Luther writes in his Large Catechism: "No greater jewel, therefore, can adorn our body and soul than baptism, for through it we become completely holy and blessed, which no other kind of life and no work on earth can acquire." Of all Christian rituals, baptism, in its historical, theological and spiritual importance, warrants constant re-examination and careful dusting in an effort to polish and present the jewel passed on to us. In No Greater Jewel Luther's teaching of baptism is unfolded in light of specific issues arising around Lutheran practices and understanding of baptism today. The wisdom of Luther's words offers helpful perspectives for spiritual living and impetus for living with hope and ethical integrity in this world - inspired by the kind of love Jesus preached and demonstrated in his life.

In autumn 1525, Luther wrote The Bondage of the Will as a response to humanist and theologian Erasmus of Rotterdam's On Free Will. Luther's treatise is important on four accounts: First, Luther wanted to show his own humanist education. Second, against Erasmus, who had maintained that the question of free will could not be decided just on the basis of the Bible, Luther stressed the clarity imbedded in Scripture. Third, Luther stressed that his denial of the free will pertained to the issue of salvation, while in other areas of life not relevant for this fundamental existential matter, free will could be acknowledged. Finally, he introduces the distinction of the revealed and the hidden God to make clear that a Christian must focus on God as shown in Jesus Christ rather than speculating about God's potency in general. Luther's argument on the matter of the bound and free will poses a challenge and an invitation for constructive contemporary theology. This volume is excerpted from The Annotated Luther series, Volume 2. Each volume in the series contains annotations, illustrations, and notes to help shed light on Luther's context and to interpret his writings for today.

With great detail, Kirsi I. Stjerna introduces and annotates Luther's Large Catechism, which the reformer offered as a radical reorientation in the matters of theology and spirituality. After diagnosing what appeared to him as his church's failures to provide proper spiritual care, Luther set out to offer a new compass for religious life. The sweeping reforms he proposed took root primarily through preaching and education as people embraced the new vision and transmitted it to their children. He believed all Christian people-laity and clergy-needed a guide to comprehend the basic biblical, creedal, and sacramental teachings. The order with which Luther proceeds in the Large Catechism is deliberate, with a distinct theological rationale; the Commandments express God's expectations; the Creed proclaims God's promise; the Lord's Prayer translates law and gospel into a personal discourse with God; and the sacraments offer tangible expressions of God's grace and signs to lean on in faith. This volume is excerpted from The Annotated Luther series, Volume 2.

Encounters with Luther offers in one volume original primary research from an international and ecumenical pool of scholars. It examines Luther and Lutheran theological traditions along with their historical foundations and with a focus on relevant contemporary issues and ecumenical collegiality. Topics range from sacraments and marriage to violence and gender and sexuality to spiritual care, politics, and suffering. Chapters are based on the annual Luther Colloquy proceedings at Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg. The articles represent a diverse range of authors and methodologies that reward readers with relevant and genuinely contemporary and practical applications of Luther's thought. Contributors: B. A. Gerrish, Mary Jane Haemig, Douglass John Hall, Stanley Hauerwas, Kurt K. Hendel, Hans J. Hillerbrand, Eero Huovinen, Denis R. Janz, Peter D. S. Krey, Volker Leppin, Carter Lindberg, Anna Madsen, Mickey L. Mattox, Surekha Nelavala, Brooks Schramm, Kirsi I. Stjerna, Deanna A. Thompson, Vitor Westhelle, and John Witte Jr.

The place and significance of Martin Luther in the long history of Christian anti-Jewish polemic has been and continues to be a contested issue. The literature on the subject is substantial, and diverse. While efforts to exonerate Luther as merely a man of his times who merely perpetuated what he had received from his cultural and theological tradition have rightly been jettisoned, there still persists even among the educated public the perception that the truly problematic aspects of Luthers anti-Jewish attitudes are confined to the final stages of his career. It is true that Luthers anti-Jewish rhetoric intensified toward the end of his life, but reading Luther with a careful eye toward the Jewish question, it becomes clear that Luthers theological presuppositions toward Judaism and the Jewish people are a central, core component of his thought throughout his career, not just at the end. It follows then that it is impossible to understand the heart and building blocks of Luthers theology (justification, faith, liberation, salvation, grace) without acknowledging the crucial role of the Jews in his fundamental thinking.

