The Luther Reading Challenge
He wasn’t perfect. He had his bad moments, and sometimes even wicked moments, like all of us sinners. But even in the midst of his own sin or despair or frustration, Martin Luther kept his eye on the prize: the gospel of Jesus Christ. The unexpected, unmerited, and unconditional love of God for human beings despite their rejection of every divine gift poured out upon them. The rediscovery of that astounding good news is why, in two short years, we’ll be celebrating the 500th anniversary of the start of the Reformation.
Of course, half a millennium is a pretty long time, and Lutheranism as a church movement and as a cultural reality has picked up a lot of other baggage along the way. Some of it is good, some not so good, some to the point and some quite irrelevant. It’s simply a matter of honesty—of keeping the Eighth Commandment—to make sure that the “Luther” part of our identity as Lutherans still means something significant.
That’s why we started the Luther Reading Challenge. As theologians working at the Institute for Ecumenical Research in Strasbourg, France, which was founded by an action of the LWF assembly in Helsinki in 1963 and opened its doors exactly fifty years ago, we are involved in two main tasks. One is understanding other Christians churches for the sake of reconciliation with them. The other is understanding our own. You can’t meaningfully engage with the other if you have no idea who you are. But you can’t really know who you are, either, if your distinction from others is based on misinformation. For us, ecumenism and Lutheran theological formation go hand in hand.
The most exciting place where this has been happening for us is at the annual two-week course Studying Luther in Wittenberg, hosted by the LWF Center in Luther’s own city. It gathers students, pastors, and bishops from every corner of the world (Greenland to Senegal to Myanmar to Australia to Brazil to Canada) for intensive reading and analysis of Luther’s theological writings. We have been continually amazed at how profoundly, personally, and prophetically Luther still speaks to people from such diverse contexts so many years later. Without fail, the experience has been transformative for the participants, and for us. We wanted to take that to a wider audience.
Obviously, an online community isn’t the same as the face-to-face experience of global friendship. But it’s not a bad start. The Luther Reading Challenge allows anyone anywhere in the world with an internet connection to sign up for a free account, read a new Luther text every week, and join in the discussion. Well over two thousand people from all continents have already signed up. The readings started, not surprisingly, with the Ninety-Five Theses, but the texts from now until October 2017 will include everything from Luther’s personal letters to his sermons, his diatribes and hymns, his devotions and disputations. Our focus is on Luther’s core teaching: the Father’s sending of the Son to live and die and rise again so as to bring us to faith and new life by the power of the Holy Spirit. That is something none of us can ever hear enough, and its mysteries are never exhausted.
Needless to say, the more people who join in this conversation, the better! Our hope is to prepare for a theologically rich commemoration of the Reformation in 2017, anchored in a deep and thoughtful grasp of Luther’s theology, beyond the stereotypes and summaries. Luther was an immensely complex person and thinker. His writings will amply reward those who take the time to study them.
And that’s especially important for aspiring young reformers. Luther had his breakthrough not only by thinking new thoughts but by returning to the sources of Christian thought: the Scripture above all, but the church fathers too and even medieval theologians. When Luther finally “got it” from reading Romans, he immediately checked his insight against St. Augustine—and was very relieved to find that Augustine confirmed his “new” insight! Our minds and hearts are expanded to the possibilities for today by seeking out the possibilities that exist in other times as well as in other places.
To awaken your appetite, consider this passage from a letter Luther wrote to his fellow Augustinian friar, George Spenlein:
“Learn Christ and Him crucified. Praise and laud His name, and despairing of self, say to Him, ‘You, Lord Jesus, are my righteousness, but I am Your sin. You have taken what is mine, and given me what is Yours. You have assumed that which You were not, and given me what I had not.’ Beware, my brother, at aiming at a purity which rebels against being classed with sinners. For Christ only dwells among sinners.”
And this was from 1516, a year before the indulgence controversy broke out! Luther is full of many such surprises. Join the community and conversation, and enjoy the surprises that await you.
www.lutherreadingchallenge.org
Sarah Hinlicky Wilson is Assistant Research Professor at the Institute for Ecumenical Research in Strasbourg, France.