On Being Theologian of the Cross: Reflections on Luther's Heidelberg Disputation, 1518

On Being a Theologian of the Cross: Reflections on Luther's Heidelberg Disputation, 1518. By Gerhard 0. Forde. Grand Rapids and Cambridge: Eerdmans, 1997, xiv +115 pp., n.p.

Among contemporary English language writers, few have communicated the central insights of the young Luther's theology with greater ease and clarity than Luther Seminary's Gerhard Forde. In his Justification by Faith: A Matter of Death and Life (Sigler, 1991), Forde interpreted the classic Lutheran teaching about justification not in the forensic terms with which many are familiar, but in terms of life itself. Now Forde brings his intimate familiarity with the young Martin Luther to bear not on the question of the theology of the cross per se, but on the problem of being, as he puts it, a theologian of the cross.

From the outset it is clear that this book originates in the context of an institution and from a theologian dedicated to training persons for pastoral ministry. The Sitz im Leben for this book, much like that of the Heidelberg Disputation itself, is that of a professor deeply dissatisfied with the direction of contemporary theology. Contemporary theologies of victimization, as Forde seems to see the matter, have led to a sentimentalized version of the gospel expressed in therapeutic terms more consistent with the presuppositions of late modernity than those of biblical Christianity. While he admits that therapeutic concerns with self-esteem, affirmation and the like have their place on a this-worldly level, he objects to their being mistaken for the ultimate concerns with which the Christian message of redemption has to do. Through a close reading of the twenty-eight theses Luther prepared for debate at Heidelberg in 1518, Forde seeks to make Luther his ally in the struggle against such sentimentalized forms of the gospel. Following an introductory chapter, Forde offers commentary upon the theses from the Heidelberg Disputation in four succinct chapters, explaining in order Luther's polemic against any reliance on good works for salvation, his understanding of the bondage of the human will apart form grace, the distinction between theologies of glory and the theology of the cross, and the righteousness of faith. Forde skillfully unfolds the compact and sometimes hyperbolic language of Luther's theses with an expert's surefooted sense for the terrain. The style throughout is clear and accessible, a fact which makes the book both a logical choice for seminary students and an edifying read for the pastor or educated lay person.

One might fear that a book which takes as its point of departure the author's deep dissatisfaction with contemporary theological trends would devolve into a dyspeptic diatribe against all things modern. Such is not the case here. In truly evangelical fashion, Forde not only allows Luther's assessment of the human condition apart from grace to do its work, but also lays out in clearest terms Luther's understanding of the wondrous promises of the Gospel. Only when God has become our most relentless enemy and truly slain us with the Law does he raise us up to new life by means of the Word. In both cases, as Forde points out, it is God who takes the initiative; the sinner suffers both the condemnation of the Law and the promise of the Gospel as realities given from without. In this sense, one can speak of being a theologian of the cross only as one created by God, and not of becoming one as if it could be done through the exercise of some innate human capacity. To see things as they are, to know the self as put to death by God and raised to life by that same God, is itself a gift of God. This knowledge in turn enables the Christian to distinguish between theologies of glory and the theology of the cross.

Readers familiar with Luther studies will recognize that there is a certain redundancy in the publication of yet another book about Luther's theology of the cross. See, inter alia, Regin Prenter's Luther's Theology of the Cross (Fortress, 1971), Walther von Loewenich's Luther's Theology of the Cross (Augsburg, 1976), and Alister McGrath's Luther's Theology of the Cross (Blackwell, 1990). Still, so long as self-help theologies of glory in one form or another continue to rear their ugly heads in contemporary Christianity, indeed, so long as it remains the tendency of fallen people to seek to justify themselves, there will remain a need for books like these. Forde's compact and accessible contribution is a welcome addition to the fold.

Mickey L. Mattox

Concordia University, River Forest, IL

Copyright Evangelical Theological Society Sep 1999
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