We Believe
What (Lutheran) Christians Believe
Christianity is unique among all other faiths, because it is about a relationship rather than religious practice. Rather than living according to a list of "dos and don'ts," the goal of a Christian is to cultivate a close walk with God. That relationship is possible because of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and the continuing work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a Christian.
Christians believe in one God that exists in three persons, Father, Son (Jesus Christ) and the Holy Spirit.
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Portrait of Jesus as he was likely to have looked based on medical, archaeological, geographical and artistic evidence from the time of Jesus.
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Christians believe that everyone was created specifically to have a relationship with God, but that sin separates us from God. Christianity teaches that Jesus Christ walked this earth, fully God, and yet fully human, and died on the cross. Christians believe that after his death on the cross, Christ was buried, rose again and now lives with God the Father, making intercession for the believers forever. Christianity proclaims that Jesus' death on the cross was sufficient to restore the broken relationship between God and humanity caused by sin.
To be saved, we must simply believe that Jesus died in our place and rose again. There is nothing that anyone can do to earn salvation. Nobody can be "good enough" to please God on his or her own.
What Lutheran Christians Believe
Lutherans accept and teach the Bible-based teachings of Martin Luther that inspired the reform of the Christian church in the 16th century. The teaching of Luther can be summarized in three short phrases: Grace alone, Faith alone, Scripture alone...
Today, nearly five centuries later, Lutherans still celebrate the Reformation on October 31 and still hold to the basic principles of Luther's theological teachings, such as Grace alone, faith alone, Scripture alone. These comprise the very essence of Lutheranism:
We are saved by the grace of God alone — not by anything we do.
Our salvation is through faith alone — a confident trust in God, who promises us forgiveness, life and salvation.
About the Bible
Everything Lutherans believe comes from the Bible, God’s message of love and hope for all people. The Bible is the written Word of God, handed down to us in order to point us to the truth that we are saved from our sin and eternal death by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In the Bible we learn everything we need to know about God’s love and gifts to us.
Martin Luther
The church door functioned as a kind of bulletin board, and Luther's intent was to spur debate among the academic community. That document attacked abuses by church, particularly the sale of indulgences by church officials to finance, the construction of a new St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Anyone who purchased an indulgence on behalf of themselves or a deceased relative was promised a reduction in time their souls spent in purgatory. The practice greatly enriched the church, but created great hardship among the poor.
What started as a call for an academic debate escalated into a distinct separation between the Roman Catholic church and those who accepted Luther's suggested reforms. "Lutheran," which began as an insult used by Luther's opponents, became the name of the group that agreed with Luther's convictions. Luther tried to discourage his supporters from calling themselves Lutherans since they really follow Jesus Christ, not Martin Luther.
"What is Luther?" he once wrote. "After all, the teaching is not mine. Neither was I crucified for anyone."
Luther and his supporters identify themselves and their reform movement by the term "evangelical," which means simply gospel or good news. The result of this commitment to communicating the gospel clearly was that Lutherans translated the Scriptures and the worship service from the church's official language, Latin, into German, the language of the people.
It was the gospel message that remained central for Luther, not his leadership. In a sermon preached in Wittenberg shortly after his return from Wartburg Castle, Luther insisted: "I simply taught, preached and wrote God's Word. I did nothing; the Word did everything."
Today, nearly five centuries later, Lutherans still celebrate the Reformation on October 31.
Over the years, different Lutheran church bodies have been established and organized to meet the needs of Lutherans in communities and nations all over the world. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is the largest Lutheran group in North America, founded in 1988 when three North American Lutheran church bodies united: The American Lutheran Church, the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches and the Lutheran Church in America.
But the shape of Lutheranism is changing.
While the majority of Lutherans worldwide still live in Northern Europe, Lutheranism is growing rapidly in other parts of the world. Today there are almost as many Lutherans in Asia and the Middle East (7.4 million) as there are in North America (8.1 million), and there are more Lutherans in Africa (15 million) than there are in Germany (13 million).
To learn more about Martin Luther and the Reformation, see
"Luther Quiz"
"Martin Luther: Reluctant Rebel."
Lutherans are part of a reforming movement within the whole Christian church; as a part of practicing their faith, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and its predecessors have engaged in dialogue with other church bodies for decades. In fact, the ELCA has entered into cooperative "full communion" agreements (sharing common convictions about theology, mission and worship) with several other Protestant denominations, including: Moravian Church, Episcopal Church, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Reformed Church in America, United Church of Christ and United Methodist Church.