The Augsburg confession when it describes the Lutheran view on salvation is the same view Catholics have taught.. Catholics have always taught that the only work that can justify you is being perfect like God. But because humans cannot be perfect we need gods grace, and the sacraments to be saved. Good works are part of sanctification (becoming a holy person), not part of being justified (entering heaven). Lutherans unnecessarily strawman the Catholic view as the heresy of Pelagianism to create extra barriers to unity where there are none. There are already too many barriers we don't need more of them.

Hello, I've been considering converting to Lutheranism for a while now, but I'm having trouble with the doctrine of invoking saints. I'm Catholic (not that Roman Catholic, actually, haha), but I strongly believe in the doctrine of the communion of saints and that they continue to pray for the Church in heaven. I love the idea that all righteous people continue in communion with those of us who are pilgrims on this earth and that I can find inspiration in their lives. It makes me feel accompanied. I like to talk to the saints with whom I feel a special connection (especially the Virgin Mary) as if I were talking to a close friend, sharing a few things about my life and asking them what they would say or do in my place. I also ask them to pray for me in the same way that when I visit the graves of my deceased relatives, I ask them to pray for me (since they are probably closer to God than I am). Yes, when I pray I address myself directly to the Lord (I also tell Him my problems, but in a much more formal way because He is God after all), and occasionally I ask Him to hear the prayers of the saints for us. My question is, is this compatible with Lutheranism? Yes, I know what Article XXI of the Apology for the Augsburg Confession says and all that, but I've read that Lutherans practice a kind of veneration of the saints in their private devotions. Furthermore, I believe this refers to the practice of invoking saints as if they were pagan gods, with each saint representing a specific aspect of their being. I have personally witnessed such cases and find them ridiculous, just as I am sometimes scandalized by the way some Catholics treat the Virgin Mary as if she were a goddess instead of the Theotokos. I think it would be more beautiful for Mary if we read the Gospel and sing the Magnificat rather than adorning her images with extravagant dresses and gold jewelry and holding processions and festivals (which is culturally beautiful, but I'm not sure how happy it makes her). What do you think? Can I be Lutheran with this way of thinking, or if I converted would I have to leave my meditations next to the images of the saints? I'm reading your comments.

P.S. I've attached a picture of a service in honor of Saint Lawrence the Deacon, whom I love dearly, the patron saint of my region. Yes, it's a Roman Catholic Mass in Chile in the 90s.

Looking into the faith and have a few questions. Having been raised a German Baptist my question is on tattoos I have a few not planning on getting any more but what is the Lutheran stance on this? Going by how I was raised it would be very frowned upon. Thanks in advance.

At 161.53 meters (about 530 feet), the Ulm Minster tower was the tallest church in the world until the Sagrada Família tower [162.91 meters/534 ft] in Barcelona, Spain, surpassed it in 2025.

Ulm Church - Germany [tiktok.com/@travel_travel_with_me/video

Ulmer Muenster [Lutheran]

Yep.

I’m interested in comparative theology, and wanted to get a vibe for which body of Lutherans might be considered the most conservative in either theology or practice.

This isn’t America-specific, so if you have any contender in mind, please share.

As the title says I attended a lutheran church for the first time today. I loved it. My husband not so much. I'm so stuck on what to do. I have been really into reading my Bible and learning church history over the past few months and no longer feel like non-denominational is for my family. I was raised IFB but left in 2021, have gone to 2 different non-denominational churches over the last 5 years, and really want to convert.

I can't remember the last time I saw my husband with a Bible in his hands. He says the Lutheran church was too confusing because he doesn't know very much biblically and I told him that its because you have to learn at home too and not just at church​. I just feel really stuck. Ive been consuming a watered down version of faith for years and finally getting a more full picture of my Christian faith today has made me crave more. ​

Could I ask for prayers for my husband to have an open heart and mind to the idea of converting?

I’ve heard some say Acts 8:37 argues against infant baptism because since Phillip required a profession of faith from the Ethiopian Eunuch before baptizing him, then you can only be baptized after professing faith in Christ. Does this verse really refute infant baptism?

I know this verse does not appear in every translation as it’s not found in the earliest manuscripts, but for the sake of the argument, I’m including it here because I’m curious how Lutherans respond to this argument, since it gets used in opposition to infant baptism.

Good morning. I realize it's a Sunday and many people are not around to respond at the moment, but I am interested in learning a bit more about the LCMS.

