October 31st is traditionally observed, at least in Lutheran and some other Protestant churches, as “Reformation Day.” The idea is to commemorate Martin Luther’s posting of his 95 theses and the unofficial beginning of the Reformation.

However, in these more ecumenical times, the triumphalism of Reformation Days past is significantly muted. The legacy of the Reformation seems to many Protestants to be an ambiguous one, and the shattering of the unity of the church something to be mourned rather than celebrated. Not to mention all the bloodshed that came in the wake of Christendom’s breakup.

Indeed, “catholic” has become a term that many Protestants have embraced with gusto in recent years. Everyone likes to think of themselves as catholic now, whereas the stock of being “protestant” seems to have declined. Some Lutherans, for example, prefer to be called “evangelical catholics.” The recently re-christened Episcopal Church (formerly ECUSA) dropped the “protestant” from their name (they used to be PECUSA) some time ago.

So what is the essence of Protestantism, and is there any point in still identifying ourselves as Protestants? Is it defined by adherence to the principle of sola scriptura or justification by faith alone? Both of these have been called into serious question by recent theology. A more positive view of tradition has undermined the biblicism implicit in some versions of the sola scriptura principle, and many theologians and biblical scholars have questioned whether justification was quite so central to Paul’s theology, and by implication, whether it should be so central to ours. This isn’t to say that there aren’t still able defenders of the traditional Protestant positions around, but the consensus that once existed has, I think it’s safe to say, been considerably weakened.

Some might identify the raison d’etre of Reformation theology with Paul Tillich’s “protestant principle,” the principle of criticism and the willingness to reexamine all absolutist claims and belief systems, be they papal, scriptural, or of any other ideological stripe. But this runs the risk of turning Protestantism into a purely formal exercise without substantive content. A debased version of Tillich’s principle finds expression in contemporary cliches about asking questions being more important than finding answers.

At the end of the day I imagine that many people are Protestants in large part because Catholicism or Orthodoxy don’t seem like live options for one reason or another. Either they don’t or can’t accept their claims to authority or their particular moral positions, or those churches just seem culturally alien. But these are largely negative judgments. What are the positive reasons, if any, for staying Protestant? What vision of Christianity does Protestantism have to offer to the larger church?