I am the God who saves them all!
So do not fear to heed my call;
I am at work in what you do:
My wounded hand serves them through you.
This is the final stanza of the hymn “‘I will be Present,’ Says the Lord” by Kurt Reinhardt, which begins this Festschrift dedicated to Hans-Jörg Voigt, bishop of the Selbstandige Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche (SELK) and erstwhile chairman of the International Lutheran Council (ILC), on the occasion of his 60th birthday. Having met this real Konkordienlutheraner myself and having heard him teach when I was an exchange student in Oberursel, Germany, I can say with confidence that this is well-deserved. The “wounded hand” of the Lord has indeed served the church through him.
This volume is divided into six sections: the Word of God, the Ministry of the Church, the History of the Church, Church Teaching, Church Practice, and the Relationship between Church and Society. It contains 32 articles, most of them in German but some in English. It also includes two by Bishop Voigt himself, along with a short biography of him.
This volume lacks no variety. At nearly 500 pages, it contains valuable technical studies, meditations, analyses of and recommendations for pastoral practice, and more. Since the reader of this review will not want to wade through a full analysis of every article, I have selected several essays to summarize. For those interested, a very brief one-or-two-sentence summary of every article is included in the introduction to the book.
In the first article of the volume, Dieter H. Reinstorf meditates on the Parable of the Sower and illustrates how it helped him, and may help others, overcome the malaise and worry that accompanied the church shutdowns during the pandemic. He rightly notes that we are not given to despair, but to find comfort in God’s promise that his word shall not return empty. The harvest will be great, even if the life of the church has been greatly disrupted.
Jorg Christian Salzmann analyzes the terms “shepherd” and “teacher” in Ephesians 4:11, arguing that the two form a hendiadys (i.e., they are not two different people but the same). He offers several explanations of these and other New Testament offices based on context, historical dating, and cross-examination of the New Testament books. What is especially helpful is his use of Ephesians 4:11 to reflect on ministry practices today, even if we cannot mimic the ancient offices and duties exactly.
In a similar vein, Thomas M. Winger takes in a “bird’s eye view” of 1 Timothy and how it is likely that Timothy was not only a pastor but more like a modern-day bishop—Paul’s “apostolic ambassador” with authority over other pastors.
Horst Gorski, inspired by Bishop Voigt, whom he much admires, examines the connection between unity and peace both theologically and practically in the world. Through historical examination, he concludes that in every time and place, the church’s need for theological and political leaders is never gone. Church and society are “co-evolutionary” [koevolutionär]: the church evolves to face challenges, but its evolution is not strictly dependent on social changes—they are concurrent. Gorski names the modern inclusion of laity in synodical functions (parallelling democratic society) as one such instance of co-evolution. This will ring true to LCMS Lutherans, as democratic polity is part of our history as well. The reader will benefit from perusing his descriptions of the various church governments and their connections, his insights into our modern technical age and its challenges, and his upholding of the uniqueness of the pastoral office.
Matthew C. Harrison writes on Hermann Sasse and his views on the ordination of women in the Lutheran Church—a topic of extreme interest in worldwide Lutheranism, and one that especially affects the SELK, and has affected bodies like the NRK (Japan Lutheran Church), who broke unity with the LCMS on precisely this issue. He outlines Sasse’s argument against the Australian Lutherans, against Helmut Thielicke, and against anything or anyone that would relativize dogma.
Special attention must be paid to Jobst Schöne—that great churchman and friend of the SELK and LCMS—who before his death provided an article that is admitted up front to be “fragmentary,” as he was ill at the time of writing. While he could not give it his full attention, this article nevertheless does a magnificent job of tracing and critiquing the development of the concept of “bishop” from the Reformation up to the founding of the SELK.
Robert Kolb examines how Luther’s formulation of the doctrine of justification impacted seven of his and Melanchthon’s students. Among the concepts used to flesh out justification are: restoration to righteousness, vicarious satisfaction, victory, and faith as trust. Many pastors, students, and scholars will benefit from his detailed treatment of the history and content of the immediate post-Reformation preaching of justification.
Burkhard Neumann provides a look into ecumenical Roman Catholic concerns. He laments the lack of a theology of the word among the churches, and the one-sided emphasis on the sacraments, especially within the Roman Catholic Church. Neumann then seeks to reflect on a theology of the word, with an aim toward “ecumenical openness” (ökumenischer Offenheit). For those who wish to better understand the issues within modern ecumenical dialogue, this article is most eye-opening and helpful.
Finally, Jürgen Kampmann presents an extensive article on online communion. Hygienic requirements in Germany made the reception of the Sacrament difficult, if not impossible, during the pandemic. Out of this difficulty came the practice of “communing” over the web. This digitalization of the Supper is still an issue for SELK (and is for churches like the LCMS as well, as the resolutions at our recent national convention show). Using Christ’s institution of the Supper, the Bible, and the confessions of Christendom, he contends that arguments for digital communion are “superficial” (380) and cannot be supported by the Lutheran Church.
The reason for summarizing these various articles is not only to pique interest, but to show the variety, not only of topics, but also of theologians and perspectives. Representation ranges from the LCMS and SELK to the VELKD, EKD, and Rome. Thus, the volume gives insight into both inter-Lutheran dialogue and inter-denominational dialogue.
It therefore comes as no surprise that the book does not uphold a single doctrinal standard. More “conservative” readers will likely balk at Denecke’s praise of the LWF and some of the other authors’ higher-critical viewpoints, just as more “liberal” readers will likely reject President Harrison’s (and Sasse’s) argument against women’s ordination. Nevertheless, the authors in this volume present thoughtful insights into several topics and are committed to making a good confession in the face of error, even if not every reader will agree with their methods or conclusions.
What does unite the authors is thankfulness for the care, dedication, compassion, and doctrinal stalwartness of Bishop Voigt. In this way, he reminds me of Hermann Sasse, who refused to compromise on the doctrine of the Lutheran Confessions, but who also had friends everywhere and earned widespread respect for his honesty and dedication to the ecumenical task. I believe that Bishop Voigt also recognizes this attitude as the way forward, not only in world Lutheranism, but in the broader Christian church—the hope “that they may all be one” (John 17:21) in unity of confession.
All in all, the reader will find the riches of this book engaging and will appreciate the smorgasbord of topics and perspectives—and perhaps you will come to see the great influence of Bishop Voigt and appreciate what he has done, even if you have never met him.
Berett J. Steffen
Associate Pastor, St. Johns Lutheran Church
Decatur, IN