Carl Edward Braaten (born January 3, 1929) is an American

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...

theologian and minister.

Biography

Carl Braaten has authored and edited numerous books and theological papers, including ''Principles of Lutheran Theology'' (Fortress Press, 1983), ''Mother Church: Ecclesiology and Ecumenism'' (Fortress Press, 1998) and ''In One Body Through the Cross: The Princeton Proposal for Christian Unity'' (Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2003). Along with

Robert Jenson Robert William Jenson (August 2, 1930 – September 5, 2017) was a leading American Lutheran and ecumenical theologian. Prior to his retirement in 2007, he spent seven years as the director of the Center for Theological Inquiry at Princeton Theo ...

, he has been an influential figure in developing and restoring the catholic roots of Lutheranism at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. Braaten was born on January 3, 1929, in

Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over t ...

. His parents were

Norwegian-American Norwegian Americans ( nb, Norskamerikanere, nn, Norskamerikanarar) are Americans with ancestral roots in Norway. Norwegian immigrants went to the United States primarily in the latter half of the 19th century and the first few decades of the ...

pietists, who served as missionaries in

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Afric ...

, and he received his early spiritual formation in that context. After finishing high school at

Augustana Academy Augustana Academy was an educational institution in Canton, South Dakota. The Norwegian Augustana Synod was established in 1870. In that year, the Synod began an academy called the ''Marshall Academy'' in Marshall, Wisconsin. In 1881, the acade ...

, a Lutheran boarding school in

Canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ente ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, who comprise a large po ...

, he attended

St. Olaf College St. Olaf College is a private liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota. It was founded in 1874 by a group of Norwegian-American pastors and farmers led by Pastor Bernt Julius Muus. The college is named after the King and the Patron Saint Olaf ...

Luther Seminary Luther Seminary is a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It is the largest seminary of the ELCA. It also accepts and educates students of 41 other denominations and traditions. It is accredite ...

Heidelberg University } Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...

and

Harvard Divinity School Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the academic study of religion or for leadership roles in religion, gov ...

where he studied under

Paul Tillich Paul Johannes Tillich (August 20, 1886 – October 22, 1965) was a German-American Christian existentialist philosopher, religious socialist, and Lutheran Protestant theologian who is widely regarded as one of the most influential theolo ...

and earned his doctoral degree. His doctoral dissertation was titled ''Christ, Faith and History: An Inquiry into the Meaning of Martin Kähler's Distinction Between the Historical Jesus and the Biblical Christ Developed in the Past and Present Context''. He was ordained by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in 1958. At that time, he began serving a parish in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origin ...

and teaching at Luther Seminary. In 1961 Braaten, together with Robert Jenson, Roy Harrisville, Kent Knutson, James Burtness and others, founded the journal ''Dialog'', which he continued to serve as editor until resigning in 1991. In 1962, Braaten accepted a position at the

Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago The Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC) is a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in Chicago, Illinois. LSTC is a member of the Association of Chicago Theological Schools (ACTS), a consortium of eleven area seminaries ...

where he taught as Professor of Systematic Theology until 1991 and where he is still recognized as

Professor Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

. In 1991, Braaten and Jenson founded the Center for Catholic and Evangelical Theology and established a new theological journal, ''Pro Ecclesia''.

Works

Author

*''History and Hermeneutics'' Westminster Press (Philadelphia, PA), 1966. *''The Future of God: The Revolutionary Dynamics of Hope'' Harper & Row (New York, NY), 1969. *''Christ and Counter-Christ: Apocalyptic Themes in Theology and Culture'' Fortress Press (Philadelphia, PA), 1972. *''The Whole Counsel of God'' Fortress Press (Philadelphia, PA), 1974. *''Eschatology and Ethics: Essays on the Theology and Ethics of the Kingdom of God'' Augsburg Publishing House (Minneapolis, MN), 1974. *(With wife, LaVonne Braaten) ''The Living Temple: A Practical Theology of the Body and the Foods of the Earth'' Harper & Row (New York, NY), 1976. *''The Flaming Center: A Theology of the Christian Mission'' Fortress Press (Philadelphia, PA), 1977. *''Principles of Lutheran Theology'' Fortress Press (Philadelphia, PA), 1983. *''Stewards of the Mysteries: Sermons for Festivals and Special Occasions'' Augsburg Publishing House (Minneapolis, MN), 1983. *''The Apostolic Imperative: Nature and Aim of the Church's Mission and Ministry'' Augsburg Publishing House (Minneapolis, MN), 1985. *''Justification: The Article by Which the Church Stands or Falls'' Fortress Press (Minneapolis, MN), 1990. *''No Other Gospel!: Christianity among the World's Religions'' Fortress Press (Minneapolis, MN), 1992. *''Mother Church: Ecclesiology and Ecumenism'' Fortress Press (Minneapolis, MN), 1998. *''That All May Believe: A Theology of the Gospel and the Mission of the Church''. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2008. *''Who Is Jesus? Disputed Questions and Answers''. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2011.

