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Luther's Theology of the Cross Fifteen Years after Heidelberg: Lectures on the Psalms of Ascent

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 December 2009

ROBERT KOLB
ROBERT KOLB
Affiliation:
Institute for Mission Studies, Concordia Seminary, 801 Seminary Place, St Louis, MO 63105, USA; e-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

Luther's hermeneutical principles labelled ‘the theology of the cross’, developed in his ‘Heidelberg theses’ of 1518, continued to guide his formulation of biblical teaching throughout his career. In lectures on the Psalms of ascent (1532–3), under quite different circumstances, Luther claimed again that ‘Our theology is a theology of the cross’. Five elements of his Heidelberg theologia crucis guided his interpretation in these lectures. The distinction of the hidden and the revealed God, the focus on Christ's atoning sacrifice for sin, the reliance on faith in God's Word rather than human reason, God's working ‘under the appearance of opposites’ and the suffering involved in battling Satan shape his treatment of many passages in the lectures on Psalms cxx–cxxxiv.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Ecclesiastical History , Volume 61 , Issue 1 , January 2010 , pp. 69 - 85
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

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References

1 Vercruysse, Jos E., ‘Gesetz und Liebe: die Struktur der “Heidelberger Disputation” Luthers (1518)’, Lutherjahrbuch lxviii (1981), 7–43.Google Scholar

2 Walther von Loewenich, Luther's theology of the cross, trans. Herbert J. A. Bouman, Minneapolis 1976; Philip S. Watson, Let God be God! An interpretation of the theology of Martin Luther, Philadelphia 1947; Hans Joachim Iwand, ‘Theologia crucis’, in Nachgelassene Werke, ii, Munich 1966, 381–98; Jürgen Moltmann, Der gekreuzigte Gott, das Kreuz Christi als Grund und Kritik christlicher Theologie, Munich 1972; Dennis Ngien, The suffering of God according to Martin Luther's ‘theologia crucis’, New York 1995; Gerhard O. Forde, On being a theologian of the cross: reflections on Luther's Heidelberg disputation, 1518, Grand Rapids 1997; Klaus Schwarzwäller, Kreuz und Auferstehung: ein theologisches Traktat, Göttingen 2000; Robert Kolb and Christian Neddens, Gottes Wort vom Kreuz: Lutherische Theologieals kritische Theologie, Oberursel 2001, and ‘Luther on the theology of the cross’, Lutheran Quarterly xvi (2002), 443–66. The topic is also treated in standard assessments of Luther's theology.

3 In Melanchthon's Loci communes it found no place in 1521. In 1535 ‘the cross’ was limited to the topic of human suffering: ‘De afflictionibus seu de cruce toleranda’, CR xxi. 528–36; in 1541, ‘De calamitatibus et de cruce, et de vera consolationibus’, CR xxi. 934–55.

4 ‘Heidelberg disputation’, 1518, WA i.354, lines 19–20; LW xxxi. 40.

5 WA i. 354, lines 21–2; LW xxxi.40.

6 ‘Heidelberg disputation’, 1518, WA i.362, lines 4–19; LW xxi. 52–3.

7 ‘Lectures on Romans’, 1515–16, WA lvi. 392, lines 28–32; LW xxv. 382–3.

8 Heiko A. Oberman, The harvest of medieval theology: Gabriel Biel and late medieval nominalism, Durham 1983, 57–89.

9 See Forde, Theologian of the cross.

10 D. Martin Luther Operationes in Psalmos, 1519–1521, ii, ed. Gerhard Hammer and Manfred Biersack, Cologne 1981, 389, lines 15–16.

11 Ibid. 325, line 1.

12 Ibid. 341, line 15.

13 Ibid. 318, line 20–319, line 3.

14 ‘In XV Psalmos graduum’, 1532/33 (1540), WA xl/3,193, lines 6–7, 19–20.

15 Ibid. lines 5–8.

16 Ibid. lines 19–20.

17 The origin of this ancient designation for these fifteen Psalms remains unclear; some hold that pilgrims sang them as they travelled to worship in the temple: A. Freitag, ‘Veit Dietrichs Anteil an der Lutherüberlieferung’, in Lutherstudien zur 4. Jahrhundertfeier der Reformation, Weimar 1917, 172–4, 195; WA xl/3, introduction at pp. 1–3.