Published in Finland in 1983, Two Kinds of Love is the second of Tuomo Mannermaa's provocative books offering a distinctly different interpretation of Martin Luther's theology. The other, Christ Present in Faith, was published by Fortress Press in 2005. In Two Kinds of Love, Mannermaa unfolds Luther's understanding of love as the key to the reformer's theology of grace. Human love orients toward that "which is lovable to it"-- toward that which is already "good and beautiful"-- and, as such, comes into being only through "the prestige and glory of the loved one." In contrast, God's love, which "does not find but creates the lovable in its object," is a pure gift of grace, which makes possible our love for God and for one another. Mannermaa spearheaded the Finnish Luther Research project for more than twenty years, and more than any other is responsible for the unique perspective on Luther contributed to Luther scholarship by the Finnish School. Two Kinds of Love concludes with an afterword, reviewing Finnish Luther Research since 1977.

Mannermaa's revisionist work on justification in Luther's theology--a notable contribution from one of the most influential Finnish scholars of Luther studies-- is now available in English. His book opens up new interpretive questions for historical theology with striking implications for ecumenism, ethics, and spirituality. He writes, "the idea of the divine life in Christ which is present in faith lies at the very center of the theology of the Reformer." He argues that later Lutheran interpretation of this teaching has portrayed justification as more mechanical and forensic than Luther did, underestimated the extent to which God's righteousness is also ours, and obscured the radical personal transformation that Luther attributed to justification.

Volume 2 of The Annotated Luther series contains a number of the writings categorized under the theme word and faith. Luther was particularly focused on what the word "does" in order to create and sustain faith. Writings in the volume range from the large core documents Bondage of the Will, Against the Heavenly Prophets, The Smalcald Articles, and Large Catechism to Luther's own Confession of Faith and treatments of Moses, the Gospels, and Two Kinds of Righteousness. ln the treatises in this volume, we hear Luther's understanding of Scripture and theology as he continues his growth as teaching theologian, pastor, biblical exegete, and apologist for the faith. Each volume in The Annotated Luther series contains new introductions, as well as annotations, illustrations, and notes, to help shed light on Luther's context and interpret his writings for today. The translations of Luther's writings include updates of Luther's Works, American Edition or entirely new translations of Luther's German or Latin writings.

This is an important study of spirituality in a world of confused and conflicting definitions of “ the spiritual.” Christian spirituality flows from an understanding of who God is and how God acts in creation. It is a personal and communal recognition of God in one's life and a life awareness and celebration of that presence of God. Anyone who wonders how the Christian faith shapes life will find a great value in this book.

Nissinen's award-winning book surveys attitudes in the ancient world toward homoeroticism, that is, erotic same-sex relations. Focusing on the Bible and its cultural environment-Mesopotamia, Greece, Rome, Israel-Nissinen concisely and readably introduces the relevant sources and their historical contexts in a readable way. Homoeroticism is examined as a part of gender identity, i.e., the interplay of sexual orientation, gender identification, gender roles, and sexual practice. In the patriarchal cultures of the biblical world, Nissinen shows, homoerotic practices were regarded as a role construction between the active and passive partners rather than as expressions of an orientation moderns call "homosexuality." Nissinen shows how this applies to the limited acceptance of homoerotic relationships in Greek and Roman culture, as well as to Israel's and the early church's condemnation of any same-sex erotic activity. For readers interested in the ancient world or contemporary debates, Nissinen's fascinating study shows why the ancient texts - both biblical and nonbiblical - are not appropriate for use as sources of direct analogy or argument in today's discussion.