Who is the head of the Lutheran Church. Ingria Evangelical Lutheran Church

Features of the Evangelical Lutheran doctrine

At the center of Evangelical Lutheran theology is the doctrine of justification by the grace of God (by grace) through faith. It can be concretized and developed through a fundamental the difference between the law and the gospel... According to the Lutheran doctrine, God speaks to man in two completely different ways. These methods are called Law and Gospel... The Law and the Gospel, according to classical Lutheran theology, are two fundamentally different Words of God, two fundamentally different images through which God speaks to people.

According to Martin Luther, the law is all the requirements that God makes to people (both through the written commandments in Scripture and through the voice of conscience), and the requirements, in his opinion, are obviously impossible in their fallen state. The main requirement is to love God above all else. Thus, the law shows a person all his inconsistency and sinfulness, and also reveals to him the incredible holiness of God. Thus, the only thing that the law can, according to Luther, is to bring a person to despair.

The law should show a person that none of his deeds, none of his qualities and efforts can help him approach God, who is infinitely distant in His holiness. Indeed, walking along the path of fulfilling the law, trying to justify himself before God through the fulfillment of the law, a person in one way or another relies on himself, on his deeds and forces, and not on God, and thus, willingly or unwillingly, puts himself at the center of his religious life. Therefore, the path of the law for Martin Luther is the path of "damnation and damnation only."

The Lutheran doctrine especially emphasizes: the most important and, in fact, the only thing that God requires of us is that people honor Him as God, that is, that they completely and completely trust in life and death, in time and in eternity. To God. However, man's sin lies precisely in man's turning to himself, his distance from God.

In most religions, and in many Christian churches, they teach that a person himself must, to one degree or another, improve morally, “work on himself,” sin must be overcome from within a human being. And thus, salvation becomes a human matter. Man relies partly on himself, and therefore he cannot place all his trust wholly and completely on God. Thus, as strange as it sounds, according to the Lutheran doctrine, the more pious and religious a person is in the traditional sense, the further away he is from God. This is the tragedy of human sin: even if a person really becomes better by his efforts, he still thereby moves away from God.

The Gospel, as the Word of God, teaches Martin Luther, fundamentally other than the law... It expresses the absolute and unconditional acceptance of man by God; puts the relationship between man and God on a completely different basis. If a person comprehends the Gospel, then he no longer has to do something for his salvation. He simply understands that he is already saved, saved without any merit or effort on his part. He owes his salvation only to God. A person no longer looks at himself, but at Jesus Christ, trusts only in Him. This is faith: a look outside oneself, a look at Christ, a refusal to save oneself, complete and undivided trust in God alone.

Lutheran worship and the Lutheran church

The main elements of Lutheran worship are preaching and ordinances. A sermon is a free speech of a pastor or preacher addressed to a specific community, proclaiming the Gospel, the message of God's forgiveness and acceptance.

In Lutheran theology, two sacraments are recognized as sacraments - baptism and communion. In baptism, through pouring water on the believer, the forgiveness of his sins for Christ's sake is announced. Infant baptism means that only God can save man, but not man himself.

The sacrament likewise proclaims peace with God and the forgiveness of sins: "I may doubt whether the pastor's words about God's forgiveness concern me personally, but I cannot doubt the simple fact of my baptism or the fact that I can regularly receive communion." At the same time, for Lutherans, the sacrament (as well as baptism) is not just a sign. According to the Lutheran doctrine, in the sacrament, a person is faced with the real presence of Christ.

The Lutheran doctrine of the church also follows from the doctrine of worship. The Church (in contrast to Orthodox or Catholic theology) is not a "divine-human organism", not a mystical connection with Christ or a "continuation" of Christ in this world. For Lutherans, the Church is not a mediator in the matter of salvation and is not a "vessel of grace"; it does not in itself possess a saving value. She is just a gathering of people listening to the Word of the Gospel. The center of the church and its foundation is outside it, in Jesus Christ. In the understanding of Lutherans, a church is a community of people centered on Jesus Christ, on the Gospel.

