Willy Reimer’s Blog

This Lutheran bishop of Zimbabwe, Ishmael Noko addressed the MWC assembly this morning to express his regret for the use of the
Oxford declaration of 1530 as justification for the persecution and execution of Anabaptists.  He noted how much more we have in common in mission and ministry and the need for the recognition of the inappropriate teaching of Martin Luther and other leaders in the justification for and predication in the executions of Anabaptists.

A motion will be brought to the World Lutheran Council this fall to this affect so that the confession and repentance can take place on a global level from the highest levels of leadership within the Lutheran church.

He called for unity and continued ministry participation and healing from the pain of separation from each other and the shared history of persecution and unjustified actions on their part of Lutheran leaders who were at the heart of the reformation.

I have often joked to my Lutheran friends that their relatives tired to kill my relatives.  My own read of history and theology is impacted by the reality that the theology I believe in was formed in the hearts and minds of people whose lives were on the line and were held accountable for their faith decisions by the threat of death at worst and persecution at best.

While current forms of Anabaptism differ from our roots in both positive and negative ways we must recover the faith that was formed under fire and guided the lives of early Anabaptists in the most fundamental ways.  Many contemporary Anabaptists, particularly Canadian Anabaptists have either compartmentalized their historic faith to the ethics of Jesus without the life of Jesus or to a narrow eternal expression of faith that defines Christ-followership as saying the “sinner’s prayer” without incorporating the ethics of Christ.  Neither is an authentic option of what it means to be a Christ-follower.

The essence of the gospel is that it is good news to every ethnic group, every socio-economic group and that the reign of God transforms our worlds spiritually, relationally, economically, politically, and structurally.  The gospel changes everything—or at least it should.  The scourge of the gospel of the west is the compartmentalization of our faith which has misrepresented Jesus and the Kingdom of God to the world. 

We must lead with the gospel.  Jesus first, forms second—whether that is at home or aboard.

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