Lutheran Misinterpretations of Scripture and Tradition
The Lutheran tradition, as articulated in the Augsburg Confession, critiques certain interpretations of tradition, particularly those that obscure God's commandments or are presented as means to merit grace and satisfy for sins [6, 9, 13]. These traditions, according to the Lutherans, can lead to despair because it is impossible to keep them all, and they overshadow the righteousness of faith and grace [6]. They argue that human traditions instituted to propitiate God or merit grace are contrary to the Gospel [13]. Furthermore, placing traditions above God's commandments can lead to a misunderstanding of Christian life, where observance of certain rituals, fasts, and vestments are seen as the essence of spirituality, while actual divine commands are neglected [10].
Regarding the sacraments, the Lutheran view differs from the Reformed tradition, and in some aspects, approximates the Roman Catholic position [1]. Lutherans believe that the efficacy of the sacraments stems from their inherent virtue or power, independent of the Spirit's influence or the recipient's faith [1]. While faith is necessary for saving or sanctifying effects, it is not the source of the sacrament's power [1]. This perspective is particularly evident in their understanding of the Eucharist. Luther asserted that the real body and blood of Christ are communicated "with, in, and under" the bread and wine [7]. This view, sometimes called "consubstantiation" by others, suggests that the substance of Christ's body and blood accompanies the substance of the bread and wine, distinguishing it from transubstantiation, which posits a change in the substance of the elements themselves [12]. Charles Hodge notes that Luther, while rejecting the Roman Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, adopted complexities regarding the ubiquity of Christ's body due to his literal interpretation of "This is my body" [11]. Hodge also argues that any corporal eating of Christ's flesh and blood, as understood by Luther, is inconceivable, citing Jesus' words, "It is the Spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing" (John 6:63) [4].
The Reformed tradition, in contrast, generally holds that tradition cannot be a reliable source of religious truth, especially when it contradicts or undermines the authority of Scripture [2, 3]. They argue that making tradition a co-equal standard of doctrine subverts the authority of the Scriptures, as the interpretation of tradition then dictates the understanding of Scripture [8]. Early Christian writers like Irenaeus also criticized heretics for dismissing the Scriptures as incorrect or ambiguous, claiming that truth could only be found through tradition passed down orally [5].
Sources
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 3, section 57: doctrine of Lutherans in regard to the efficacy of the sacraments is one in which they differ from the Reformed, and as Guerike, himself a strenuous Lutheran, correctly says, approximate to the Romanists. They hold that the efficacy of the sacraments is due to their own inherent virtue or power; a power independent, on the one hand, of the attendant influences of the Spirit ( extrinsecus accidens ), and, on the other hand, of the faith of the recipient. Faith, indeed, is necessary to any saving or sanctifying effect, but that is only a su”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 1, section 37: to the things of the Spirit, which prevents their understanding what they hear, and from the disposition to pervert and misrepresent the truth to suit their own prejudices and purposes, it must be acknowledged that tradition cannot be a reliable source of knowledge of religious truth. This is universally acknowledged and acted upon, except by Romanists. No one pretends to determine what Luther and Calvin, Latimer and Cranmer, taught, except from contemporaneous written records. Much less will any sane man pretend to know what Moses and th”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 1, section 37: authority of Scripture, Protestants believe to be anti-scriptural; and therefore they need no other evidence to prove that tradition is not to be trusted either in matters of faith or practice. The Scriptures not received on the Authority of Tradition. 8. Romanists argue that Protestants concede the authority of tradition, because it is on that authority they receive the New Testament as the word of God. This is not correct. We do not believe the New Testament to be divine on the ground of the testimony of the Church. We receive the books”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 3, section 71: faith of both Churches. But under the Old Testament there could be no other eating of the flesh of Christ, than believing on Him as the passover, or, lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world. (4.) Any corporal eating of the flesh of Christ’s body and drinking of his blood, as He sat at table with his disciples, would seem to be inconceivable. (5.) Our Lord Himself, in opposition to the sense put upon his words by the people of Capernaum, said: “It 669 is the Spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing; the words that I s”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “ANF Vol 1: Clement, Polycarp, Ignatius, Barnabas, Papias, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus — CHAP. II.--THE HERETICS FOLLOW NEITHER SCRIPTURE NOR TRADITION. (part 1): 1. When, however, they are confuted from the Scriptures, they turn round and accuse these same Scriptures, as if they were not correct, nor of authority, and [assert] that they are ambiguous, and that the truth cannot be extracted from them by those who are ignorant of tradition. For [they allege] that the truth was not delivered by means of written documents, but viva voce: wherefore also Paul declared, "But we speak wisdom among those t”
