Spirituality of the Cross - Third Edition: The Way of the First Evangelicals

A clear, Christ-centered guide to Lutheran spirituality: forgiveness through the cross, Christ's gifts in Word and Sacrament, and holy purpose in ordinary vocation.

Many people hunger for a spirituality strong enough for real life--sin and suffering, family and work, doubt and death. Author Gene Edward Veith Jr. directs that hunger not toward self-improvement, moral striving, or mystical escape, but toward Jesus Christ crucified and risen for us.

With warmth and theological clarity, Veith traces the themes that shape Lutheran theology at its core. Here, God comes near through His Word and Sacraments. Here, ordinary callings--as parent, worker, citizen, friend, and church member--become places of faithful service to the neighbor.

Themes You'll Explore:

• Justification by Faith
• The Means of Grace
• Baptism
• Holy Communion
• Theology of the Cross
• Theology of the Two Kingdoms
• Christology
• Vocation

The cross alone is our theology. It also gives shape to a life grounded not in our achievements, feelings, or decisions, but in Christ's finished work and steadfast promises. Readers drawn to Martin Luther and curious about Lutheran theology will find a gracious, accessible introduction to the enduring riches of the Lutheran faith.

Gene Edward Veith, Jr., is a writer and a retired literature professor. He is Provost Emeritus at Patrick Henry College and the Director of the Cranach Institute at Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. He previously served as Culture Editor of WORLD MAGAZINE and Professor of English and Dean of the School of Arts & Sciences at Concordia University Wisconsin. He is the author of over 25 books, including Postmodern Times: A Christian Guide to Contemporary Thought and Culture, Classical Education, and God at Work: Your Christian Vocation in All of Life.Dr. Veith graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1973 and received a Ph.D. in English from the University of Kansas in 1979. He has honorary doctorates from Concordia Theological Seminary (2005), Concordia University California (2014), and Patrick Henry College (2016). He has taught at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College and was a Visiting Professor at Wheaton College, Gordon College, and Regent College (Vancouver). He was also a Visiting Lecturer at the Estonian Institute of Humanities in Tallinn, Estonia. He and his wife Jackquelyn have three grown children and twelve grandchildren. They live in Blackwell, Oklahoma.