collection of essays edited by Robert D. Preus and compiled into the book A Contemporary Look at the Formula of Concord. I have only thumbed through the book, but it looks like it contains some excellent history around several controversies which faced the infant Lutheran church such as the "Synergistic controversy," the "Majoristic controversy," and controversies arising out of the Interims. When I get around to finally reading this book I will think about writing up a short review, but I can see already that it is likely a good book to have in my library. 

A couple days ago a new book arrived on my doorstep which I am excited to have in my library, Martin Chemnitz's Enchiridion, The Lord's Supper, The Lord's Prayer. This is volume five of the series produced by Concordia Publishing House aptly titled "Chemnitz's Works." I didn't waste a moment to start reading this book the moment it arrived. Thus far I am fifty-two pages into the Enchiridion which is something of a theological instructional manual for the pastors of Chemnitz's time. The format of the book reminds me of an elenctic method of teaching where a negative question is asked and the instructor offers an answer which corrects the line of questioning. The questions and answers are numbered and are categorized under general topics which makes it easy to refer to specific questions and their explanations. This book has quickly become a favorite of mine and I have already been marking it up like I have with my Book of Concord and Walther's Law and Gospel. If you don't already own a copy of this book, put it on your Christmas shopping list. This is definitely a "must read" for any layman who wants to dig deeply into our Lutheran confession of faith.

I finished up a delightful little book introducing the Book of Concord written by Robert D. Preus titled, Getting Into the Theology of Concord: A Study of the Book of Concord. This gem is only ninety-four pages in length, contains a glossary of terms, and provides study questions covering each chapter read. It is meant to be a study book to use in a group reading through the Book of Concord. Are you reading through the Book of Concord, the Lutherans confessions? If you haven't done so you don't know what you are missing! Perhaps this tiny book could help you "jump start" your way into study of the Book of Concord?

As an aside, and perhaps a bit of a rant, in the past I engaged a Lutheran pastor who insisted upon using a Pentecostal/Charismatic teaching program containing false doctrine from which to catechize new members of his congregation. This program he is so enthused about is called "The Alpha Course." Nearly three years ago I wrote a brief expose of the dangers of "The Alpha Course" which can be found here on this blog. One of the excuses this pastor gave for using the false teachings of today's Enthusiasts (mystics/Pentecostals/Charismatics) is that Concordia Publishing House (CPH) doesn't offer good study programs for teaching the laity the essentials of the Christian faith. Excuse me, but that is simply a load of bull-malarkey. There are many excellent resources provided by CPH and one of which is Getting Into the Theology of Concord: A Study of the Book of Concord by Robert Preus. Dr. Preus' book is solid confessional Lutheran teaching which covers all the essential doctrines of the Christian faith such as Holy Baptism, the deity of Jesus Christ, the Holy Trinity, Original Sin, and much more. There is no excuse for utilizing the materials of false teachers in catechizing our laity and especially when we have so many excellent resources available to us as LCMS Lutherans.

Finally, I have been working my way again through two books I am quite familiar with. I am in a reading group going through Walther's Law and Gospel: A Reader's Edition published by CPH. C.F.W. Walther's mind never ceases to amaze me. The man was simply gifted by God as a brilliant theologian. I am constantly learning something new from his Law and Gospel. The second book I am working through, now for the third time, is Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions. Once again I am going through the Book of Concord in the setting of a reading group. The Lutheran confessions never cease to amaze me. How anyone can insist that the Book of Concord is but a museum piece having no relevance today is beyond me. Indeed, those who claim as much have probably not read the Confessions closely, or they have been living under a rock. For example, I was reading through article XXXIII of the Apology which deals with the marriage of priests, but the explanation of marriage and sexuality contained in the article applies to hot topics of today such as homosexuality and so-called "gay marriage." Of course, if we don't read the Apology, then we could never know how it speaks to the issues we face today as a church body.

So here is the list of what I am reading now: The Enchiridion, Law and Gospel, and the Book of Concord. It goes without saying that I am reading the Scriptures, too.