- Augsburg Confession (Lutheran) “Augsburg Confession (Lutheran, 1530), 12 Thirdly, traditions brought great danger to consciences; for: 12 Thirdly, traditions brought great danger to consciences; for it was impossible to keep all traditions, and yet men judged these observances to be necessary acts of worship. Gerson writes that many fell 13 into despair, and that some even took their own lives, because they felt that they were not able to satisfy the traditions, and they had all the while not heard any consolation of the righteousness of faith and 14 grace. We see that the summists and theologians gather the traditions, and ”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 3, section 69: we actually and essentially or really (wirklich und wesentlich) receive the present person of Jesus Christ or the Logos, and hence this bread and this wine are the body and blood of Christ, wherein He now communicates the bread which is from heaven to believers, as formerly when He came in literal flesh and blood He gave Himself to them. But Luther erred when he asserted that with, in, and under the bread and wine, the real body which suffered for us, and the blood of Jesus Christ which was shed for us, are communicated, because according”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 1, section 37: hundreds of folios in which these traditions are recorded? Surely a guide to the interpretation of the latter must be far more needed than one for the Scriptures. Tradition destroys the Authority of the Scriptures. 6. Making tradition a part of the rule of faith subverts the authority of the Scriptures. This follows as a natural and unavoidable consequence. If there be two standards of doctrine of equal authority, the one the explanatory, and infallible interpreter of the other, it is of necessity the interpretation which determines the f”
- Augsburg Confession (Lutheran) “Augsburg Confession (Lutheran, 1530), 34 But concerning this question it is taught on our part (as has: 34 But concerning this question it is taught on our part (as has been shown above) that bishops have no power to decree anything against the Gospel. The Canonical Laws teach the same thing (Dist. IX). 35 Now, it is against Scripture to establish or require the observance of any traditions, to the end that by such observance we may make satisfaction for sins, or merit grace and righteousness. 36 For the glory of Christ’s merit suffers injury when, by such observances, 37 we undertake to merit”
- Augsburg Confession (Lutheran) “Augsburg Confession (Lutheran, 1530), 8 Secondly, these traditions have obscured the commandments of: 8 Secondly, these traditions have obscured the commandments of God, because traditions were placed far above the commandments of God. Christianity was thought to consist wholly in the observance of certain holy-days, rites, fasts, and vestures. These 9 observances had won for themselves the exalted title of being the spiritual life and the perfect life. Meanwhile the commandments of God, according to 10 each one’s calling, were without honor namely, that the father brought up his offspring, th”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 2, section 83: reception of Christ as He is offered in the gospel. In like manner 415 he hated the Romish doctrine of transubstantiation, and was bitterly opposed to all the subtleties of scholasticism. Yet as he understood our Lord’s words, “This is my body,” literally, he adopted all the subtleties, inconsistencies, and, we may say, impossibilities, involved in the doctrine of the ubiquity of Christ’s body. Body includes the idea of form as well as of substance. A man’s body is not the water, ammonia, and lime of which it is composed. It is certainly ”
- CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 99: obviously has reference to that view of the presence of Christ in the Lord’s Supper historically associated with the Lutheran tradition—a view which has often been called (in contradistinction to transubstantiation) “consubstantiation.” Whereas “transubstantiation” means a change of the substance of the bread and wine into the substance of Christ’s body and blood, “consubstantiation” means that the substance of the bread and wine is accompanied by the substance of Christ’s body and blood. Perhaps three references from Lutheran trad”
- Augsburg Confession (Lutheran) “Augsburg Confession (Lutheran, 1530), 3 They are admonished also that human traditions instituted to: 3 They are admonished also that human traditions instituted to propitiate God, to merit grace, and to make satisfaction for sins, are opposed to the Gospel and the doctrine of faith. Wherefore vows and traditions concerning meats and 4 days, etc., instituted to merit grace and to make satisfaction for sins, are useless and contrary to the Gospel.”