Zdenko Širka

This article examines the theology of the cross in the Lutheran Protestant tradition. Through a theological and historical study, Zdenko Širka analyzes the fundamental opposition established by Luther between the theology of the cross and the theology of glory, the former affirming the radical centrality of Christ's humiliation against any valorization of human works in the economy of salvation. The author shows that this tension structures the debate between salvation by works and salvation by grace alone. He then extends this reflection by presenting the contribution of Jürgen Moltmann, for whom the Passion of Christ acquires a renewed universal significance after the Shoah: the Crucified, the suffering God, embraces the entirety of humanity's historical sufferings. The article thus offers a structured overview of Protestant soteriology centered on the figure of the crucified Christ.