• Consciousness and Reality: Transcendental-Philosophical Reflections on the Internal Resources and External Threats of Subjectivity in the Era of Late Modernity
  Prof. Dr. Raivis Bičevskis / University of Latvia / Latvian Academy of Sciences

 Historically formed ways of life are saturated with a range of social behaviors, political governance structures, legal relations, and economic models, as well as with both ancient and more recent cultural symbolic meanings, scientific discoveries, and modes of human self-understanding. In different regions of the world, such enriched forms of life vary. Comparing them reveals significant—or sometimes more subtle and differentiated—differences. At least since the time of the Reformation, a trajectory in European ways of life has intensified, assigning a central role to the individual as the subject of legal, economic, social, and cultural processes. This trajectory, intersecting with the philosophy of rationalism in the modern era and the culture of the Enlightenment, reached one of its most vivid theoretical expressions in the transcendental philosophy of Immanuel Kant at the end of the 18th century. One of Kant’s readers, Schelling, referred to its ideas as the “embers of thought.”

The works of Kant and his followers not only sought clarity regarding the limits of the human mind (cognition) but also aimed to reinforce the individual as a subject of action (and thus of freedom) and as a subject of imagination (and thus of art). This line of European philosophy led to 19th-century Romanticism and 20th-century philosophy, in which the centrality of the subject as a principle of philosophy was not only questioned—leading into social utopias and political religions—but also transformed into an atopic subjectivism, ultimately bringing the idea of the subject to the point of absurdity.

The 21st century has begun with ideas rooted in scientific evolutionism (in which the role of the individual’s life and mind is secondary), with new economic and military conflicts (in which the choices and freedom of the individual play a minor role), and with visions of the future intensified by the development of new technologies (in which the individual’s imagination holds little weight compared to AI). Does the idea of the subject still matter today? Is the “subjective” now merely a “resource”? And—if so—for whom?

•  The Catholicity of Lutheranism. A pre-confessional approach, Pater Dr. Augustinus Sander OSB/ Catholic Luther researcher and offical of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity (DPCU), Vatican 

As we know, Luther did not want a new church. He wanted to reform the church. Yes - he was a reform Catholic.” This is the assessment of the Bishop emeritus of Erfurt, Dr Joachim Wanke, about the Wittenberg reformer. In this context, “Reform Catholic” means: Catholicism and reform do not form an antithesis, but rather a thoroughly exciting, sometimes also tense synthesis. From the approach of a pre-confessional, initially consciously inner-Catholic localisation of the Wittenberg reform movement, the lecture presents selected, sometimes surprising examples of the Augustinian-Bernardian roots of Luther’s theology. Of particular interest is therefore not only the question: “What did Luther say?”; rather, it is about a deeper understanding of the history of origins: “Where did Luther get what he said?”  The related question “What became of what Luther said?” then looks at the various reception histories of the Wittenberg reform movement. Whether the positions of Luther and the Wittenberg reform movement were in any case system-breaking, i.e. whether they inevitably led to a break with the Catholic Church, would have to be examined further in a joint historical-theological review. The perspective not of a confessional, but of a “confessorial catholicity” could be helpful in order to link the possibly necessary “status confessionis” with the concept of inner-Catholic continuity.

• The Presence of Jesus Christ in the Ministry: Continuity and Certainty  from Luther’s Pulpit, Rev. Dr. Jonathan Mumme/ Associate Professor of Theology at Hillsdale College (Michigan, USA)

The Reformation in Germany took place in a kind of episcopal vortex. Perhaps for this reason, ecclesiology and the doctrine of the ministry have been bones of contention for the historical and ecclesial heirs of the Lutheran Reformation. In this turbulent moment of history, theologians, clergy, and court officials of Electoral Saxony came to discharge the duties of negligent and sometimes absentee bishops. To these episcopal responsibilities belonged not only the ordaining of ministers, but also a kind of two-sided ministerial education: the clergy were to know their office and themselves in view of it, and the laity were to know how to view and what to expect from their ministers. Martin Luther engaged in this task from his Wittenberg pulpit. For the last decade of his life, as candidates were being ordained in Wittenberg to the ministry, Luther was readily communicating about the ministry and ministers in his sermons. That Jesus Christ is present in the ministry and operating through the ministers stands as the central conviction of his homiletically communicated ministeriology. This lecture will examine this conviction as well as aspects of continuity that underlie it and elements of certainty that result from it, all of which speak to the proper oversight and well-being of Lutheran churches today.

• The threefold ministry from the perspective the office of deacon. Some ecclesiological thoughts, Dr. Sven-Erik Brodd/  Professor emeritus at Uppsala university, Sweden

My task is to say something about the threefold ministry from the perspective of the office of deacon. I will do that using the concept of model, based on the results of ecumenical dialogues and present in many churches influenced by dialogues and actual research. The idea of ecclesiological models is widely known as it is presented by cardinal Avery Dulles. It is also used by me since it is a possible entrance into the conceptual world of the Confessio Augustana.

The model used and designed in ecumenical dialogues, not least in the context of the World Council of Churches, is the Church understood as koinonia, from the perspectives of diakonia, leitourgia, and martyria.

The threefold ministry is a description of an existing relationship between bishop, priest, and deacon. But the threefold ministry is not an office and thus ordination is not to that ministry but to bishop, priest and deacon. The threefold ministry and each of the offices are not just functions but signs and instruments for what is the church in its entirety.

The diaconate has in the churches and in the dialogues been handled as a problem awaiting to be solved. The questions of permanent and transitional diaconate, a quasi-hierarchical order like deaconesses in Lutheranism, the 19^th century idea of deacons as social workers, the separation between sacerdotium and ministerium, are all parts of the present conceptual worlds, grounded in history. But the diaconate could also be understood as “an ecumenical opportunity” as in the Anglican-Lutheran “Hannover Report” (1996).

