Lutheranism is the main branch of Protestant Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther (1483-1546), a German monk, reformer and theologian.
Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched the Protestant Reformation in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire. Beginning with the Thirteenth Five Thesis, first published in 1517, Luther's writings were widely disseminated internationally, spreading the original ideas of the Reformation beyond the influence and control of the Roman Curia and Holy Roman Emperor. The split between Lutherans and Catholics was made public and clear with 1521 Edict of Worms: Diet fatwa condemns Luther and officially forbids the citizens of the Holy Roman Empire from defending or spreading his ideas, subject to Lutheran supporters for the seizure of all property, half of the confiscated property will lost to the imperial government and the remaining half lost to the party who brought the allegations. This division centers mainly on two points: the proper source of authority in the church, often called the formal principle of the Reformation, and the doctrine of justification, often called the material principle . .
Lutheranism advocates a doctrine of justification "by grace alone by faith solely on the basis of the Bible alone", the doctrine that scripture is the ultimate authority on all matters of faith. This is in contrast to the Catholic Church's conviction, defined at the Council of Trent, of authority derived from Scripture and Tradition. In addition, Lutheranism accepts the teachings of the first seven ecumenical councils of the Christian Church. The Augsburg Confession, the Lutheran beliefs contained in the Book of Concord, teaches that "the beliefs which Luther and his followers recognize are not new, but genuine Catholic faith, and that their churches represent the Catholic or universal church." When Lutheran presented Augsburg's Confession to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, they believed it had "shown that every article of faith and practice is true first of all to the Scriptures, and then also to the teaching of church fathers and councils."
Unlike Calvinism, the Lutherans retained many of the liturgical practices and sacramental teachings of the pre-Reformation church, with particular emphasis on the Eucharist, or the Lord's Supper. Lutheran theology differs from the Reformed in Christology theology, the purpose of the Law of God, divine grace, the concept of perseverance of the saints, and predestination.
Today, Lutheranism is one of the largest denominations of Protestantism. With around 80 million followers, this is the third most common Protestant denomination after Pentecostal denomination and historical Anglicanism. The Lutheran World Federation, the largest alliance of Lutheran churches, represents over 74 million people. Other Lutheran organizations include the International Lutheran Council and the Confession Evangelical Lutheran Conference, as well as independent churches.
Video Lutheranism
Etimologi
The Lutheran name derives as a derogatory term used against Luther by the German Scholastic theologian Dr. Johann Maier von Eck during the Leipzig Debate in July 1519. Eck and other Catholics followed the traditional practice of naming heretics after their leaders, thus labeling everyone who identifies with Martin Luther's theology as Lutheran.
Martin Luther always disliked the term Lutheran, preferring the term Evangelical, derived from euangelion , the Greek word for "good news", which is " Gospel ". Followers John Calvin, Huldrych Zwingli, and other theologians associated with the Reformed tradition also began to use the term. To distinguish between two evangelical groups, others began to refer to both groups as Evangelical Lutheran and Evangelical Reform. As time passes, the word Evangelical is revoked. Lutherans themselves began to use the term "Lutheran" in the mid-sixteenth century, to differentiate themselves from other groups such as the Philippists and Calvinists.
In 1597, theologians at Wittenberg define the title Lutheran as referring to the true church.
Maps Lutheranism
History
Lutheranism is rooted in the work of Martin Luther, who seeks to reform the Western Church into what he considers to be a more biblical foundation.
Spread to northern Europe
Lutheranism spread throughout Scandinavia during the 16th century, when the Danish-Norwegian king (also ruled Iceland and the Faroe Islands) and the king of Sweden (also ruled Finland) adopted Lutheranism. Through Baltic-German and Swedish governments, Lutheranism also spread to Estonia and Latvia.
Since 1520, regular Lutheran services have been held in Copenhagen. Under the reign of Frederick I (1523-33), Denmark-Norway remains officially Catholic. Although Frederick initially promised to persecute the Lutherans, he soon adopted a policy to protect Lutheran and reformist preachers, the most significant being Hans Tausen.
During Frederick's reign, Lutheranism made a significant breakthrough in Denmark. At an open meeting in Copenhagen attended by the king in 1536, people shouted; "We will stand next to the holy Gospel, and do not want such a bishop anymore". Frederick's son, Christian, openly Lutheran, who prevented his election to the throne over his father's death. However, after his victory in the ensuing civil war, in 1537 he became Christian III and advanced the Reformation in Denmark-Norway.
The Constitution in which the Norwegian Church of Denmark, according to the Ordinance of the Church, should rest is "the pure Word of God, which is the Law and the Gospel". It does not mention the Augsburg Confession. Priests must understand the Scriptures well enough to preach and explain the Gospel and the Epistles to their congregations.
The youths are taught from Luther's Little Catechisms, available in Denmark since 1532. They are taught to expect at the end of life: "forgive their sins", â € Å"counted as justâ €, and â € Å" eternal life. "Instructions are still similar.
The first complete Bible in Denmark is based on Martin Luther's translation into German. It was published in 1550, with 3,000 copies printed in the first edition; the second edition was published in 1589. Unlike Catholics, the Lutheran Church does not believe that tradition is the bearer of "the Word of God", or only the Roman Bishops' fellowship is entrusted to interpret the "Word of God".
The Reformation in Sweden began with Olaus and Laurentius Petri, the brothers who took the Reformation to Sweden after studying in Germany. They led Gustav Vasa, the elected king in 1523, to Lutheranism. The refusal of the pope to allow the replacement of a bishop who had supported the invading forces opposed to Gustav Vasa during Bloodbath in Stockholm led to the breaking of official ties between Sweden and the papacy in 1523.