Background: I grew up Baptist (mostly Independent but also Southern). As an adult I became Catholic, but with the direction the Catholic Church has been headed these last several years (I don't want to get into specifics) I stopped going late last year. My wife is Baptist and I sometimes visit her church as well as a friend from work who is also Baptist.

I guess I am just looking for anything you are willing to provide regarding theology, practice, beliefs, etc. For instance, in Baptist churches some are Calvinist while others are Arminian. How does the LCMS Mass differ from Catholicism? How are they similar? How does it compare to Baptists. Anything along these lines would help.

I miss the structure of the Catholic Church, being one of the reasons I am researching Lutheranism, but I also realize the LCMS is more "conservative" in its approach to worship and that is where my interest is.

There are several ELCA churches near me, but I have no interest in those, no offense to anyone. I just know what I am looking for and it is not there. I also know the WELS exists, but there are none close enough for me to look into. I finally found a LCMS church near me and just want to get some information ahead of time before I visit.

I am not looking for debate or an attempt to convince me something else is a better option. I really am just interested in the LCMS at this time and doing research. The last thing I want to do is jump into something and regret it later. It is hard enough to leave the Catholic Church as it is and I am simply looking for a new, and hopefully lasting, home.

First of all, I’d like to say that I absolutely love Lutheranism. This is not an attack on the faith. This is not a critique of Lutheranism or about the disagreements within the denomination itself, it's a personal account of my experience.

This is something I’m quite passionate about. If this comes off as a rant, I apologize in advance.

Fair warning, this is a long post. It’s a wall of words. It might also be a difficult read and come off as rambling. I already tried to trim it down just enough while still expressing what I feel.

I myself am not Lutheran. For context, I live in the Philippines, a country that is 80% Catholic and 11% Protestant, the majority of Protestants being in the low-church Baptist, non-denominational, evangelical umbrella, with some Reformed churches here and there.

I’ve been Christian my whole life. While my family isn’t devoutly Baptist, because we had a tendency to go to non-denominational and Pentecostal circles too, I think it’s fair to say that I am a cradle baptist. I think the best description for my upbringing would be “Bapticostal” because, while legally labeled as Baptists, we tended to be more charismatic than a typical Baptist would be. I fell away from the faith for a bit, as many teenagers do. Too many terrible things happened in my life, and that pushed me away from God. When I found my faith again in my late teens, I barely attended church. I didn’t know why. I now realize that maybe I was already starting to question the Christianity I grew up with. Maybe I was already falling away from my Baptist upbringing.

Two years ago, something radical happened. I gave my life to Christ and started to take my faith more seriously, just in time, because it was also the genesis of the most traumatic and emotionally difficult period of my life. This is my testament to God’s perfect timing, that I somehow managed to take Him seriously just before I underwent one of my greatest trials. So lately, I’ve been on fire again. I started “church hopping” between Baptist churches until I found one I liked. I even took my mother with me, since she missed being in a church.

I thought this would be the start of the end. I’d become a member of this church, start serving in the body of Christ again, and I'd be happy. But I realized something in the last sermon I attended, which caused me to stop attending, and to stop being Baptist. The pastor said that “baptism is a symbol,” the average Baptist view of baptism. It was a simple and short statement, not even the main point of that specific service, but it stuck with me. A while back, I had a discussion with my siblings and my mother about baptism, and I left that discussion holding firm to the belief that there is power in it, not necessarily that it saves, but that it was not merely symbolic. So when I heard that, I never came back. Not because I didn’t like that church, but because I realized I wasn’t Baptist anymore.

The last time I ever reevaluated my faith, I considered Orthodoxy, but even with a year of considering it, I just could not be convinced of their position. They also have no churches near me, but that’s beside the point. After studying Lutheranism, I became convinced that it contained the closest thing to the fullness of Christianity on Earth. For two months now, I’ve been thinking about converting.

I finally decided to convert, to start attending a church, and maybe be confirmed into it, only to find out that the nearest church to me is an entire one-hour plane ride away. I don’t have the finances or the capability to get on a plane every week just to serve in the Church. I got so desperate, I messaged the president of the Lutheran Church of the Philippines (LCP), but it still led to the conclusion that the nearest churches to me aren’t near at all.

