Book of Concord

The Book of Concord or Concordia is a compilation of the major theological documents of early Lutheranism. The book was first published on June 25, 1580, fifty years after the presentation of the Augsburg Confession to Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Augsburg. The Book of Concord compiles the important Lutheran confessional documents, that is, documents that summarize and interpret the teachings of the Bible. It was intended to be a definitive Body of Doctrine (Corpus Doctrinae) for all Lutherans. Its editors, Jakob Andreä and Martin Chemnitz, avoided that term in order to distance the Concordia from earlier territorial Corpora Doctrinae.

The first documents in the book are the "Three Ecumenical Creeds," the Apostles' Creed, Nicene Creed, and Athanasian Creed, all statements of Christian faith that had been almost universally accepted by the established church since Byzantine times. The next collection of documents comes from the earliest years of the Protestant Reformation. They are the confessions, articles, and treatises by Martin Luther, Philip Melanchthon, and other early Lutheran leaders in the period when they were first distinguishing themselves from Roman Catholicism. The final documents, the two sections of the Formula of Concord, were written shortly before the Book of Concord was published. Their intent was the same as that of the book itself: to unify the growing Lutheran movement.

Contents

 * The Three Ecumenical Creeds
 * The Apostles' Creed
 * The Nicene Creed
 * The Athanasian Creed
 * The Augsburg Confession of 1530
 * The Apology of the Augsburg Confession (1531)
 * The Small Catechism of Martin Luther (1529)
 * The Large Catechism of Martin Luther (1529)
 * The Smalcald Articles of Martin Luther (1537)
 * Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope (1537)
 * Epitome of the Formula of Concord (1577)
 * The Solid or Thorough Declaration of the Formula of Concord (1577).

Printed

 * McCain, Paul T., Robert C. Baker, Gene Edward Veith, and Edward A. Engelbrecht, eds. Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions -- A Reader's Edition of the Book of Concord. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 2005. ISBN 0758608063
 * Kolb, Robert and Timothy J. Wengert, eds. The Book of Concord: The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church.  Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2000.  ISBN 0-8006-2740-7
 * Tappert, Theodore G., ed. The Book of Concord: The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church.  Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1959.  ISBN 0-8006-0825-9
 * Concordia Triglotta: Libri symbolici Ecclesiae Lutheranae. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921.

Online

 * The Book of Concord in PDF and HTML, other useful resources as well - www.bookofconcord.org

Commentaries and historical resources

 * Bente, Friedrich. Historical Introductions to the Book of Concord. (1921) Reprint. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1965. ISBN 0-570-03262-8
 * Fagerberg, Holsten. A New Look at the Lutheran Confessions (1529-1537).  Gene Lund, trans.  Paperback Edition.  St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1988.  ISBN 0-570-04499-5
 * Forell, George W. The Augsburg Confession: A Contemporary Commentary.  Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1968.  LOC 68-25798
 * Kolb, Robert and James A. Nestingen, eds. Sources and Contexts of The Book of Concord.  Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2001.  ISBN 0-8006-3290-7
 * Preus, Robert D. and Wilbert H. Rosin, eds. A Contemporary Look at the Formula of Concord.  St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1978.  ISBN 0-570-03271-7
 * Preus, Robert D. The Theology of Post-Reformation Lutheranism: Volume II, God and His Creation.  St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1972.  ISBN 0-570-04545-2

Konkordienbuch Liber Concordiae Tunnustuskirjat