Date of Award

1-1970

Degree Type

Master's Essay - Restricted

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Theology

Abstract

Before the indulgence controversy of 1517, Martin Luther as theologian had arrived at the realization and the assertion that the Word is the touchstone of all doctrine and is constitutive of the Church. Within the Roman Church he knew, the Word had been disastrously distorted by the confusion of Law and Gospel. The upshot of this was the burial of the Gospel. If one is to consider Luther's conception of ecclesiastical authority from the vantage of his attitude toward the function of Church councils it is indeed necessary to consider Luther's notion of Law- Gospel, for herein lies the heart of the issue. The issue of authority vis a vis a council is but one aspect of Luther's disagreement with Rome which was scriptural at bottom. The intensification of issues and the pressure of events thus threw into relief deep- seated theological differences which had not really surfaced.

Comments

An Essay Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies through the Department of Theology in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

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