Four years later, in Diet VÃÆ'¤sterÃÆ' ¥ s, the king succeeded in forcing the diet to accept his power over the national church. The king was given the ownership of all church property, as well as the appointment of the church and the consent of the scholars. Although this effectively handles official sanctions to Lutheran ideas, Lutheranism did not become official until 1593. At that time the Synod of Uppsala declared the Bible the only guidebook for faith, with four documents accepted as a faithful and authoritative explanation of it: the Apostate 'Creed, the Nicene Creed , the Athanasian Creed , and the unchanged Augsburg Confession in 1530. The first translation of the Mikael Agricola New Testament of Finland was published in 1548. Schmalkaldic War and Concord Formula
After Martin Luther's death in 1546, the Schmalkaldic War began as a conflict between two German Lutheran rulers in 1547. Immediately, the Holy Roman Empire troops joined in battle and conquered members of the Schmalkaldic League, suppressing and alienating many Lutherans of Germany as they imposed the Augsburg Interim provisions. Religious freedom was guaranteed for Lutherans through Passau Peace in 1552, and under Cuius regio, eius religio (the ruling religion was to dictate ruled religion) and Declaratio Ferdinandei (limited religious tolerance) of the Augsburg Peace clause in 1555.
Religious disputes between Crypto-Calvinists, the Philippists, Sacramentarians, Ubiquitarian and Gnesio-Lutheran raged in Lutheranism in the middle of the 16th century. This ends with resolution of the problem in the Formula of Concord . A large number of political and religious influential leaders meet together, arguing, and completing these topics based on the Bible, which resulted in the Formula, which signed more than 8,000 leaders. The Concord's Book replaces previous, incomplete collection of doctrines, uniting all German Lutherans with identical doctrines and embarking on the Lutheran Orthodox Period.
Lutheran Orthodox
The historical period of the Orthodox Lutheran is divided into three parts: Early Orthodoxy (1580-1600), High Orthodoxy (1600-1685), and Orthodoxy End (1685-1730). Scholastic Lutherans gradually developed mainly for the purpose of arguing with the Jesuits, and were eventually founded by Johann Gerhard. Abraham Calovius symbolizes the climax of the scholastic paradigm in orthodox Lutheranism. Other orthodox Lutheran theologians include Martin Chemnitz, Aegidius Hunnius, Leonhard Hutter, Nicolaus Hunnius, Jesper Rasmussen Brochmand, Solomon Glassius, Johann HÃÆ'¼lsemann, Johann Conrad Dannhauer, Johannes Andreas Quenstedt, Johann Friedrich KÃÆ'¶nig and Johann Wilhelm Baier.
Toward the end of the Thirty Years' War, the compromising spirit seen at Philip Melanchthon bounced back at the Helmstedt School and in particular the theology of Georgius Calixtus, led to a syncretist controversy. Another theological problem that emerged was the Crypt-Keni controversy.
The end of orthodoxy is torn by the influence of rationalism, philosophy by reason, and Pietism, the revival movement in Lutheranism. After a century of vitality, Pietis Philippologist Philipp Jakob Spener and August Hermann Francke warned that orthodoxy had degenerated into meaningless intellectualism and formalism, while orthodox theologians found the subjective and emotional focus of Pietism to be vulnerable to Rationalist propaganda.
The famous Lutheran orthodox theologian before rationalist AufklÃÆ'¤rung , or Enlightenment , is David Hollatz. An orthodox theologian, Valentin Ernst LÃÆ'¶scher took part in the controversy against Pietism. The medieval mystical tradition continues in the works of Martin Moller, Johann Arndt, and Joachim LÃÆ'¼tememann. Pietism became a rival of orthodoxy but adopted some orthodox devotional literature; for example, Arndt, Christian Scriver's and Stephan PrÃÆ'¤torius' who are all Pietistic literature.
Rationalism
The Rationalist philosophers from France and England had a huge influence during the 18th century, along with German Rationalis Christian Wolff, Gottfried Leibniz and Immanuel Kant. Their work led to an increase in rationalist trust, "at the expense of faith in God and agreement with the Bible".
In 1709, Valentin Ernst LÃÆ'¶scher warned that the new Rationalist view of the world fundamentally changed society by questioning every aspect of theology. Instead of considering the authority of divine revelation, he explained, Rationalists rely solely on their personal understanding when seeking the truth.
Johann Melchior Goeze (1717-1786), pastor of St. Christ Church Catherine, Hamburg, wrote apologetical works against the Rationalists, including the theological and historical defenses against biblical historical criticism.
Disappointed Lutheran pastors are often reprimanded by government bureaucracies that oversee them, for example, when they try to correct Rationalist influences in parochial schools. As a result of the impact of a form of local rationalism, called Neology, in the second half of the eighteenth century, true piety was found only in small Pietist monasteries. However, some of the early laity preserved Lutheran orthodoxy from Pietism and rationalism using old catechisms, hymnbooks, postils, and devotional writings, including those written by Johann Gerhard, Heinrich Müller and Christian Scriver.
Revivals
The layman, Luther scholar Johann Georg Hamann (1730-1788), became famous for resisting Rationalism and striving to advance the resurrection known as Erweckung, or the Resurrection . In 1806, Napoleon's invasion of Germany encouraged Rationalism and angered the German Lutherans, arousing the desire among the people to preserve Luther's theology from the threat of Rationalists. Those associated with this Resurrection argue that the reason is insufficient and shows the importance of an emotional religious experience.
