Christian Faith

Rating:
Summary: Not the best choice for studying Lutheran Doctrine
Review: This book is frequently used to teach basic Lutheran doctrine but it is a poor choice for such a fundamental task. Doctrine is developed from a systematic analysis of the Scriptures...yet such a systematic approach appears missing from this text. Ambiguity, not clarity, is its hallmark.

It is possible that the book appeals to those who already have a firm foundation in Lutheran doctrine in that the literary style for presenting the material is fresh and not "dull" in that dry "old school" way doctrine has been presented historically. If one already understands the doctrine the book may not disappoint but if one does not know the information the book makes it difficult to capture some of the key doctrinal positions of the Lutheran church. The book does not do a good job of:

1)Clearly sorting and labeling the topic(s) under discussion in a distinct manner (such as using bullet points, outlines, etc.,) to facilitate learning.
2)Clearly defining terms. Some terms are well defined but many terms are poorly defined or not defined at all.
3)Clearly discussing the topic at hand. There is a lot of nice language in the book, lots of literary descriptions that create lovely word images but do little to help clarify the topic under discussion. In many cases, it is difficult, if not just about impossible, to identify the Lutheran church's position on the topic...definitely not a plus for a text designed to teach doctrine!

Ultimately I gave up trying to decipher what the author was trying to say about Lutheran doctrine and I defaulted to an older text on the subject, Christian Dogmatics by John Theodore Mueller. The Mueller text is well organized and clearly communicates the doctrine, the rationale and the related scriptural references.