From this perspective of the church as koinonia, the threefold ministry and the problematic history, I will present a model of the ordained diaconate as a gift and task in ecclesiology. 

•  Not without the Illumination of the Holy Spirit. Reflections on the Formations of Pastors in a Secularized Context, Dr. Torbjörn Johansson /Rector of the Lutheran School of Theology in Gothenburg, Sweden 

The concept of Illuminatio Spiritus Sancti encompasses several key theological beliefs and convictions. These beliefs apply to pneumatology, soteriology, theological anthropology, epistemology, the interpretation of Scripture, and hermeneutics. In early Lutheran theology, illuminatio was associated with hearing the Word of God and reading Holy Scripture. Therefore, it was a crucial concept in the training of pastors. It implied a strong emphasis on prayer when studying Scripture.

However, the Enlightenment and the emergence of secular universities changed this. For many pastoral students, the Enlightenment meant the end of the idea of a specific act of illumination by the Holy Spirit when understanding the Holy Scriptures and Christian mysteries. Given the terms Aufklärung and illuminatio, this is ironic yet logical. Instead, their university training emphasized universal reason common to all people.

In today's secular context, higher education typically operates within an "immanent frame." It is an urgent question for the Church to consider how to participate in and benefit from that education without abandoning the fact that the illumination of the Holy Spirit is a vital part of pastoral formation. This paper revisits the theological anthropology of the Reformation to suggest ways this can be achieved.

‌‌PROGRAMME here>

31 October 2024

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‌PROGRAMME here>‌


Reading of a Sermon by Georg Mancelis, National Theatre Actor Uldis Anže
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‌“Introduction to the Life and Works of Georg Mancelis,” Dr. theol. Uģis Sildegs
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‌“The Significance of Georg Mancelis in the History of the Latvian Language,” Dr. habil. philol. Pēteris Vanags (Latvia/Sweden)
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‌“The Beginnings of Singing in Latvian Lutheran Congregations,” Mg. art. Vilis Kolms
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‌“Reading of Mancelis’ Text from the Phraseological Dictionary Lettus,” Dr. philol. Ernesta Kazakenaite (Lithuania)
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‌“The Story of the 1616 Earthquake in Zemgale and Mancelis’ Publication About It,” Mg. theol. Roberts Otomers
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‌“Georg Mancelis and Zīraks’ Book of Wisdom,” Dr. philol. Ernesta Kazakenaite
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‌“Some of the Most Significant Aspects in Mancelis’ Long-Awaited Collection of Latvian Sermons (1654),” Dr. theol. Guntis Kalme
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‌“A Brief Testimony about Mancelis’ Grave,” Dr. theol. Uģis Sildegs
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‌‌Three Stages of Martin Luther Research in the Latvian Language, Dr. theol. Voldemārs Lauciņš
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‌Dr. Martin Luther in Latvia, 1918–1940, Prof. emer., Dr. theol. Jouko Talonen
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‌Event-Reconstruction-Based Exegesis in Dr. Martin Luther’s Lectures on the Book of Genesis, Mg. theol. Aleksandrs Bite
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‌“We Are to Fear and Love God” – What Did Luther Mean by These Words in the Small Catechism?, Mg. theol. Gints Graudiņš
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‌Dr. Martin Luther’s Christology in the Aspect of the Gifts of Salvation, Dr. theol. Guntis Kalme
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‌Dr. Martin Luther on Vocation, Mg. theol. Juris Uļģis
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‌Dr. Martin Luther on Secular Authority: In the Context of the Doctrine of the Two Kingdoms, Dr. theol. Uģis Sildegs
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‌The Lutheran Heritage Foundation has published the conference materials in a book:
Dr. Martin Luther’s Life and Work Research in Latvia, conference materials
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Panel 1 - The Seven marks of the Church, PhD student Sebastian Grünbaum, Lutheran Mission Diocese, Finland
              Respondent: Dr. Konstantin Subbotin, Dean of the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Ingria and appointed rector at its Theological Institute, Ingria, Russia

Panel 2 - The Office of the Church, Dr.theol, university lecturer Tomas Appelqvist, Sweden
              Respondent: Docent, Dr. Folke T. Olofsson, Sweden

Panel 3 - Equipping for the Office of the Church, Dr.theol, prof.Christoph Barnbrock, SELK, Lutherische Theologische Hochschule Oberursel, Germany
             Respondent: Dr. theol. Alexey Streltsov, Theological Seminary of SELC, Russia

Panel 4 - Being a Church with Experience of Persecution, Dr.theol. Darius Petkunas, Lithuania
             Respondent: Dr.theol., docent Guntis Kalme, Luther Academy, Latvia

Panel 5 - Being Church for the World, The Most Reverend Janis Vanags D.D., Archbishop of Riga, Luther Academy, Latvia
             Respondent: Pastor Jon Ehlers, The Evangelical Lutheran Church of England, United Kingdom

Panel 6 - Being Church of Christ, Dr.theol. Rune Imberg, Lutheran school of Theology Gothenburg, Sweden
Panel 6, part II - Being Church of Christ, Q&A

Panel 7 - Being a church in the Church, Dr.theol Alexey Streltsov,Theological Seminary of SELC, Russia
             Respondent: Dr .theol. Timothy Quill, professor of Pastoral Ministry and Missions, Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, USA

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Latvian Church history conference "The Church of Latvia in a Hundred Years" 

16 November, 2018 at Luther Academy