Small groups emerged, often at universities, devoting themselves to Bible study, reading devotional writings, and revival meetings. Although the beginning of this Resurrection tends heavily towards Romanticism, patriotism and experience, the emphasis on the Resurrection shifted around 1830 to restore the traditional liturgy, doctrine and recognition of the Lutheran Church in Neo-Lutheran movement.
This Awakening swept across Scandinavia except Iceland. It was developed from both German Neo-Lutheranism and Pietism. Danish pastor and philosopher N. F. S. Grundtvig changed church life throughout Denmark through a reform movement beginning in 1830. He also wrote about 1,500 hymns, including the Word of God is our Great Heritage .
In Norway, Hans Nielsen Hauge, a lay street preacher, emphasized spiritual discipline and triggered the Haugean movement. Also in Norway, the Resurrection encouraged the growth of foreign missions to non-Christians to new heights, which have not been achieved since then. In Sweden, Lars Levi LÃÆ'Â|stadius started the Laestadian movement that emphasized moral reform. In Finland, a farmer, Paavo Ruotsalainen, started the Finnish Resurrection as he took a sermon on repentance and prayer.
In 1817, Frederick William III of Prussia ordered Lutheran and Reformed churches in his territory to unite, forming the Church of Evangelical Unity of Prussia. The unification of two German Protestant branches triggered the Schism of the Lutheran Lama. Many Lutherans, called "Old Lutherans", choose to leave the state church despite prison and military power. Some form an independent church body, or "free church", at home while others leave for the United States, Canada and Australia. The integration of similar legislation in Silesia encouraged thousands of people to join the Old Lutheran movement. The ecumenical dispute overshadows another controversy in German Lutheranism.
Despite the political interference in church life, local and national leaders seek to restore and renew Christianity. Neo-Lutheran Johann Konrad Wilhelm LÃÆ'¶he and free church leader Old Lutheran Friedrich August BrÃÆ'¼nn send young people abroad to serve as pastors to German Americans, while Mission In focuses on renewing the situation at home. Johann Gottfried Herder, the inspector in Weimar and part of the In House Mission movement, joined the Romantic movement with its quest to preserve the human emotions and experiences of Rationalism.
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg, despite appointing the Reformed, became convinced of the historic truth of Lutheranism as a young man. He led the Neo-Lutheran Repristination School theology, which advocated the return of seventeenth-century orthodox theologians and opposed modern Bible scholarship. As the periodical editor of Evangelische Kirchenzeitung, he developed it into the main support of the Neo-Lutheran revival and used it to attack all forms of theological liberalism and rationalism. Although he received a large number of slander and taunts for forty years at the head of revival, he never gave up his position.
Theological faculty at the University of Erlangen in Bavaria became another force for reform. There, professor Adolf von Harless, despite earlier adherents of German rationalism and idealism, made Erlangen a magnet for revolution-oriented theologians. Terminated with the School of Erlangen theology, they developed a new version of the Incarnation, which they felt emphasized the humanity of Jesus better than the ecumenical faith. As theologians, they used modern Hegelian historical and critical philosophical methods instead of trying to revive seventeenth-century orthodoxy.
Friedrich Julius Stahl leads the
The Neo-Lutheran movement succeeded in slowing down secularism and against atheist Marxism, but not entirely successful in Europe. It partially succeeded in continuing the movement of the Pietist movement to a true social error and focusing on individual conversions. Neo-Lutheran calls for renewal failed to achieve widespread popular acceptance as both began and continued with a noble and idealist Romanticism unrelated to an increasingly secular and advanced Europe. At best, the work of local leaders produces certain areas with vibrant spiritual renewal, but the people in the Lutheran region as a whole continue to be further away from the life of the church. In 1969, Manfried Kober complained that "mistrust is rampant" even within German Lutheran parishes.
Doctrine
Bible
Traditionally, Lutherans holding the Old and New Testament Scriptures became the only divinely inspired books, the only source of divinely revealed knowledge, and the only norm for Christian teaching. The Bible itself is the formal principle of faith, the ultimate authority for all matters of faith and morals because of its inspiration, authority, clarity, efficacy, and sufficiency.
The authority of Scripture has been challenged during the history of Lutheranism. Martin Luther taught that the Bible is the written Word of God, and the only reliable guide to faith and practice. He argues that every passage of Scripture has a direct meaning, a literal meaning as interpreted by other Scriptures. These teachings were accepted during orthodox Lutheranism in the 17th century. During the 18th century, rationalism advocated a reason rather than biblical authority as the last source of knowledge, but most laypeople did not accept this Rationalist position. In the nineteenth century, confessional revival reinforced biblical authority and agreement with Lutheran Recognition.
Today, the Lutherans disagree about the inspiration and authority of the Bible. Theological conservatives use the historical-grammatical method of biblical interpretation, while liberal theologians use higher critical methods. The 2008 Landscape Survey conducted by the Pew Research Center surveyed 1,926 adults in the United States who identified themselves as Lutherans. The study found that 30% believe that the Bible is the Word of God and must be understood literally word for word. 40% state that the Bible is the Word of God, but it is not entirely true word for word or unsure whether it is true word for word. 23% say the Bible is written by humans and not the Word of God. 7% do not know, not sure, or have other positions.