Evangelical Lutheran Ethics

Evangelical-Lutheran ethics are characterized by the following features: realism; evangelical spontaneity and situationality; positive attitude towards the world.
Realism Lutheran ethics is expressed primarily in Luther's the doctrine of the two kingdoms, which underlies the interaction of the church with the state and society. According to this teaching, God rules the world in two completely different ways. First, He works through the Word of the Gospel, through the unconditional forgiveness and salvation of sinners. The proclamation of this Word is the direct and immediate task of the church. Second, God works through worldly institutions, laws, and orders. The task of state power, socio-political and economic institutions is to take care of the earthly welfare of people, to solve their external problems and to contain evil. This area of ​​life is also controlled by God.

Worldly life is not autonomous. She, too, is in the hands of God. However, here God rules in a completely different way. In worldly life, different laws apply than in the proclamation of the gospel. For example, violence may well be used in order to resist evil (the need for a police force or an army is justified precisely by this).

The task of the state and society is to take care of the welfare of man. The Church must recognize this task of the state, respect and accept it. This can be expressed primarily in prayer for the state, authorities, for success in political or economic life. The Church, being a social institution, cannot shirk from fulfilling other, albeit secondary to her, but still important tasks. Where the state does not fulfill its main task or does not perform it well enough, the church can and should criticize it, suggest ways to solve problems: to call to abandon the excessive use of violence or to resist xenophobia widespread in society, etc. Nevertheless, the church cannot take on the problems of the state, although it must resist the state if it imposes on it forms of life that are contrary to the Gospel. This was the case in Nazi Germany, when many church leaders actively opposed the state persecution of Jews, rescuing people doomed to be sent to concentration camps and die.

The second feature of Lutheran ethics is the evangelical spontaneity and situationality... For example, in a discussion about whether it is necessary to give alms to a beggar if you know beforehand that he will not dispose of it in the best way, opinions differ. The typical answer is that charity should be given, because it is important not so much for the beggar as for yourself. Lutheranism is categorically against this, since it believes that a good deed is only truly good if it is done not out of a desire to win God's approval or even improve oneself, but out of spontaneous and selfless desire to help your neighbor. Therefore, a truly moral impulse is not the fulfillment of an abstract law, general commandments, but the search for a way to effectively help a person in need. Accordingly, in a situation requiring an ethical solution, a Lutheran is guided not only by “eternal” norms and commandments, but also by the specific situation in which he finds himself and which, perhaps, requires an unconventional approach.

From this come two features of the Lutheran Church: the first is the seeming "dryness and bureaucracy" (after all, it is necessary to accurately identify the need and determine the ways of help), but at the same time the effectiveness of its social, diaconal ministry. The second one is greater than that of other churches, readiness for new, non-standard approaches in solving ethical issues, with full awareness of their responsibility for these decisions: to act not according to the written law, but out of love. Love is very specific, it always looks at the specific need of a specific person, and not at some eternal principles.

The third most important feature of Lutheran ethics is positive attitude towards the world... The origins of this attitude were also laid by Martin Luther, and their essence is as follows. Medieval culture was in many ways a culture of asceticism. M. Luther opens a completely different view of the world to man. It was created by God for the joy of people, therefore true spirituality cannot consist in escape from the world. Only by living in the world can you live a truly spiritual life. Moreover, living in peace does not mean accepting everything difficult and sad and avoiding the joys of the world.

For Luther, religious life, true spirituality, not only included the bodily aspect, but also demanded it. Physicality is an integral aspect of human life. According to the Lutheran conviction, we should not divide our life, our needs into “sublime” and “low”, “spiritless”. To give up human needs is to resist God. For Lutheran ethics, there is nothing shameful about human sensuality.

