About
What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable.
Forde Lives. Is it a brand name? Is it a sacrilege? A crude grafitto on the theological underbelly of the world? What strange new shibboleth is this? What does it mean?
Gerhard Forde, theologian, teacher and pastor, lived from 1927 to August 9, 2005. He was beloved by generations of preachers, students, fellow theologians, his family and many others. His legacy is one of powerful theological intelligence and profoundly humane insights. Dr. Forde, Forde, Bish, Gerhard, whatever name they called him, most anyone who knew him delighted in his cutting wisdom and dry wit. (view his page at Luther Seminary.)
We also delighted in learning from him a dense kernel of Lutheran thought. Doctor Forde’s death in 2005 signals a new era. We who have learned from him have diverse ideas and diverse roles in the life of the church. But we are also informed in innumerable ways by that keen Lutheran understanding of law and gospel, saint and sinner, word and sacraments which typified Dr. Forde’s style and theological aims.
The point of FordeLives.com is to connect those of us who knew him. It should also provide a jumping off point to see the impact of Forde’s teachings in the wider church and wider world. It should also continue the tradition of unflinching theology and plainspoken language for almost any age. We also hope to have some fun. FordeLives.com seek to succor, examine and provoke.
The entire enterprise is sanctioned by no one. We seek to show that, united by the gospel, inspired by the works of one servant, varied and challenging matters of the faith can be interpreted for a purpose, and that the radical gospel can be proclaimed to a waiting world.