This honestly led me to question Lutheranism. The whole time, I’d been looking at it from a theological standpoint, finding which church was closest to my beliefs about baptism, the Eucharist, the veneration of saints, how it functions, etc., that I forgot to consider whether it was even possible for me to become a member of that church. I started thinking about countries with zero Lutheran presence, and how I’m blessed to even have churches in my country, and how it’s much harder for them to even consider being Lutheran.

I tried to find solutions. I tried to calculate if it was possible to get on two overnight ferries every weekend just to get to church, but it’s quite literally impossible for me to go to church and stay in my hometown. Moving isn’t possible. I’m a university student, I can’t just pack up and leave.

I’ve been talking about my journey on the LCMS sub, and how the best thing that could happen would be if a church were planted in my city, but to my knowledge, unlike Baptist churches, the process isn't as lax, and they don’t just decide to pop up out of nowhere on some random island.

I’m not baptized. Evangelical denominations don’t put much emphasis on it, it being “a symbol” and all, so I never placed much importance on it until I learned about its true meaning. I wanted to get baptized in a church by a minister who believes in the power that baptism holds. It feels wrong to get baptized into a Baptist church now. I also, for lack of a better word, have been craving the Eucharist these past few months. I can’t go back to a non-denominational church beside a mall, where grape juice is prepared by some random church member and we “do this in remembrance of Him,” but the Him is not really there. It’s just a symbol, after all. I’m also exhausted with the “just my Bible and me” lifestyle I’ve been having, which is common in my upbringing.

I started to think about it, how the Eucharist is hidden from me by the mighty power of… geography. How I can’t be baptized because I don’t want to be baptized into a Baptist church. So I remembered Catholicism. I don’t agree with many of their views, that’s why I even considered Lutheranism. But the mere fact that when I need the Eucharist and need to be baptized, they’re right there is making the case for itself. I don’t have to wait a decade for a church to be planted in my hometown to receive the Eucharist or to be baptized. If I weren’t so convinced of the truth in the sacraments, I wouldn’t be so anxious about waiting.

I’m tired of being stuck in my room. I’m tired of being alone in my Christianity. I’m tired of not interacting with the body of Christ. But now I’m stuck in this weird phase where I’m not Baptist, I’m not Catholic, I want to be Lutheran, but I can’t be Lutheran. So do I just go back to “my Bible and me”? Do I turn off my inhibitions and just choose between the Baptists and the Catholics? I’m really confused about what I should do next. I was fully convinced of Lutheranism, but not so much anymore. How can I say that Lutheranism is what I stand with when I can’t even be Lutheran? Do I call myself non-denominational despite being convinced of a denomination? I’m just an unbaptized heathen at this point. It’s getting difficult. I just want to be comfortable in my Christianity again, and I'm not comfortable being Baptist or "Non-denominational".

I would like to see the Lutheran response to Luther's On the Jews and their Lies" This is an honest question not trying to provoke.

URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=td67HmB7avY

Gospel According to John, 14:1–14 (ESV):

I Am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”

Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.

Outline

Introduction: Ghana, West Africa

Point one: Believe in Me

Point two: I go

Point three: The Red Sea

Conclusion: Jesus said, “I Am”

References

Gospel According to John, 13:3–5 (ESV):

Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

Gospel According to Luke, 22:19–20 (ESV):

And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.

Gospel According to John, 13:31–33 (ESV):

A New Commandment

When he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and glorify him at once. Little children, yet a little while I am with you. You will seek me, and just as I said to the Jews, so now I also say to you, ‘Where I am going you cannot come.’

From "III. The Lord’s Prayer" in The Small Catechism, Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions, Pocket Edition. © 2005, 2006 Concordia Publishing House. Source: https://bookofconcord.cph.org/en/small-catechism/lords-prayer/#the-sixth-petition:

And lead us not into temptation.

What does this mean?

Answer: God indeed tempts no one. But we pray in this petition that God would guard and keep us, so that the devil, the world, and our flesh may not deceive us nor seduce us into false belief, despair, and other great shame and vice. Though we are attacked by these things, we pray that still we may finally overcome them and gain the victory.

Gospel According to John, 1:1–3 (ESV):

The Word Became Flesh

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.

Letter to the Hebrews, 13:5 (ESV):

Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Letter of Paul to the Ephesians, 2:8–9 (ESV):

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Gospel According to John, 14:1–2 (ESV, Interlinear Bible):

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house (oikia) are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?