Reasonable fulfillment of needs and a sense of responsibility before God and neighbors - this is what determines human behavior. Therefore, a close-knit large family seems to be the most natural and preferable form of organization of human life, and nevertheless, from the point of view of the Lutheran Church, it is difficult once and for all to draw absolutely clear boundaries of what is permissible. Therefore, many modern Lutheran theologians, in every possible way emphasizing the unconditional value of the family, are nevertheless ready to conduct a critical dialogue about other forms of realization of human sexuality, in no way promoting its dubious forms, but at the same time carefully considering the needs and requirements of specific people. For example, active discussions are underway on the problem of church attitudes towards an officially unregistered "civil marriage." Most theologians do not reject premarital intimate relationships.

Any honest work becomes God's calling in Lutheranism. But not only work, profession is a vocation, everyday family life is also a vocation. Luther thought, for example, that it was great that the father changes and erases the diapers, people scoff at this, but God, along with all the angels, smiles at this. According to Luther, real spirituality, a spiritual calling is to honestly lead a simple, worldly, family life. For Lutherans, the ideal was and still is a friendly, large family. At the same time, equality and the need for mutual service to each other, men and women, are emphasized today. The patriarchal distribution of roles both in the family and in society is considered obsolete.

Organizational structure and features of religious practice

Each Lutheran Church is independent. Often, on the territory of one state, several Lutheran churches can exist at once, differing from each other in their historical and ethnic roots, traditions or theology. There is no single center capable of making decisions binding on all Lutheran churches. Nevertheless, the overwhelming majority of them are united in the World Lutheran Federation, which is engaged in the development of intra-confessional ties, as well as relations with other Christian communities. The Lutheran World Federation attaches great importance to humanitarian and social service in the world.
Each local congregation resolves its issues at its own meeting, and in the intervals between them, the congregation is led by the church council (congregation council) together with its pastor. Several congregations of one church and one region can be united into a probation (dean's office) with a probst (dean) as a spiritual leader. It should be borne in mind that the church ministry in Lutheranism is significantly different from the ministry that exists in some traditional churches (especially Orthodox and Catholic). A pastor in Lutheranism does not differ in his spiritual status from other believers. Every believer in the power of Baptism is a priest, that is, he does not need intermediaries in his relationship with the Lord and has the right and spiritual ability to preach the Word of God ( doctrine of the universal priesthood of believers). However, since order is necessary in the church, in order to avoid chaos, the ministry of public preaching and teaching of the sacraments, as a rule, is entrusted only to certain specially appointed people - pastors. In this sense, the ministry of a pastor is no different from any “worldly” calling. It is no more "sacred". The pastor has no special "grace" or special "spiritual gifts." He receives the spiritual prerequisites for his ministry not as a result of ordination (ordination), but, like any other believer, even in Baptism. The need for a pastoral ministry is rather not a spiritual, but an organizational, technical nature.

Since the pastor is not a priest in the Catholic or Orthodox sense of the word and in the spiritual sense is no different from other believers, since in Christ, in the light of the Gospel, external differences between people are erased, then in most Lutheran churches both men are called to the pastoral and episcopal ministry, and women.

The order of worship in different Lutheran churches and congregations may vary. The Lutheran Church in this area is ready to accept completely new approaches, as well as to revive ancient traditions. An important for Lutherans is the rite of confirmation, in which girls and boys (after appropriate, sometimes many years of training) publicly testify to their faith and receive a blessing from the pastor. This rite grew, on the one hand, from the sacrament of chrismation, which is still preserved in the Orthodox or Catholic Church, on the other hand, from the need to instruct young people in matters of doctrine.

The conclusion of a marriage is accompanied by a beautiful and solemn wedding ceremony, which, however, is not considered a sacrament. It is only a prayer for the newlyweds, their vow to lead a Christian life in marriage and their blessing for living together. Marriage is understood as a "secular affair" (Luther), and the moment of its conclusion is the moment of its official registration. Divorce is not prohibited. A remarriage is also possible, although it requires a more thorough preliminary counseling conversation with the pastor.