18 See Luther's letter of consolation to the citizens of Oschatz, 20 Jan. 1533, WA Br vi.421–3, #1995; his intervention on behalf of the Evangelical citizens of Leipzig, 5 Apr. 1533, WA Br vi. 444–6, §2007; and further correspondence between the Wittenberg faculty and Leipzig, Apr. 1533, WA Br vi.448–57, #2008–11.

19 See the memorandum from the Wittenberg faculty to Elector Johann Friedrich regarding the approach of papal emissaries, June 1533, WA Br vi. 480–91, #2028.

20 See, for example, his letter to the city council in Münster, 21 Dec. 1532, WA Br vi.398–401, #1983.

21 See the correspondence between Luther and the city council, WA Br vi. 446–8, #2008.

22 Martin Brecht, Martin Luther: dritter Band: die Erhaltung der Kirche, 1532–1546, Stuttgart 1987, 33, and the letter from Herzog Albrecht of Prussia to Luther regarding his illness, 11 June 1533, WA Br vi. 474.

23 See Biblia Latina cum Glossa Ordinaria: facsimile reprint of the editio princeps Adolph Rusch of Strassburg 1480/81, ii, Turnhout 1992, (622)–(632); S. Aurelius Augustinus. Enarrationes in Psalmos CI-CL, CCSL, XL: Aurelii Augustini Opera pars X,3, Turnholt 1956, 1776–937.

24 WA iv. 392–414; LW xi. 535–53.

25 WA xl. 56, lines 31–57, 21.

26 WA xl/3, 336, line 1–337, line 4; 336, lines 14–26.

27 WA xl/3, 338, line 33–339, line 14.

28 WA xl/3, 372, lines 25–31.

29 WA xl/3, 351, lines 33–5.

30 WA xl/3, 375, line 32–376, line 25.

31 WA xl/3, 405, line 37–406, line 23.

32 WA xl/3, 470, lines 25–31.

33 WA xl/3, 76, lines 19–26.

34 WA xl/3, 403, lines 34–6.

35 WA xl/3, 128, line 36–129, line 28.

36 WA xl/3, 153, lines 16–23.

37 WA xl/3, 429, lines 28–30.

38 WA xl/3, 34, line 12–35, lines 1, 29–34. See also the discussion of the clash between faith and human senses on Psalm cxxi.3 at WA xl/3, 58, line 29–67, line 21.

39 WA xl/3, 46, lines 24–30.

40 WA xl/3, 50, lines 24–8. Luther later developed this idea further at WA xl/3, 55, line 19–56, line 22.

41 WA xl/3, 63, lines 30–4.

42 WA xl/3, 64, line 38–65, line 24.

43 WA xl/3, 26, line 35–27, line 20.

44 WA xviii.784, line 1–785, line 38; LW xxxiii. 289–92.

45 WA xl/3, 321, lines 16–322, line 16.

46 WA xl/3, 322, lines 23–33.

47 WA xl/3, 322, lines 6–323, line 5.

48 WA xl/3, 67, line 21–68, line 28.

49 WA xl/3, 165, lines 9–15, 20–36.

50 WA xl/3, 15, line 1–16, lines 17–36.

51 WA xl/3, 334, lines 27–33.

52 WA xl/3, 30, lines 4–10, 19–32.

53 WA xl/3, 36, lines 2–5, 7–13.

54 WA xl/3, 195, lines 32–4. The passage continues to p. 196, line 27.

55 WA xl/3, 200, lines 21–3.

56 ‘Vorrede zum 1. Bande der Wittenberger Ausgabe der deutschen Schriften’, 1539, WA i.660, lines 1–4; LW xxxiv. 286.

57 WA xl/3, 37, line 35–38, line 27.

58 WA xl/3, 60, line 20–62, line 22.

59 WA xl/3, 62, line 33–63, line 29.

60 WA xl/3, 126, line 30–127, line 21.

61 WA xl/3, 179, line 30–180, line 28.

62 WA xl/3, 150, lines 24–6.