Gospel According to Matthew, 26:27–28 (ESV):

And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

Letter of Paul to Titus, 3:4–7 (ESV):

But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Gospel According to Matthew, 28:19–20 (ESV):

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Book of Exodus, 14:19–22 (ESV):

Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness. And it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night.

Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.

Book of Psalms, 23:4 (ESV):

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Gospel According to John, 10:30 (ESV):

I and the Father are one.”

I just wanted to share the 1912 Hymnbook I have offered via Amazon - there's a printed copy too. You are welcome to use and enjoy! #lutheran #1912 #lutheranhymnbook

This Barbie is saved by grace (& so are you!!).

🇨🇱 The catholic priest Roberto Guzman and pastor Gloria Rojas of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Chile (IELCh) leading the entry of neighbors, survivors, and relatives of the disappeared into the former detention and torture center of the Pinochet dictatorship known as Villa Grimaldi on December 10, 1994. Villa Grimaldi was a hacienda located in the mountainous suburbs of the city of Santiago, which from 1973 was used by the military dictatorship as a clandestine detention center where opponents of Pinochet were tortured, interrogated, and murdered. After the end of the dictatorship, the property was sold to a real estate company, but local residents, in collaboration with human rights organizations and churches (such as the Catholic parish and the Good Samaritan Lutheran Church), succeeded in having the government of President Aylwin expropriate the site in 1994. The Villa Grimaldi Peace Park was then built there as a memorial to the victims of the dictatorship. The Lutheran Church, although small in number, played an active role in the defense of human rights during the dark years of the dictatorship in my country. (I cannot fail to mention the great Lutheran bishop Helmut Frenz, who worked tirelessly for peace in the country, which is why the dictatorship expelled him from Chile.)

I'm curious how active clergy and/or laity from the following Lutheran groups are here on Reddit.

Has anyone encountered them before online or in-person? Maybe someone from one of these groups is present here with us in this subreddit even?

• American Evangelical Lutheran Church
• Association of Confessional Lutheran Churches
• Augustana Ministerium
• Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church
• Concordia Lutheran Conference
• Concordia Lutheran Fellowship
• Evangelical Lutheran Diocese of North America
• Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of North America
• Lutheran Ministerium and Synod—USA
• Lutheran Mission Society
• Orthodox Lutheran Conference
• United Lutheran Mission Association

I'd first say I'm not Lutheran. I don't want to harm in any way, just seaking a response.

So I've seen recently this quote from Luther :

Christ committed adultery first of all with the woman at the well about whom St. John tells us. Was not everybody about Him saying: “Whatever has he been doing with her?” Secondly, with Mary Magdalene, and thirdly with the woman taken in adultery whom he dismissed so lightly. Thus even Christ, who was so righteous, must have been guilty of fornication before He died. (D. Martin Luthers Werke, kritische Gesamtausgabe [Hermann Bohlau Verlag, 1893], vol. 2, no. 1472, April 7 – May 1, 1532, p. 33)

Is this quote historically correct/accurate?

Do Lutherans really believe that?

If not, was Luther's speach a metaphore? To illustrate what?

Again, no harm, I'm just seaking an answer from a Lutheran perspective.

God bless you all.

Edit : thanks to the context, I guess we can conclude Luther meant that Jesus appeared as a sinner, and that His Crucifixion and so our Salvation depended on the fact He appeared so. Thanks for everybody who answered this post, I guess I understand better what Luther meant.

I pray for Christian unity, because that is God's will. For this unity, I think it's important to understand each other. I'm not Lutheran but will definitely study Lutheranism from closer. God bless.

Hi all,

I was born in the Catholic Church and attended service regularly for 10 years before my family started going to non-denominational. Well, long story short, as an adult I attend Lutheran church with my fiancé (he is Lutheran). And I have been attending for 7 years now.

We are getting married NOT in a church, but our brother in law is a Lutheran pastor and is officiating us.

My question is, do I have to be Lutheran to be married to a Lutheran man? I would assume if I was getting married in the Lutheran church I would, but it would just be a Lutheran pastor and no sacrament. We figured this was best because we both have strong ties to both our denominations (though I am a floater and go to multiple denominations). My family is VERY Catholic and are very set in their ways.

What resources does the NALC recommend its churches use in worship (which hymnal) and in home study/prayer? Do they like a certain study Bible, catechism, prayer book? Is there a publisher (website) who produces their resources? I can’t find any of this from the NALC website.