Inspiration
Although many Lutherans today have a less specific view of inspiration, historically, Lutherans insist that the Bible not only contains the Word of God, but every word of it, because of the plenary, verbal inspiration, the direct and direct word of God. The Apology of the Augsburg Confession identifies Scripture with the Word of God and calls the Holy Spirit the biblical author. Because of this, the Lutherans confessed in the Concord Formula, "we receive and embrace with all our heart the apostolic and apostolic Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as pure and clean sources of water from Israel." Apocryphal books are not written by prophets or by inspiration; they are guilty of mistakes and have never been included in the Judean Canon used by Jesus; therefore they are not part of the Scriptures. The prophetic and apostolic scriptures are authentic as written by the prophets and apostles. The correct translation of their writings is the Word of God because it has the same meaning as the original Hebrew and Greek. The error of translation is not the word of God, and no human authority can invest it with divine authority.
Clarity
Historically, the Lutherans have understood the Bible to clearly present all the doctrines and commandments of the Christian faith. In addition, Lutherans believe that the Word of God is freely accessible to every reader or hearer of ordinary intelligence, without requiring special education. A Lutheran must understand the language in which the scriptures are presented, and should not be too preoccupied with mistakes so as to prevent understanding. As a result, Lutherans do not believe there is a need to wait for every ulama, pope, cleric, or ecumenical council to explain the true meaning of every part of the Bible.
Benefits
The Lutherans admit that the Scriptures are united by the power of the Holy Spirit and therefore, not just demands, but also create acceptance of his teachings. This teaching yields faith and obedience. The Bible is not a dead letter, but the power of the Holy Spirit is attached to it. The Bible does not impose an intellectual agreement solely on its doctrine, relying on logical arguments, but rather creating a living faith deal. As stated by the Articles of the Smalcald, "in matters concerning the spoken Word, outwardly, we must hold firmly that God gave His Spirit or grace to no one except through or with the outward Word of the past."
Sufficiency
Lutherans believe that the Bible contains everything a person needs to know to earn salvation and live a Christian life. There is no shortage in Scripture that needs to be filled by tradition, papal statements, new revelations, or current doctrinal developments.
Law and Gospel
Lutherans understand that the Bible contains two different types of content, termed Law and Injil (or Law and Promise). The correct distinction between Law and the Gospel prevents the obfuscation of Gospel teaching about justification by grace only through faith.
Lutheran Recognition
The Book of Concord, published in 1580, containing ten documents believed by some Lutherans is a faithful and authoritative explanation of Scripture. In addition to the three Ecumenical Credos, which originated in Roman times, the Book of Concord contains seven credible documents that articulate Lutheran theology in the Reformation era.
The doctrinal position of the Lutheran churches is not uniform because the Justification
The key doctrine, or material principle, Lutheranism is the doctrine of justification. The Lutherans believe that human beings are saved from their sin only by the grace of God ( Sola Gratia ), through faith alone ( Sola Fide ), only Scripture ( Sola Scriptura ). The Lutheran Orthodox Theology states that God created the world, including man, perfect, holy, and sinless. However, Adam and Eve chose to disobey God, believing in their own strengths, knowledge, and wisdom. As a result, people are burdened with original sin, born of sin and can not avoid committing sins. For Lutheran, original sin is "the ultimate sin, the root and the source of all true sin."
Lutherans teach that sinners, while able to do a "good" outward work, are unable to do the work that satisfies God's justice. Every human thought and action is infected with the motive of sin and sin. Because of this, all human beings deserve eternal damnation in hell. God in eternity has changed the heart of his Father into this world and planned his redemption because he loves everyone and does not want anyone to be betrayed eternally.
To this end, "God sent His Son Jesus Christ, our Lord, into the world to redeem and deliver us from the power of the devil, and to bring us to Himself, and to rule us as Kings of righteousness, life, and salvation , death, and evil conscience, "as Luther's Great Catechism explains. Because of this, the Lutherans teach that salvation is possible only because of God's grace manifested in birth, life, suffering, death, and resurrection, and a sustained presence by the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ. By the grace of God, known and effective in the person and work of Jesus Christ, a person is forgiven, adopted as the son and heir of God, and given eternal salvation. Christ, because he is fully obedient to the law with respect to his human and divine attributes, "is the perfect satisfaction and reconciliation of mankind," as the Formula of Concord states, and the results summarize:
[Christ] is subject to the law for us, bearing our sins, and going to his Father to complete and perfect obedience to us the poor sinners, from his birth until his death. Thus he covers all of our disobedience, which is embedded in our nature and in his thoughts, words, and deeds, so that this disobedience is not accounted for as a curse but is forgiven and forgiven by merit alone, for Christ himself.
Lutherans believe that individuals receive the gift of salvation through faith itself. Keeping faith is the knowledge, acceptance, and trust of the promise of the gospel. Even faith itself is seen as the gift of God, created in the hearts of Christians by the work of the Holy Spirit through the Word and the Baptism. Faith accepts salvation from safety. Thus, the Lutheran rejects the common "decision theology" among modern evangelists.
Since the term grace has been defined differently by other Christian church bodies (eg Roman Catholicism), it is important to note that Lutheranism defines grace as being entirely confined to God's gift to us. Justification comes as a pure gift, not something we get by changing the behavior or where we work together. Grace is not about our response to God's gifts, but only of His gifts.
Trinity
Lutheran is Trinitarian. The Lutherans reject the idea that the Father and the Son are the faces of the same people, who claim that both the Old Testament and the New Testament show them as two distinct persons. Lutherans believe that the Holy Spirit comes from both the Father and the Son. In the words of the Athanasian Credo: "We worship one Lord in the Trinity, and the Trinity in Unity, neither confuse the Person, nor divide the Substance, for there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and the other of the Holy Ghost But the Father of the Father , Son and Holy Spirit are one: the same glory, the eternal glory. "
Two natures of Christ
The Lutherans believe that Jesus is the Christ, the savior promised in the Old Testament. They believed that he was good by the nature of God and by human nature in one person, as they admitted in Luther's Little Catechism that he was "the true God begotten of the Father from eternity and also the true human being born of the Virgin Mary."
