Lex Charitatis: A Juristic Disquisition on Law in the Theology of Martin Luther
This classic work by one of Europe's most respected twentieth-century legal minds tackles law through the eyes of Martin Luther. Johannes Heckel first reveals the basic features of Luther's doctrine of law in its totality, drawing from an overwhelming amount of material from all genres of Luther's writing. Heckel then considers how Luther viewed law as the framework for the existence of a Christian in this world. He develops a picture of Luther's position on law by grounding it in Luther's...
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This classic work by one of Europe's most respected twentieth-century legal minds tackles law through the eyes of Martin Luther. Johannes Heckel first reveals the basic features of Luther's doctrine of law in its totality, drawing from an overwhelming amount of material from all genres of Luther's writing. Heckel then considers how Luther viewed law as the framework for the existence of a Christian in this world. He develops a picture of Luther's position on law by grounding it in Luther's theology, arguing that his concept of natural law has to be understood in terms of the divine and the secular. Finally, Heckel shows the practicality of Luther's position by focusing on the places in which a Christian interacts with legality in this world — church, marriage and family, and politics. / “When Johannes Heckel's Lex Charitatis appeared more than half a century ago it brought new clarity to the much disputed issue of Luther's understanding of the law and of God's governance of his created order. . . . Having Heckel's work in English will assist scholars and students alike in putting Luther's insights to use in the context of twenty-first-century problems.” / — Robert Kolb, Concordia Seminary
Contents Preface by Martin Heckel....................xiFrom Martin Heckel's Preface of the Second German Edition of Lex charitatis, 1973....................xivIntroduction....................xviAbbreviations....................xxiiiWHICH CONCEPT 'LAW' DID MARTIN LUTHER AFFIRM?....................11. The Problem....................52. The Theological Origin of Luther's Doctrine of Law and the Development of Luther's Doctrine of Law....................163. The Origin of Luther's Doctrine of the Two Kingdoms....................254. The Kingdom of the World....................275. The Kingdom of Christ....................306. The Kingdom of God at the Right and at the Left of God....................337. The Connection of the Doctrine of the Kingdoms with the Doctrine of Law....................398. The Divine Law in the Status of the Incorrupt Nature....................439. Human Law in the Status of the Corrupt Nature during the Age of Unwritten Law....................5410. Written Law....................8111. The Law of Christ....................8412. The Christian as a Member of the Church in the World....................9713. The Christian in the Estate of Marriage....................10214. The Christian in the Politia....................105WHAT HAPPENED TO LUTHER'S DOCTRINE OF LAW?....................129I. Luther's Doctrine of the Right of Resistance to the Emperor....................133II. The Cura Religionis of the Evangelical Prince....................140III. In the Maze of Luther's Doctrine of the Two Kingdoms....................145IV. Church and Ecclesiastical Law in the Frame of the Doctrine of the Two Kingdoms....................176V. The Unfolding of the Doctrine of the Two Kingdoms as a Doctrine of Kingdoms and Governances....................204VI. Announcement of Initia Iuris Ecclesiastici Protestantium....................216VII. Announcement of Lex Charitatis and of "Widerstand gegen die Obrigkeit?"....................223Notes....................233Titles of Cited Luther Texts....................506Short Titles and Place of Full Citation....................512Index of Bible Passages....................527Index of Subjects....................531
