Christ Present in Faith – and in the Church: The Parallels between Tuomo Mannermaa’s and Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Interpretations of Luther’s Theological Ontology

What is it about?

In recent decades Finnish Luther research has become a significant part of the international Luther research. The school’s central claim and result are that the idea of Christ present in faith is the core of Luther’s theology and understanding of the doctrine of justification. Tuomo Mannermaa’s study Christ Present in Faith: Luther’s View of Justification (1979/2005) has played a significant role in the genesis of the new direction of Finnish Luther research. The premise of the work is that theological content should be expressed from the perspective of being, for justification also has an effective aspect. In the contemporary studies of Luther and Lutheran theology the importance of Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906–1945) is beginning to be recognized as perhaps the most central interpreter and updater of Luther’s theological heritage in the modern period. In Bonhoeffer’s works there is an emphasis on the Lutheran theology of presence, the communal nature and sacramentality of the church, following Christ, and the connection between faith and love. _x000D_ Bonhoeffer’s interest in Luther gives reason to ask whether Bonhoeffer’s interpretation and application of Luther’s theology, which has proven ecumenically fertile, supports the key efforts of Finnish Luther research, and thus ecumenically significant Luther research and its’ contemporary applications. The analysis clarifies the way these interpretations of Luther share significant similarities in their departure points and results.

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