The Augsburg Confession menjelaskan:
[T] he Son of God, does consider the human nature in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, so there are two natures, divine and human, inseparably bound in one Person, one Christ, true God and true man, born from The Virgin Mary, truly suffering, crucified, dead, and buried, that He can reconcile the Father for us, and be a sacrifice, not only for genuine error, but also for all real human sin.
Sacrament
The Lutherans argue that the sacrament is a sacred act of the divine institution. When they are well managed by using the physical component commanded by God along with the divine words of the institution, God, in a certain way for each sacrament, comes with the Word and the physical component. He sincerely offers to all who receive the pardon of the sacrament of sins and eternal salvation. He also works at the recipients to get them to receive these blessings and to increase the certainty of their ownership.
Lutherans are not dogmatic about the number of sacraments. In line with Luther's early assertion in his Great Catechism, some speak only of the two sacraments, Baptism and the Lord's Supper, although later in the same work he calls Confession and Absolution "the third sacrament." The definition of the sacrament in Apology of the Augsha Confession lists Absolution as one of them. Personal recognition is not done among the Lutherans as often as in the Catholic Church. Instead, it is expected before receiving the Eucharist for the first time. Some churches also allow individual forgiveness on Saturdays before the Eucharistic service. Common recognition and forgiveness of sins (known as the Penitential Rite) is proclaimed in the liturgy of the Eucharist. Lutherans do not emphasize "penance" as vengeance but rather the proclamation of God's forgiveness by the "called and ordained" minister of the Holy Gospel.
Baptism
The Lutherans argue that Baptism is God's salvation, mandated and instituted by Jesus Christ. Baptism is a "means of grace" in which God created and strengthened the "saving faith" as "regeneration leaching" in which infants and adults are born again. Since the creation of faith exclusively is God's work, it does not depend on the actions of the baptized person, whether infant or adult. Although a baptized baby can not articulate that faith, the Lutherans believe that it is present all the same.
Because faith itself receives this divine gift, the Lutherans recognize that baptism "works the forgiveness of sins, gives from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God proclaim." Sticking to the Scriptures quoted in 1 Peter 3:21 "Baptism, according to this, now saves you, not as the removal of the dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ." therefore, the Lutherans give Baptism to infants and adults. In a special section on infant baptism in the Great Catechism, Luther argues that infant baptism is the thing that pleases God because the baptized are reborn and sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
Eucharist
The Lutherans argue that in the Eucharist, also called the Sacrament of the Altar, the Mass, or the Lord's Supper, the true body and blood of Christ is truly present "in, with and under the form" of the sanctified bread and wine for all who eat and drinking it, a doctrine of the Formula of Concord calls the sacramental union.
Confession
Many Lutherans receive the sacrament of atonement before accepting the Eucharist. Before going to Confess and accept Absolution, believers are expected to examine their lives in the light of the Ten Commandments. The Recognition and Denial sequence is contained in the Small Catechism, as well as other liturgical books of the Lutheran Church. Lutherans are usually kneeling on the rails to admit their sins, while the listener listens and then offers forgiveness while laying their accusations at the head of the penitentiary. Reverend is forbidden to reveal anything that is said during Personal Confession and Absolution per Seal of the Confessional, and face excommunication if violated. Apart from this, Laestadian Lutherans have practice confessing sin.
Conversions
In Lutheranism, repentance or regeneration in the strictest sense of the term is a work of divine grace and power by which man, born of the flesh, and hollow of all powers to think, be willing, or do good, and die. in sin is, through the gospel and holy baptism, taken from the state of sin and spiritual death under the wrath of God into a state of spiritual life of faith and grace, given the willingness to do and do what is spiritually good and, in particular, believe in the redeeming benefits that are in Christ Jesus.
During repentance, a person is transferred from impatience to repentance. The Augsburg Confession divides conversion into two parts: "One of them is regret, that is, the terror that destroys conscience through the knowledge of sin, the other is faith, born of the gospel, or of absolution, and believes that for Christ's sake, sin is forgiven, comforting conscience, and liberating it from terror. "
Predestination
Lutherans obey the divine monergism, the doctrine that salvation is by God's own act, and therefore rejects the idea that humans in their fallen state have free will on spiritual things. The Lutherans believe that although humans have free will about civil truth, they can not do spiritual truths in the heart without the presence and help of the Holy Spirit. Lutherans believe that Christians are "saved"; that all who believe in Christ alone and their promises can be sure of their salvation.
According to Lutheranism, the ultimate end of Christianity is the "resurrection of the body and eternal life" as recognized in the The Apostle's Creed rather than predestination. The Lutherans disagree with those who make predestination - rather than the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ - the source of salvation. Unlike some Calvinists, Lutherans do not believe in predestination to curses, usually referring to "our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to know the truth" as evidence contrary to such claims. On the contrary, the Lutheran teaches eternal punishment is the result of the sin of unbelief, rejection of forgiveness of sins, and unbelief.
Divine providence
According to Lutheran, God defends his creation, cooperates with everything that happens, and guides the universe. While the Lord works with good and evil, with the evil doing which he does only because of deeds, but not with evil in it. God agrees with the effect of an act, but he does not cooperate in corrupt acts or crimes as a consequence. The Lutheran believes that everything exists for the Christian Church, and that God guides everything for his well-being and growth.