Pastors and preachers of the Lutheran Church usually wear special vestments during services and official acts. It can be a black talar (the same as the familiar judicial robe) or the more ancient, traditional Western church white robe - alba. There is no specifically prescribed outside service attire, but many pastors wear a collar shirt (a special collar with a white stripe or insert). In some churches, each pastor wears a service pectoral cross, in others, such crosses are only allowed to be worn by probes and bishops.

Lutheran churches can be built in any architectural style. If a particular community does not have a church building, it can conduct its services in any technically suitable place or even in the open air.

During the service, parishioners sit on chairs or benches, rising (or sometimes kneeling) only during prayer or at the most important moments of the liturgy. Music plays a huge role in the life of the Lutheran Church. From the very beginning, the Reformation movement won new adherents with its chants. Even now, Lutheran worship cannot be imagined without community singing. These can be ancient church chants translated into modern language, chorales from the time of the Reformation (many of which were written by Luther himself), chants of later times, modern spiritual songs from different countries and traditions.

An organ is installed in almost every Lutheran church. Without the names of such church musicians and deeply religious Lutherans, such as, for example, Dietrich Buxtehude or Johann Sebastian Bach, it is impossible to imagine world culture. Having such a rich heritage, the Lutheran Church today pays great attention to the preservation and development of musical culture. The decoration of a Lutheran church can be very modest, creating a sense of emptiness. Such, which F. Tyutchev described in his famous poem: I Lutherans love the divine service, Their rite is strict, important and simple - These bare walls, this temple is empty. I understand a high teaching.
(I Lutheran love worship ...)

But the Lutheran church can be richly decorated, full of paintings and sculptural images.

There are no uniform rules and canons here. It is only important that all the decoration of the church and everything that happens at the service helps believers to focus on the perception of the Gospel. Lutheranism builds its relations with other Christian churches on the principle of mutual respect and mutual interest.

Lutheran theologians conduct fruitful dialogue at various levels with the Orthodox, Catholic churches and other Christian denominations. Although there is still a long way to go before full church communion, Lutherans hope that the principle of reconciled differences may ultimately prove productive in relations with these churches.

The first Lutherans appeared in Russia already in the 16th century. The first Lutheran church in Moscow was built in 1576, several decades after the Reformation.
Today, due to a number of circumstances, the Lutheran Church consists of two structures: Evangelical Lutheran Church and Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ingria in Russia. The first unites parishioners primarily of German origin, the second - Finnish. The total number of Russian Lutherans today is 50,000-150,000.

Lutheranism(on behalf of founder Martin Luther) - Christian Protestant teaching that arose in 16th century as a result reform movement in Germany. Basic principles creeds were formed during struggle Lutheranism with abuse, widespread in the roman catholic church as well as with others more radical Protestant teachings such as Anabaptism, Calvinism, etc.

Martin Luther(1483-1546) was born in Saxony, in the city of Eisleben. Although the Luther family was poor, Martin was able to get a good education, graduated from the University of Erfurt. Refusing to teach, M. Luther, accepts monastic tonsure and becomes catholic priest... Usually the moment of the founding of Lutheranism is associated with October 31, 1517 when Luther spoke openly criticizing the Roman Catholic Church by nailing a plaque with 95 theses to the door of his church in Wittenberg. But the term "Lutherans" itself first appeared only in 1520 year, and it was used by opponents of the doctrine exclusively in derogatory sense. During the counter-reformation Lutherans, like other Protestants, were subjected to severe persecution by the Roman Catholic Church.

All provisions Lutheran doctrine set out in Book of Consent... Its quintessence is 5 principles, formulated in the form of short Latin slogans:

• Sola Gratia - "Only mercy": people cannot deserve eternal life with God by any of their deeds, this gift can be received by them only in the form of God's mercy expressed through Jesus Christ;
• Sola Fide - "Only Faith": atonement for sins can be obtained only through faith in the gospel of Christ, but a person has a free will - to accept this faith or to reject it;
• Sola Scriptura - "Only Holy Scripture": only the Bible is revered as an accurate and infallible expression of the divine will, and all subsequent religious texts (sacred traditions, works of theologians, etc.) can be accepted only in the part in which they are consistent with Scripture. This also applies to the works of M. Luther himself, who is respected, but not made of him a cult;
• Solo Christo - "Only in Christ": salvation can be obtained only through Jesus Christ, who united the divine and human principles in a single Hypostasis;
• Soli Deo Gloria! - "Glory to God alone!" Lutherans worship only God, although they respect the memory of the Mother of God and other saints.

