Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Vainio, Olli‐Pekka

Titel

On Faith, Merit, and Eternal Life

Ist Teil von

• Dialog : a journal of theology, 2017-03, Vol.56 (1), p.84-90

Ort / Verlag

Gettysburg: Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Erscheinungsjahr

2017

Quelle

Wiley Online Library

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Can eternal life be merited? The traditional Lutheran answer to this question has been negative. However, the question is not as simple as it first seems. For example, recently, Mats Wahlberg has argued that Lutherans should admit that eternal life can be merited, especially if they support the “Finnish Luther interpretation.” Although I find much to commend in Wahlberg's reading, there are at least two problems in his proposal. First, the language of merit is tied to a particular philosophical framework that is not shared ecumenically; and second, all Lutherans do not share all the details of the Finnish reading of Luther. However, both Wahlberg's proposal and the Finnish interpretation of Luther have genuine ecumenical potential if they are developed so that they can address the concerns related to the philosophy of action and Christian life.