Taking a Look at Lutheranism

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“If you don’t believe in God, you had better hope your right!” All religions basically believe in one God. Lutheranism is no exception, and as it just so happens it is very close to the Catholic religion I practice. This paper will attempt to explain the Lutheran Church and how it came to be.
Martin Luther, a German monk, known to many as the “Father of Reformation” did not initially or intentionally, start the Lutheran religion. However, his teachings became the cornerstone of what is known today as the Lutheran Religion. Marting Luther was born in Germany in 1483, became a monk, got ordained in 1507 then began to teach at the University of Wittenberg. Even though Martin Luther was ordained in the Catholic Church he became torn as some of the acts of the church he believed to be wrong. So began the reform.
Luther thought that the specific act in the Catholic Church of indulgences was wrong so he decided to try to reform the Catholic Church through his own teachings. Martin believed that the act of taking money in return for a promise of eternal happiness with God was wrong. This is what some of the Catholic leaders were doing and as time went on the act of accepting indulgences became greater and greater. Indulgences, in simpler terms, meant a peasant could pay to have his sins forgiven. You could literally, according to the clergy, buy your way out of Hell and/or buy less time in Purgatory! The reformation that Luther had hoped for the Catholic Church did not work. They were many other reasons that Martin Luther had issues with the Catholic Church besides the indulgences, but that was the big one. Others included, but are not limited to, priest celibacy, the great respect for saints, sacred images and the idea that the pope wa...

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...days to remember great saints, and so forth. They also have a couple that are specific to their own history, including the celebration of Reformation Day on October 31st, generally regarded as the day when Martin Luther launched the Reformation. Interestingly enough, it coincided with All Saints Day celebrations, where the Church remembers all who have died in Christ with the hope of salvation and redemption.

Lastly, the great leaders of the Lutheran Religion would of course include Martin Luther himself and today the Lutheran Church does not have one particular leader like the Catholic’s have a Pope. The leaders include a council and assembly of Church members, and today if they had to “pick” a leader it would most likely be the presiding Bishop, Reverend Elizabeth A. Eaton. The presiding bishop’s serve a six year term and her term just began November 1, 2013.

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