The explanation of the Apostolic Faith Confession given in the Small Catechism states that all good things are given and protected by God, either directly or through another person or thing. From the services others give us through our families, governments, and jobs, "we receive these blessings not from them, but, through them, from God." Because God uses everyone's useful tasks for good, people can not overlook some useful calls as less valuable than others. Instead, people have to respect others, no matter how low, as the way God uses them to work in the world.
Great work
Lutheran believes that good deeds are the fruit of faith, always and in every instance. Good deeds come from God, not in the hearts of people who fall or in the struggle of men; Their absence will show that faith, too, does not exist. The Lutheran does not believe that good deeds are a factor in obtaining salvation; they believe that we are saved by the grace of God - based on the goodness of Christ in suffering and death - and faith in the Triune God. Good deeds are the natural results of faith, not the cause of salvation. Although Christians are no longer forced to obey the law of God, they are freely and willing to serve God and their neighbors.
Judgment and eternal life
The Lutherans did not believe in the kingdom of Christ in the world a thousand years before either before or after the second coming of the last day. The Lutheran taught that, at the time of death, the Christian soul was immediately taken to Jesus' presence, where they waited for the second coming of Jesus the last day. On the last day, all dead bodies will be raised.
Their souls will then be reunited with the same body they had before dying. The bodies will then be changed, the wicked ones become a state of shame and eternal torment, the righteous to the eternal celestial glory. After the resurrection of all the dead, and the changes of those who are alive, all nations will be gathered before Christ, and he will separate the righteous from the wicked.
Christ will judge everyone openly based on the testimony of their deeds, the good deeds of the righteous in the evidence of their faith, and the wicked acts of the wicked as evidence of their unbelief. He will judge right in front of all the people and angels, and his last judgment will be eternal punishment for the wicked and the gift of eternal life for the righteous.
Comparison between Protestants
Protestant beliefs about salvation vary.
This table summarizes the classic view of the three Protestant beliefs about salvation.
Practice
Liturgy
Lutherans strongly emphasize the liturgical approach to worship; although there is a substantial non-liturgical minority, for example, Lutheran Haugean of Norway. Martin Luther is a great music fan, and this is why he formed most Lutheran services; in particular, Luther admires the composers Josquin des Prez and Ludwig Senfl and wants to sing in the church to get away from ars perfecta (Holy Catholic Holy Music of the late Renaissance) and head for singing as a Gemeinschaft (community). Lutheran hymns are sometimes known as chorales. Lutheran hymnody is renowned for its doctrinal, didactic, and musical richness. Most Lutheran churches are active in music with choirs, handbell choirs, children's choirs, and occasionally altering ringing groups ringing bells at the bell tower. Johann Sebastian Bach, a devout Lutheran, composed music for the Lutheran church.
The Lutherans also preserve the liturgical approach for the celebration of Mass (or the Holy Eucharist/Communion), emphasizing the sacrament as the central act of Christian worship. Lutherans believe that the real body and blood of Jesus Christ is present, with and under the bread and wine. This belief is called the Real Presence or sacramental union and differs from consubstantiation and transubstantiation. In addition Lutheran rejects the idea that fellowship is a symbol or a warning. They confess in the Apology Confession of Augsburg Confession :
[W] e does not abolish the Mass but religiously guard and defend it. Among us, the Mass is celebrated every Lord's Day and at other festivals, when the Sacrament is available to those who wish to take it, after they are examined and released. We also keep traditional liturgical forms, such as reading sequences, prayers, clothes, and other similar things.
In addition to Holy Communion (Divine Ministry), the congregation also has an office, which is worship without fellowship. They may include Matin, Vesper, Compline, and Easter Eve. Personal or family offices including Morning and Night Prayers from Luther's Little Catechism . Food is blessed with Common Desk Prayer , Psalm 145: 15-16, or any other prayer, and after the meal the Lord is thanked, for example, with Psalm 136: 1. In addition, Lutheran uses the book of meditation, small daily devotions, for example, Prayer Portal , to large brevirs, including Breviarium Lipsiensae and Daily Prayer
In the 1970s, many Lutheran churches began to hold contemporary services for the purpose of evangelistic outreach. These services are in a variety of styles, depending on the congregational preferences. Often they are held alongside traditional services to serve people who love contemporary worship music. Today, few but some Lutheran congregations have contemporary worship as their only form of worship. Outreach is no longer given as primary motivation; but this form of worship is seen more in accordance with the wishes of individual congregations. In Finland, Lutherans have experimented with St. Thomas Mass and Metal Mass in which traditional hymns are adapted to heavy metals. The Lutheran World Federation, in its Nairobi Declaration on Worship and Culture, recommends every effort to bring the ministry of the church into a more sensitive position with regard to the cultural context.
In 2006, both the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States (ELCA) and the Lutheran-Missouri Synod Church (LCMS), in collaboration with several foreign language churches in their respective fellowship, released a new hymn: Evangelical Lutheran Worship (ELCA) and Lutheran Service Book (LCMS). Along with this, the most widely used English-speaking church included: Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary (1996, Evangelical Lutheran Synod), The Lutheran Book of Worship (1978, Lutheran Council in the United States), Lutheran Worship (1982, LCMS), Christian Worship (1993, Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod), and The Lutheran Hymnal < 1941, United States Lutheran Gospel Synod Conference). In the Australian Lutheran Church, the official hymn is the Lutheran Hymnal with the Additional of 1986, which included the supplement to Lutheran Hymnal in 1973, itself a substitute for the Australian Lutheran Singing Book < i> in 1921. Prior to that time, two Lutheran church bodies in Australia (which were merged in 1966) used a variety of hymns, usually in German. Spanish-speaking ELCAs often use Libro de Liturgia y CÃÆ'¡ntico (1998, Augsburg Fortress) for service and song praise. Mission
A considerable Lutheran mission emerged for the first time during the 19th century. Early missionary efforts during the centuries after the Reformation were unsuccessful. However, European traders brought Lutheranism to Africa beginning in the 17th century as they settled along the coast. During the first half of the 19th century, missionary activities in Africa expanded, including preaching by missionaries, Bible translations, and education.
