Pope Frances declared, “The Reformation is Over”. Was he right? Many evangelical Christians don’t see any significant differences between the “different flavors” of Christianity.
In 1879 a series of spirited talks were given in Lancaster, PA which were sharply critical of the doctrines and character of Martin Luther and of the Reformation. In response, Rev. Greenwald gave seven Sunday Evening Sermons addressing the points raised. These content of these well-attended messages were published later that year under the title, Discourses on Romanism and the Reformation.
In 2015, Pope Frances declared, The Reformation is Over.1 Is the Pope right?
Greenwald’s book may be the best primer available for this purpose. It answers:
Was the Reformation necessary?
What were the essential issues? Do they still apply?
Has the Roman Catholic Church changed in its claims?
1 St. Paul’s Church of Rome
2 The Papacy
3 Doctrines of the Church of Rome
4 Rome a Persecuting Church
5 Necessity of the Reformation
6 Reform Before the Reformation
7 Historical Sketch of the Reformation
Emanuel Greenwald, D.D. was born in 1811 near Frederick, Maryland. His devout parents prepared their son for the ministry from an early age. Emanuel studied theology under the personal supervision of Rev. David F. Schaeffer.
Rev. Greenwald’s first parish in New Philadelphia, Ohio included country for fifteen miles in each direction. At one point he supplied fourteen preaching points on Sundays and week-days.
In 1842 Dr. Greenwald became the first editor of the Lutheran Standard. He was the president of the English District Synod of Ohio from 1848 to 1850 and held many important positions in Columbus over the following years. In 1854 he accepted a call to Christ Church, Easton, PA, where he served for 12 years. His final parish was Holy Trinity Church of Lancaster, PA where he ministered from 1867 until his death in 1885.2
His best-known works are Order for Family Prayer and its 1883 revision, Jesus our table guest, which includes these words:
May Jesus be the Table Guest in every house! With fervent prayers for the divine blessing upon this humble attempt to glorify His dear name, this little volume is sent forth into our families.
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http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/issues/july-24th-2015/the-popes-great-evangelical-gamble/ ↩︎
The Lutheran Cyclopedia. Ed. Henry Eyster Jacobs, 1899. ↩︎