Lutherans only recognize 2 sacraments: baptism, through which people become Christians, and participles, through which faith is strengthened. Wherein priests in the Lutheran community are perceived exclusively like preachers, nothing not exalted above the laity.

Unlike Catholics and Calvinists, Lutherans spend clear border between spheres of action Gospel and worldly laws... The first relates to the church, and the second to the state. Law seen as God's wrath, Gospel same - how God's mercy.

Lutheran worship services characterized by choral performance hymns (sometimes the number of choir members reaches several thousand), as well as the use organ music, in particular many works Johann Sebastian Bach written by specially for Lutheran gatherings.

Among the others famous Lutherans contributing great contribution to art and science, V.I. Dahl (Russian writer and lexicographer), I.V. Goethe (German poet, naturalist), G.R. Hertz (German physicist), F.F. Bellingshausen (Russian navigator), I. Kepler (German astronomer) and many others.

Currently, there are about 85 million Lutherans... After the emergence in Germany, the teachings of Luther spread to European countries- Austria, Hungary, France, the Netherlands, the Scandinavian and Baltic regions, later penetrated to North America... As prevailing religion Lutheranism now exists in northern Germany, Scandinavia, Finland and the Baltics. On Russian territory Lutheranism has spread since the 16th century, thanks to German settlers... Wherein there is no single world Lutheran church- there are several fairly large church associations and a number of independent denominations, which are divided into two groups:

• Liberals, most of whom perceive Lutheranism as good tradition, while extremely rarely attend services; this direction of Lutheranism recognizes women priests(Lutheran Maria Jepsen became the world's first female bishop) and same-sex marriage;
• Confessional Lutherans- more to onconservative, oppose the ordination of women and the blessing of marriages between sexual minorities.

Lutherans made a significant contribution to development of art... In particular, great attention has always been paid to architectural beauty of churches(church), executed in baroque, classical and modern styles. At the same time, the doctrine does not impose any requirements on the aesthetic design of church buildings, which provides architects wide freedom for creative expression... As well as painted buildings, Lutherans paid attention portrait painting: the appearance of many leaders of the Reformation was immortalized by such famous artists as Albrecht Durer and Lucas Cranach the Elder.

Lutheranism has played key role in reforming Christian church, becoming the first Protestant teaching who spoke openly against abuse Catholic Church, giving way to the spread humanistic values in the north of Europe.

WHAT DO LUTHERANS BELIEVE?

LUTHERAN SERVICE

ORIGIN OF THE LUTHERAN CHURCH

LUTHERAN'S CHURCH TODAY

The most important and, in fact, the only thing that God requires of us is that we honor Him as God: that we put all our hope only on Him, so that we completely and completely trust in life and death, in time and in eternity. His.

Man's sin consists precisely in the fact that he is not capable of such a thing, that he thinks more of himself than of God, that his heart does not belong entirely to the Lord. Sin is not individual actions, but a person’s remoteness from God, in a person’s turning to himself.

In most religions, and in many Christian Churches, they teach that a person himself must become pleasing to God in one way or another, must work on himself, that sin must be overcome by the inner forces of man. Because of such calls, a person turns to himself again and again. Salvation becomes his business. He trusts, at least in part, in himself. And therefore, he cannot place all his trust wholly and completely on God. Thus, the more pious and religious a person is, the more he relies on his own strength, and the further away he is from God. It's a vicious circle. This is the tragedy of human sin: even if a person really becomes better by his efforts, he still, thereby, moves away from God. And this tragedy is inevitable, because man is so made. Everything around us teaches us that if we want to achieve something, we need to make an effort to this, we need to change something in ourselves. In Lutheran teaching, this is called law. Fulfilling the law outwardly, a person may look very righteous, but since this righteousness is achieved through the efforts of the person himself, it leads him away from God, and therefore such righteousness is a product of sin.