Editor

*(And translator, with Roy A. Harrisville) Kerygma and History: A Symposium on the Theology of Rudolf Bultmann, Abingdon Press (New York, NY), 1962. *(And translator, with Roy A. Harrisville) The Historical Jesus and the Kerygmatic Christ: Essays on the New Quest of the Historical Jesus, Abingdon Press (New York, NY), 1964. *(And translator) Martin Kähler, The So-Called Historical Jesus and the Historic Biblical Christ, Fortress Press (Philadelphia, PA), 1964, reprinted, 1988. *Paul Tillich, Perspectives on Nineteenth and Twentieth-Century Protestant Theology, Harper & Row (New York, NY), 1967. *Paul Tillich, A History of Christian Thought, Harper & Row (New York, NY), 1968, published as A History of Christian Thought, from Its Judaic and Hellenistic Origins to Existentialism, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 1972. *(With

Avery Dulles Avery Robert Dulles (; 1918–2008) was an American Jesuit priest, theologian, and cardinal of the Catholic Church. Dulles served on the faculty of Woodstock College from 1960 to 1974, of the Catholic University of America from 1974 to 1988, an ...

) Wolfhart Pannenberg, Spirit, Faith, and Church, Westminster Press (Philadelphia, PA), 1970. *(With Robert W. Jenson) The Futurist Option, Newman Press (New York, NY), 1970. *The New Church Debate: Issues Facing American Lutheranism, Fortress Press (Philadelphia, PA), 1983. *(With Robert W. Jenson) Christian Dogmatics (two volumes), Fortress Press (Philadelphia, PA), 1984. *(With Philip Clayton) The Theology of Wolfhart Pannenberg: Twelve American Critiques, with an Autobiographical Essay and Response, Augsburg Publishing House (Minneapolis, MN), 1988. *Our Naming of God: Problems and Prospects of God-Talk Today, Fortress Press (Minneapolis, MN), 1989. *(With Robert W. Jenson) Reclaiming the Bible for the Church, W. B. Eerdmans (Grand Rapids, MI), 1995. *(With Robert W. Jenson) A Map of Twentieth-Century Theology: Readings from Karl Barth to Radical Pluralism, Fortress Press (Minneapolis, MN), 1995. *(With Robert W. Jenson) Either/Or: The Gospel or Neopaganism, W. B. Eerdmans (Grand Rapids, MI), 1995. *(With Robert W. Jenson) The Catholicity of the Reformation, W. B. Eerdmans (Grand Rapids, MI), 1996. *(With Robert W. Jenson) The Two Cities of God: The Church's Responsibility for the Earthly City, W. B. Eerdmans (Grand Rapids, MI), 1997. *(With Robert W. Jenson) Union with Christ: The New Finnish Interpretation of Luther, W. B. Eerdmans (Grand Rapids, MI), 1998. *(With Robert W. Jenson) Marks of the Body of Christ, W. B. Eerdmans (Grand Rapids, MI), 1999. *(With Robert W. Jenson) Sin, Death, and the Devil, W. B. Eerdmans (Grand Rapids, MI), 2000. *(With Robert W. Jenson) Church Unity and the Papal Office: An Ecumenical Dialogue on John Paul II's Encyclical "Ut unum sint" ("That All May Be One"), W. B. Eerdmans (Grand Rapids, MI), 2001. *(With Robert W. Jenson) The Last Things: Biblical and Theological Perspectives on Eschatology, W. B. Eerdmans (Grand Rapids, MI), 2002. *(With Robert W. Jenson) The Strange New World of the Gospel: Re-evangelizing in the Postmodern World, W. B. Eerdmans (Grand Rapids, MI), 2002. *(With Robert W. Jenson) Jews and Christians: People of God, W. B. Eerdmans (Grand Rapids, MI), 2003. *(With Robert W. Jenson) Ecumenical Future: Background Papers for "In One Body through the Cross: The Princeton Proposal for Christian Unity," W. B. Eerdmans (Grand Rapids, MI), 2003.

References

*Contemporary Authors Online, Gale, 2004. {{DEFAULTSORT:Braaten, Carl 1929 births Harvard Divinity School alumni St. Olaf College alumni American Lutheran theologians Systematic theologians Missiologists Possibly living people American people of Norwegian descent American Lutherans 20th-century Lutheran theologians 21st-century Lutheran theologians