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CHURCH DOGMATICS 1: THE CHURCH, THEOLOGY, SCIENCE

1. THE CHURCH, THEOLOGY, SCIENCE Dogmatics is a theological discipline. But theology is a function of the Church. The Church confesses God as it talks about God. It does so first by its existence in the action of each individual believer. And it does so secondly by its specific action as a fellowship, in proclamation by preaching and the administration of the sacraments, in worship, in its internal and external mission including works of love amongst the sick, the weak and those in jeopardy. Fortunately the reality of the Church does not coincide with its action. But its action coincides with the fact that alike in its existence in believers and its communal existence as such it speaks about God. Its action is “theology” in both the broader and the narrower sense. Theology is de divinitate ratio sive sermo* (Augustine, De civ. Dei, VIII, 1). Θεολόγος est ὁ τὸν θεὸν ἐκ θεοῦ ἐνώπιον τοῦ θεοῦ εἰς δόξαν αὐτοῦ λέγων* (Coccejus, Summa theol., 1699, 1, 1). But as it confesses God the Church a...
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DOGMATICS AS AN ACT OF FAITH

3. DOGMATICS AS AN ACT OF FAITH Dogmatics is a part of the work of human knowledge. But this part of the work of human knowledge stands under a particularly decisive condition. Like all work of human knowledge, it naturally demands the intellectual faculties of attentiveness and concentration, of understanding and appraisal. Like all serious work of human knowledge, it demands the best will to utilise these faculties and ultimately the giving of the whole man to this utilisation. Over and above this, however, it demands Christian faith, which does not simply come of itself even with the deepest and purest surrender to this task. Dogmatics is a function of the Christian Church. The Church tests itself by essaying it. To the Church is given the promise of the criterion of Christian faith, namely, the revelation of God. The Church can pursue dogmatics. Even in the Church dogmatics need not be the work of a special dogmatic science. But there is no possibility of dogmatics at all outside t...
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DOGMATICS AS AN ENQUIRY

2. DOGMATICS AS AN ENQUIRY Dogmatics is the self-examination of the Christian Church in respect of the content of its distinctive talk about God. The true content which is sought we shall call dogma. This term, and therefore the word “dogmatics,” will be explained in § 7. In this initial approach we may simply say that when we describe the true content of the Church’s talk about God as the object of human work or investigation, we presuppose that it has both the capacity and the need to serve as the object of human enquiry. In other words, we presuppose that the “science of dogma” is both possible and necessary. Neither proposition is self-evident. Each must be sustained. 1. Dogmatics as an enquiry presupposes that the true content of Christian talk about God can be known by man. It makes this assumption as in and with the Church it believes in Jesus Christ as the revealing and reconciling address of God to man. Talk about God has true content when it conforms to the being of the Churc...
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