Lutheranism came to India beginning with the work of BartholomÃÆ'¤us Ziegenbalg, where a community of several thousand people developed, complete with their own translation of the Bible, catechism, their own hymnal, and the Lutheran flow system. In the 1840s, the church experienced a revival through the work of the Leipzig Mission, including Karl Graul. After German missionaries were expelled in 1914, Lutherans in India became completely autonomous, but retained their Lutheran character. In recent years, India has loosened anti-religious conversion laws, allowing a resurgence in missionary work.
In Latin America, missions began serving European immigrants from Lutheran backgrounds, both German and non-spoken. These churches in turn began to evangelize people in their area who were not from a European background, including indigenous peoples.
In 1892, the first Lutheran missionaries reached Japan. Although work began slowly and major setbacks occurred during the difficult times of World War II. Lutheranism there has survived and become independent. After the missionaries to China, including those from the Chinese Lutheran Church, were expelled, they began service in Taiwan and Hong Kong, the latter being the center of Lutheranism in Asia.
The Lutheran mission in New Guinea, although founded only in 1953, became the largest Lutheran mission in the world in just a few decades. Through the work of the original lay evangelist, many tribes of different languages ​​are reached by the gospel.
Education
The catechism is considered fundamental in most Lutheran churches. Most Sunday schools maintain, and some host or maintain Lutheran schools, in preschool, primary, high school, high school, high school, or university. Lifelong studies of catechism are meant for all ages so that pre-Reformation Church abuse will not happen again. Lutheran schools have always been a core aspect of Lutheran mission work, beginning with Bartholomew Ziegenbalg and Heinrich Putschasu, who began working in India in 1706.
Pastors almost always have a substantial theological education, including Koine Greek and Hebrew Bible so they can refer to the Christian scriptures in the original language. Pastors usually teach in the local language of the local congregation. In the US, some congregations and synods are historically taught in German, Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, or Swedish, but the retention of immigrant languages ​​has declined significantly since the early and middle of the 20th century.
Church fellows
The Lutherans were divided on the issue of church fellowship during the first thirty years after Luther's death. Philipp Melanchthon and his Filipino party felt that Christians of different faiths should join in unity with each other without fully approving the doctrine. Against them stands Gnesio-Lutheran, led by Matthias Flacius and faculty at Jena University. They condemned Philippi's position for indifference, describing it as a "union compromise" of valuable Reformed theology. Instead, they assume that genuine unity between Christians and real theological peace is possible only with an honest deal about every subject of doctrinal controversy.
The complete agreement finally came into being in 1577, after the death of Melanchthon and Flacius, as a new generation of theologians completed a doctrinal controversy based on the Bible in the Formula Concord in 1577. Although they criticized the Division of Christians visible on earth, the orthodox Lutherans avoiding ecumenical fellowship with other churches, believing that Christians should not, for example, join together for the Lord's Supper or exchange pastors if they do not fully agree on what the Bible teaches. In the 17th century, Georgius Calixtus began a rebellion against this practice, sparking a Syncretistic Controversy with Abraham Calovius as his main opponent.
In the 18th century, there was an ecumenical interest between the Church of Sweden and the Church of England. John Robinson, the Bishop of London, planned for the union of British and Swedish churches in 1718. The plan failed because most Swedish bishops rejected British Church Calvinism, although Jesper Swedberg and younger Johannes Gezelius, the bishops of Skara, Sweden and Turku, Finland, support. With the encouragement of Swedberg, a church fellowship was established between the Swedish Lutheran and the Anglican in the Middle Colony. During the 1700s and early 1800s, Swedish Lutherans were absorbed into Anglican churches, with the last native Swedish congregation completing the incorporation into the Episcopal Church in 1846.
In the 19th century, Samuel Simon Schmucker attempted to lead the Evangelical Lutheran General Synod of the United States towards unification with other American Protestants. His attempt to get a synod to reject the Augsburg Confession that supports his compromise Definite Platform failed. Instead, it sparked a Neo-Lutheran revival, prompting many to form the General Council, including Charles Porterfield Krauth. Their alternative approach is "Lutheran pulpit for Lutheran ministers only and Lutheran altars... only for Lutheran communists."
Beginning in 1867, an open-minded and faithful Lutheran in Germany joined together to form the General Evangelical Lutheran Conference against the ever-rising prospect of a state-mandated union with the Reformed. However, they failed to reach consensus on the level of shared doctrine necessary for church unity. Finally, the fascist German Christian movement encouraged the final national incorporation of the Lutherans, Union, and Reformed churches into a Reich Church in 1933, abolishing the previous umbrella of the German Evangelical Confederation Church (DEK), founded in 1945 as a new umbrella. Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD). In 1948, Lutheran church bodies within the EKD established their religious umbrella umbrella, though named after the church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Germany.
