A Review of Johann Gerhard’s Handbook of Consolations
“The one aim of those who practice philosophy in the proper manner is to practice for dying and death.”
I first read those words during a freshman seminar in college, and I recall a sort of thrill passing through me as I read. The line is from Plato’s Phaedo, and we find it on the lips of Socrates mere moments before those same lips taste the cup of hemlock. My encounter with these long-dead Greeks placed me on a path that, though I did not know it at the time, I shared with many Christians before me: the path of learning the ars moriendi--the art of dying. Johann Gerhard, a Lutheran pastor and theologian from the 17th century, trod the path well before me and he has proven a faithful and wise companion in the journey.
handbook of Consolations
What can a 17th century Lutheran theologian have to say to 21st century concerns? The Handbook of Consolations is a timeless pastoral work written to encourage anyone facing death or counseling those who are. Widely acclaimed for its practicality and deep comfort, it has strengthened many generations of believers.
(Wipf and Stock, 2009)
Gerhard opens his Handbook of Consolations with an allusion to Plato’s definition of philosophy and extends that definition, arguing that the “beginning and end [of Christian wisdom] consists of a contemplation of death. By the word death, I understand both Christ’s death and our own.” Gerhard aims to fortify his readers with comfort and assurance as they face the certainty of death. “It is appointed for all to die;” he says, “but to die with piety, to die in Christ, to die happily is not for everyone. Therefore the soul must be prepared for that blessed ability to die well and must be armed with the shield of the Word and prayer.” Gerhard was equipped as few Christians are today to provide that preparation of the soul. He sensed his own frailty and the nearness of death at all times. His infant son had recently died and his wife remained ill. She would die barely a month after he published the Handbook. Along with his hard-won acquaintance with death, Gerhard brings to bear his formidable theological acumen and his keen pastoral sensitivity.
The main body of the Handbook takes the form of an imagined dialogue between “the tempted” and “the comforter,” where the Tempted presents the various trials and doubts that assail the heart when facing death, and the Comforter answers each, pointing back to the certainty of the gospel promises as given verbally in the Word, and visibly in the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. The quest for certainty of salvation is at the heart of the Reformation project, and here in Gerhard we see the results of this quest “on the ground” in pastoral application.
When the Tempted doubts that the benefits of Christ are for him, the Comforter says, “What God offers to you with his hand of mercy, you should clasp with the hand of a steady faith… for faith clings to Christ, and in Christ there is a merciful God, the remission of sins, and eternal life.” When he fears that his sins are too many and have no remedy, the Comforter replies, “Hide yourself in his wounds, and the tempest of his wrath will pass over you. Christ is the propitiator (Rom 3:25) to whom you are able to flee with a true faith and find rest in the shadow of his wings.” When the devil urges the Tempted to despair, he is told, “I wish you would despair of yourself and in yourself because you are a sinner, but do not despair in God, whose grace abounds over your sin!”
In all things the Tempted is told to place his hopes in the certainty of the scriptures, over and against his own feelings, the assaults of the devil, and false beliefs.
In a section particularly helpful as a corrective for the excesses of low-church traditions like my own, the Comforter spends time unfolding deep encouragement for the Tempted from the certainty of the visible sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. There is room here for charitable theological sparring between traditions, but all Christians should rejoice when Gerhard reminds us of the Trinitarian shape of baptism, “the Father adopting, the merit of the Son cleansing, and the Holy Spirit regenerating.” This should, as Gerhard intends, prompt us to a surer hope in the completed work of Christ and its application to us.
Likewise, what Christian has not been plagued with doubt like the Tempted after some sin, and thought, “If only there were some reliable guarantee that would be able to reassure my heart!” To this, Gerhard replies, “Yes, such an excellent and most holy sacrament does exist. It is the Lord’s Supper.” Whether one agrees with Gerhard’s understanding of the Supper or not makes no difference to the pastoral application: in the Supper the Christian has the sure sign and remembrance of the Father’s favor and kindness to him in Christ.
In these days of renewed consciousness of death, nothing could be more practical than to allow Johann Gerhard to tutor us in the ars moriendi. The aching doubts of his “Tempted” and the gospel-saturated replies of his “Comforter” will provide us certainty even as we grapple with the fact that, like Gerhard, we too “bear a sickly body and a frail vessel” and our own lives will not be long. Let us learn therefore from him that “blessed ability to die well.”
Tom Holsteen lives in North Aurora, Colorado with his wife, Page. He's a member of Calvary New City and graduated from Beeson Divinity School with an M.Div. in 2019. He loves helping Christians connect church history with their own faith and practice. He also loves puns, Louisiana food, LSU football, and well-written prose. He tweets about what he's reading lately here: @tomholsteen