Sebastian Franck: A Consistent Protestant

Sebastian Franck

Sebastian Franck was born on January 20th, 1499. He was ordained a Roman Catholic priest but in 1525 converted over to the Reformed Protestants and became a Gospel preacher. However, as time went on, he even left the Reformed movement and sympathized mostly with the Anabaptist sects, while never formally joining them. He agreed with the Anabaptists that the authentic external Church of the Apostles disappeared in its accommodation to the State during the era of Emperor Constantine, but could not agree with their attempts to re-establish external sacraments at all (not even Baptism). As a result of the collapse of the Apostolic Church in the early years, God has now resorted to sanctifying human beings purely by a spiritual means, particularly faith, repentance, self-denial, and perseverance. This could be achieved with or without organized religion, and since organized religion had gone defunct, it was God dealing directly with human beings that counted by his day.

On This [Heretical] Rock, I Will Build My Church?

“Denial of Peter” – by Carl Heinrich Bloch

Without a doubt, the current state of affairs in Catholicism, and the Papacy in particular, has struck one of the greatest challenges for her apologists. Many people are driven to  think there is a massive problem with the coherence of Catholic ecclesiology with regard to the Papacy. The problem can be illustrated by citing one of the Catholic Church’s most astute contemporary theologians today.

Abraham’s Work-free Justification: A Catholic View of Romans 4

After reading through Romans 4 this fine evening, I decided that I must put into writing what I believe God has revealed to me in the reading of His holy word. This will in regard to the much debated subject of the justification of sinners, and particularly how a Protestant reading is undermined by Paul’s argument with Abraham.

What does δικαιοσύνη mean in St. Paul?

Martin Luther was certainly correct to keep his finger on Romans 1:16-17 as the place where the gates of heaven open up and adorn sinners with the grace of righteousness which grants us entrance into the everlasting kingdom of God.