Today, Lutherans are divided on how to interact with other Christian denominations. Some Lutherans declare that everyone should share "all the counsel of God" (Acts 20:27) in complete unity (1 Corinthians 1:10) before priests can share the pulpit with each other, and before communicants align themselves at their respective altars , the exercise is called closed (or closed) fellowship. On the other hand, other Lutherans practice different levels of open fellowship and enable preachers from other Christian denominations in their pulpits.
Although not a problem in most Lutheran churches, some of them forbid membership in Freemasonry. In part, this is because the cottage is seen as a spreading Unitarianism, such as the LCMS Short Statement which reads, "We therefore warn against Unitarianism, which in our country has largely desecrated sects and is spreading primarily also through the influence of the lodges. "A 1958 report from the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod publishing house states that," Masonry is guilty of idolatry, and his worship and prayers are idolatry, Masons may not have their hands made idols of gold, silver, wood or stone, but they create one with their own thoughts and reasons from pure human thoughts and ideas.The last one is an idol not less than the first. "
The largest organizations of Lutheran churches around the world are the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), the International Lutheran Council (ILC), and the Confession Evangelical Lutheran Conference (CELC). These organizations together cover the vast majority of Lutheran denominations around the world. The Lutheran World Federation supports World Lutheran Relief activities, aid and development agencies active in more than 50 countries. LCMS and Lutheran Church-Canada are members of the ILC. WELS and ELS are members of CELC. Many Lutheran churches are not affiliated with LWF, ILC or CELC: the Congregation of the Church of Lutheran Recognition (CLC) is affiliated with their mission organizations in Canada, India, Nepal, Myanmar, and many African countries; and those affiliated with the Brother Lutheran Church, are particularly active in missionary work in Africa and East Asia.
World Federation-aligned Lutheran Churches do not believe that a single church is true in its teachings. According to this belief, Lutheranism is a reform movement rather than a movement to doctrinal truth. For that reason, a number of doctrinally diverse LWF denominations, now largely separated from state control, declared mutual fellowship and covenantal agreements with other Lutheran and non-Lutheran Christian denominations.
The Lutheran World Federation and Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod were involved in a series of formal dialogues with the Catholic Church since shortly after the Second Vatican Council. In 1999 LWF and the Catholic Church jointly issued a statement, the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification, stating that both LWF and Catholic agree on certain fundamentals of Justification and adopt certain Catholic anathemas before. apply to church members of LWF. The LCMS has participated in most of these talks, though not those that produced the Joint Declaration and which they were not invited to. While some Lutheran theologians see the Joint Declaration as a sign that Catholics basically adopt Lutheran positions, other Lutheran theologians disagree, claiming that, given the public documentation of the Catholic position, this statement does not apply.
In contrast, the Conference of Evangelical Evangelical Lutherans and the International Lutheran Council as well as some unaffiliated denominations such as the Lutheran Confession Church maintain that the orthodox confessional Lutheran churches are the only church with a wholly true doctrine. They teach that while other Christian churches teach doctrines that are partially orthodox and have true Christians as members, the doctrine of the churches contains significant errors. More conservative Lutherans seek to maintain historical peculiarities while emphasizing doctrinal purity along with gospel-motivated outreach. They claim that LWF Lutherans are practicing "false ecumenism" by wanting a church fellowship beyond the true teaching entity.
Although not an "ecumenical" movement in the formal sense, in the 1990s the influence of megachurches of American evangelicalism has become rather common. Many of the largest Lutheran hearings in the United States have been heavily influenced by these "progressive evangelicals". These influences are sharply criticized by some Lutherans as alien to orthodox Lutheran beliefs.
The Porvoo Communion is an alliance of Lutheran and Anglican churches that is episcopically led in Europe. In addition to its membership in Porvoo Communion, Church of Sweden has also declared full communion with the Philippine Independent Church and United Methodist Church. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has been involved in ecumenical dialogue with several denominations. Recently, the ELCA has declared full communion with several American Churches: the American Provinces of the Moravian Church, the Episcopal Church in the United States, the Presbyterian Church (USA), the Reformed Church in America, the United Methodist Church, and the United Church of Christ.
Worldwide
Today, millions belong to the Lutheran church, which is present in all the inhabited continents. The Lutheran World Federation estimates the membership of their churches is about 72.3 million. This figure is lower than the Lutheran population worldwide because not all Lutheran churches are included in this organization. In recent years, Lutheranism has seen little improvement in its alliance, which continues to this day. Lutheran churches in North America, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean region have declined and no growth in membership, while in Africa and Asia continues to grow. Lutheranism is the largest religious group in Denmark, Faroe Islands, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Latvia, and Namibia. Lutheranism is also a dominant form of Christianity in the countries of White Mountain and San Carlos Apache. In addition, Lutheranism is a major Protestant denomination in Germany (behind United Protestant churches (Lutheran & Reformed), EKD Protestants make up about 26.7% of the country's total population), Estonia, Poland, Austria, Slovakia, Slovenia , Croatia, Serbia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Papua New Guinea and Tanzania.
Although Namibia is the only country outside Europe that has a Lutheran majority, there are many Lutheran bodies in other African countries. In the following African countries, the total number of Lutherans exceeds 100,000: Nigeria, Central African Republic, Chad, Kenya, Malawi, Congo, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe and Madagascar. In addition, the following countries also have considerable Lutheran populations: Canada, France, Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Brazil, Malaysia, India, Indonesia, Netherlands (in Dutch Protestant Church), South Africa, England, and United States, especially in the very German West and Scandinavian West.
Lutheranism is also a state religion in Iceland, Norway, Denmark, Greenland, and the Faroe Islands. Finland has a Lutheran church established as a national church. Similarly, Sweden also has its national church, which is a state church until 2000.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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