Curating the Evangelical Catholic Tradition
evangelical catholic
“...the churches among us do not dissent from the catholic church in any article of faith.”
-Philip Melanchton
Since the earliest days of the Reformation, the Lutheran tradition has been one founded and nurtured as being evangelical catholic. This term assumes several important theological assertions that remain a part of our tradition, including a continuity with the historic catholic faith of the West. Luther did not set out to found a "new" church, but rather to reform the old, and his reforms were essentially conservative, especially when it came to the forms and practices of Christian liturgy. "At its core, the Lutheran tradition is deeply and fundamentally catholic" (Matthew Block).
When this lens is applied to liturgy, it means that the structures and ceremonial of Lutheran liturgy (the mass, particularly) should maintain historic forms while being open to new contextual realities. "In doctrine and ceremonies nothing has been received on our part against Scripture or the Catholic Church" Confessio Augustana, Article XXIV
Is this the only liturgical tradition within North American Lutheranism or the ELCA in particular? No. There are other faithful expressions of the Lutheran witness that are called to their own charisms, each offering a unique part of our tradition to the wider church. Our purpose is to steward the evangelical catholic conversation: a seriousness about where we have come from and where that points us to for the future. How this rich heritage informs the future of liturgy in the ELCA is an important offering to the wider whole.
Since the time of the Reformation, evangelical catholic Lutherans have placed a high value on the sacraments, the confessions, sacred art, music, and ceremony. In a North American context deeply influenced by individualism and secular values, we maintain that these elements are capable of fostering renewal within the church, starting with its clergy.
Pastors and Deacons
Of particular importance to the Seminar is the liturgical formation of clergy. We have noted with lament that the formation of future clergy has not found grounding in liturgy in our seminaries in recent years, and that institutions have not put the resources, energy, or time into deeply forming future leaders in sacramental and homiletic leadership or piety. At its core, the definition of the church is liturgical (CA 7), and pastors have an interest in seeing to the formation of future colleagues within this ecclesiological definition. How do our programs of formation emphasize liturgy, preaching, and the sacred arts (most especially music)? What expectations are reasonable within this formation? What should the future of liturgical formation within the ELCA look like?
Conversation: Refining What Is Useful, Reclaiming What is catholic
The work of liturgical renewal in the church is not over, but it cannot continue unless we take seriously the tasks of formation. Conversation, critique, historic understanding, theological acumen, and a pastoral heart all should combine to create future liturgical frameworks that support congregations to be effective witnesses to Jesus Christ. This is not a matter of producing more books or resources. It is a matter of training the clergy that we have (and future clergy) to use wisely the resources we already have and asking honest questions about what is useful and what can be done better in the future. This conversation is best curated when its participants are many. Lutherans are evangelical catholics, called to fulfill our particular witness to Jesus Christ in particular times and places while honoring the apostolic faith and the places from which we have come.
