Matthew E. Borrasso holds a PhD in theology and religion from the University of Birmingham (UK) and graduate degrees from Northern Seminary, Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, and United Lutheran Seminary. Borrasso is a pastor in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, whose prior publications include The Art of Exegesis: An Analysis of the Life and Work of Martin Hans Franzmann (2019).
Description
Matthew E. Borrasso is an astute thinker and a clear writer for American Lutherans. His work addresses the major theological dynamic that drives Lutheran teaching: the art of distinguishing between law and gospel in our theology and preaching. The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America both draw from scripture to support their understanding of law and gospel in the here and now, but scripture informs them in quite different ways. Using the case study of each church's teaching on abortion in the period between Roe and Dobbs, Borrasso shows how each church applies its understanding of the gospel to painful life choices. Borrasso is a faithful LCMS pastor and theologian but describes the ELCA approach fairly, and for this careful tending of words, he is to be thanked. --Maria Erling, professor of church history, United Lutheran Seminary In an age of suffocating divisiveness, Matthew E. Borrasso provides a breath of fresh air. Instead of attacking or defending the conservative Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and the progressive Evangelical Lutheran Church in America on their use of the law-gospel hermeneutic, he invites us to view these Lutherans as two kinds of voices in an ongoing conversation, one that calls for a humble and charitable form of "intellectual hospitality." His book not only effectively applies such hospitality to hot-button issues like homosexuality and abortion but, in the process, humanizes often-sterile theological abstractions and offers a more Christlike way of engaging those who differ from us on all such topics in today's society, and of rediscovering common ground. --Jon Diefenthaler, president emeritus, Southeastern District, Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod Leading us through Lutheran history and into present challenges, Borrasso turns us away from pride, division, and abstractions to point us toward meekness, hospitality, and God's people. Following in the footsteps of Franzmann, Forde, and Thielicke, Borrasso reminds us that law and gospel are not merely concepts to argue about, but they are God's words for God's people to speak, hear, and experience. --Andrew R. Jones, author of Ten Lies Satan Loves to Tell and Ten Questions to Ask Every Time You Read the Bible Like many others, I've long been disturbed by the multifarious ways US Lutheranism seems riddled with divisions--sometimes confessional, often cantankerous, always unfortunate. Whether addressing differing interpretations of doctrinal content, biblical authority, or divine intent, my former student Matthew Borrasso teaches all with ears to hear. For the church to enjoy a more robustly unified, evangelical-catholic future, we need to know what lurks beneath the breach. --John Nunes, president, California Lutheran University The right distinction of the law from the gospel has been a hallmark of Lutheran theology since the Reformation. However, the heirs of Luther's legacy have not always agreed as to how this distinction is to be made. Matthew Borrasso has provided readers with an engaging survey of players and themes as the debate over the nature and function of both the law and the gospel plays out in contemporary American Lutheranism. This is more than a historical study, though, as it gives focus to how the distinction between law and gospel determines approaches to biblical interpretation, preaching, pastoral care, and ethical issues. It is a significant contribution to a lively discussion that needs to continue. --John T. Pless, Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana