Praise when it's due

I've been a bit hard on Luther, but mostly because I agree with the majority of what he says and feel impelled to write only on matters of disagreement.

So I have much admiration and respect for Luther.  One aspect I genuinely appreciate is his trinitarian approach to various doctrines.  An unfortunate feature in many contemporary Christians I've encountered is the neglect of trinitarian thought in both belief and practice.  That is, many of these Christians have an obscure belief regarding a three something and a one something, and their belief does not inform other beliefs regarding salvation and grace and does not inform practices such as worship and prayer.

Luther, on the other hand, has a very trinitarian view on grace (see my earlier post "On Grace").  Regarding the Apostle's Creed, here's what Luther states:

    "You, however, should divide the Creed into the main parts indicated by the fact that there are three persons:  God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; since I believe in God the Father, I believe in God the Son, and I believe in God the Holy Spirit, who are one God.  Thus you can divide each separate article [of the Apostle's Creed] into its parts." (Sermons on the Catechism)

The three parts of the Creed are concerning the Father as creator, the Son as Lord and redeemer, and the Holy Spirit as sanctifier.  Although much more can be said regarding the Trinity in the creeds, I appreciate the fact that Luther is working within a trinitarian framework, one that is not on the sidelines and the outskirts of his noetic-system but at the heart of his beliefs and practices.

One more point for good measure.  Many Protestants have a hard time with RC's statement that the Church is one's mother.  But Luther agrees with RC here given his proper understanding of our life in the church and its relation to us, for "the Christian church is your mother, who gives birth to you and bears you through the Word" (SotC).  Indeed, Luther thinks that the true Church is not under the papacy; however, his view of the church is certainly anti-individualistic when compared to many so-called Christians today who believe they do not need to be a member of a church.*


*(Of course there are elements in Luther's theology that I find objectionably individualistic.  However, Luther's individualism is still not as egotistical and self-serving as some brands of Protestantism today).