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Why a Lutheran church?
Martin Luther (b. November
10, 1483, in Eisleben, Germany, d. February 18, 1546 in Eisleben)
is known as the Father of Protestantism. He had studied to
become a lawyer before becoming an Augustinian monk in 1505, and
was ordained a priest in 1507. While continuing his studies in
pursuit of a Doctor of Theology degree, he discovered
significant differences between what he read in the Bible and
the theology and practices of the church. On October 31, 1517,
he posted a challenge on the church door at Wittenberg
University to debate 95 theological issues. Luther's hope was
that the church would reform its practice and preaching to be
more consistent with the Word of God as contained in the Bible.
What started as an academic
debate escalated to a religious war, fueled by fiery
temperaments and violent language on both sides. As a result,
there was not a reformation of the church but a separation.
"Lutheran" was a name applied to Luther and his followers as an
insult but adopted as a badge of honor by them instead.
Lutherans still celebrate the
Reformation on October 31 and still hold to the basic principles
of theology and practice espoused by Luther, such as
Sola Gratia, Sola Fide, Sola Scriptura:
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We are saved by the
grace of God alone -- not by anything we
do;
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Our salvation is through
faith alone -- we only need to believe that
our sins are forgiven for Christ's sake, who died to redeem
us;
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The Bible is the
only norm of doctrine and life -- the only true
standard by which teachings and doctrines are to be judged.
Another of Luther's
principles was that Scriptures and worship need to be in the
language of the people.
Many Lutherans still consider
themselves as a reforming movement within the Church catholic,
rather than a separatist movement, and Lutherans have engaged in
ecumenical dialogue with other church bodies for decades. In
fact, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has entered
into cooperative "full communion" agreements with several other
Protestant denominations.
Luther's Small Catechism,
which contains teachings on the Ten Commandments, the Apostles'
Creed, the Lord's Prayer, Holy Baptism, Confession and
Absolution, Holy Communion and Morning and Evening Prayers, is
still used to introduce people to the Lutheran faith, as is the
Augsburg Confession. These and other Lutheran confessional
documents included in the Book of Concord may be ordered from
the ELCA Publishing House at 800/328-4648 or
www.augsburgfortress.org. |