{"id":18805,"date":"2014-05-13T05:55:26","date_gmt":"2014-05-13T09:55:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/?p=18805"},"modified":"2014-05-15T15:55:47","modified_gmt":"2014-05-15T19:55:47","slug":"open-questions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2014\/05\/open-questions\/","title":{"rendered":"Open questions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Rev. Matthew Harrison, president of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, posted a passage from the Brief Statement of the Doctrinal Position of the Missouri Synod (1932) regarding \u201cOpen Questions.\u201d\u00a0 It makes the wise point that Scripture does not clearly answer all theological questions, and so the Church may not offer definitive answers to them.\u00a0 See the passage after the jump.<\/p>\n

First, can anyone explain the confessional status of the Brief Statement<\/em>?\u00a0 Is acceptance of this document obligatory for Missouri Synod Lutherans?\u00a0 Just pastors?\u00a0 Laymen?\u00a0 (The only requirements for formal subscription I\u2019ve come across are to the Scriptures and to the confessions in the Book of Concord<\/em>.)\u00a0 This statement affirms things like the inerrancy of Scripture and the Six Days of Creation, but it leaves out important Lutheran doctrines such as the Theology of the Cross and Vocation.<\/p>\n

\n

Second, what ARE some of these open questions?\u00a0 I suspect there are different positions on whether the Scriptures are clear or not on some issues.<\/p>\n

from A Brief Statement of the Doctrinal Position of the Missouri Synod (1932):<\/a><\/p>\n

Those questions in the domain of Christian doctrine may be termed open questions which Scripture answers either not at all or not clearly. Since neither an individual nor the Church as a whole is permitted to develop or augment the Christian doctrine, but are rather ordered and commanded by God to continue in the doctrine of the apostles, 2 Thess. 2:15; Acts 2:42, open questions must remain open questions. \u2014 Not to be included in the number of open questions are the following: the doctrine of the Church and the Ministry, of Sunday, of Chiliasm, and of Antichrist, these doctrines being clearly defined in Scripture.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

via Are there questions which Scripture doesn\u2019t answer clearly, or not at all? LCMS Brief Statement 1932 | Mercy Journeys with Pastor Harrison<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rev. Matthew Harrison, president of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, posted a passage from the Brief Statement of the Doctrinal Position of the Missouri Synod (1932) regarding \u201cOpen Questions.\u201d\u00a0 It makes the wise point that Scripture does not clearly answer all theological questions, and so the Church may not offer definitive answers to them.\u00a0 See […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1281,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,47],"tags":[3142,1340],"class_list":["post-18805","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-church","category-theology","tag-christian-doctrine","tag-lutheran-church-missouri-synod"],"yoast_head":"\nOpen questions<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Rev. 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