Canon

Reference to the Bible as Holy Scripture is constitutive for Christianity in both praxis and theory and it plays a particularly important role in shaping identity within Protestantism. This is evident in its prominent status as canon. Since the Reformation, Protestant churches have regarded the Bible as the “rule and norm” (Formula of Concord, Art. I) of faith, towards which ecclesial life and theological teaching must be oriented. However, the manner in which this orientation towards the Bible is to be understood in the life of the churches and in the context of theological reflection remains controversial – both within Protestantism and among other denominations. In this respect, in contemporary Protestant dogmatics, Scripture is primarily viewed in terms of crisis. The debate surrounding the so-called “crisis of the Scripture principle” is a fundamental aspect of contemporary theological reflection on Scripture. To whom does Scripture apply, how, and in what respects? How do texts that must be interpreted historically relate to contemporary challenges? How should we deal with the plurality of Scripture and its interpretation?

• Ecclesiology
• Prolegomena

The Christian faith lives by means of the passing on of its content. For centuries, the testimony of the revelation of God in Jesus Christ has been handed down both orally and in writing. Tradition is therefore a process of transmission (lat. tradere). In this process, Christians grapple with how to understand the passed-on content (lat. tradita, traditum). From this grappling emerged doctrines and creeds, rituals, and attitudes that likewise can be described as tradition. Even though the emergence of faith is not subject to human control, the transmission of the content of faith is a necessary medium through which faith can emerge. The question of tradition is therefore a foundational topic for theology. Yet it is one that has often only been dealt with marginally within Protestant dogmatics, primarily in the context of interdenominational controversies surrounding the question of the sources of theology and salvation. Protestant theology always determines the exact meaning of tradition in relation to the bible.

• Ecclesiology