On the Church - Theological Commonplaces

About This Volume In On the Church, Gerhard presents a robust ecclesiology centered on the doctrine of the visible and invisible church. Brick and mortar communities represent the visible church, which includes both faithful and faithless members. Gerhard calls the true church "invisible" because the faith of its members isn''t outwardly discernable. As marks of the church, Gerhard simply proposes the pure preaching of the Word of God and the proper administration of the sacraments. He also extensively refutes the "exclusive" marks of the church proposed by his Roman Jesuit opponent Robert Bellarmine. The discussed marks include the name "catholic", antiquity, long duration, historical consensus, unity, holiness of confession, efficacy of conversion, holiness of life, miracles, prophesy, death of enemies, temporal felicity, and the acknowledgment of the church''s truths by her enemies. About This