The way out of this vicious circle was given to us by God Himself in Jesus Christ: through His death and Resurrection God forgave us, accepted us. Accepted without any conditions, once and for all. This story is called the Gospel. The gospel completely overturns the habitual worldview. If a person comprehends the Gospel, then he no longer has to do something for his salvation. He just realizes that he is already saved. Saved without any merit. He owes his salvation only to God Himself. His salvation and all the best and greatest man now sees not in himself, but only in God. This is faith: a look outside oneself, a look at Christ, a refusal to save oneself - complete trust in God. A believer becomes righteous precisely when he refuses to attain his righteousness and accepts that he, as he is, righteous or unrighteous, is accepted by God. As if, without looking back, a person rushes into the open arms of God, no longer thinking about himself. It is the righteousness of the gospel, the righteousness of faith. Righteousness based not on one's own achievements and actions, but only on God's forgiveness. The believer does not ask himself: "Have I done enough for my salvation, have I sincerely repented of my sins, do I firmly believe?" The believer thinks only of Christ, of what He has done.

To believe means to understand that nothing that is inside me can become the reason for my salvation.

To believe means: in the midst of all doubts and temptations to look outside yourself - at the crucified Christ and only at Him.

This is the fulfillment of what God requires: to rely entirely and completely on Him, to be focused only on Him, only in Him, and not in oneself to seek salvation. Therefore, only faith (and not deeds, not work on oneself) is salvific. Rather: not faith itself, but what we believe in - God, as He was revealed to us in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Around this central affirmation (confession), this radical focus on Jesus Christ, the rest of the faith of the Lutheran Church is formed, while it retains most of the traditional dogmas of Christianity.

LUTHERAN SERVICE

Do not seek your own merits, but, recognizing your helplessness in the face of sin, completely trust God - to believe. Because of his sinfulness, this is very difficult for a person, almost impossible. Therefore, it is necessary to proclaim the Gospel to him again and again, turning his gaze outside himself - to the cross of Jesus Christ. Over and over again, a person needs to proclaim the forgiveness given to him by God. To remind again and again that it is not he who saves himself, that his salvation is the merit of Christ alone. This is the main meaning of Lutheran worship. The entire course of the service and the entire structure of each church building is subordinated to this goal.
The story (proclamation) of salvation is carried out in different forms, primarily in the sermon.
Therefore, in every church there is a pulpit from which a pastor or preacher reads his sermon. Preaching is the proclamation of the Gospel in a living and free form, focusing on the actual situation of believers, accessible and understandable to them. Therefore, preaching is the center of Lutheran worship.
The second center is the Sacrament of the Sacrament (Eucharist), which is performed at Lutheran services on a regular basis (in some communities every week or even more often). The altar in every church is the table for this sacred meal. The Sacrament of the Sacrament for Lutherans is the same Word of forgiveness, “spoken” in a particularly material form. Taking bread and wine in the Sacrament, the congregation partake of the Body and Blood of Christ. This means that God's love itself touches them in a material, tangible way, that they literally take into themselves the forgiveness proclaimed by God in the death of Jesus Christ. Therefore, on the altar, as a rule, there is a crucifix lit by candles, reminiscent of the death of the Savior on the cross. Also on the altar is the Bible, which is the oldest and most authoritative testimony of Christ.
The altar is open (everyone can approach it: an adult and a child, a woman and a man): Christ calls everyone to His meal; He calls everyone to hear and taste the Word of salvation. All Christians are usually invited to Communion in the Lutheran Church, regardless of their affiliation with one Church or another, if they admit that in this Sacrament they receive the Body and Blood of Christ.
It is not uncommon to see a board with numbers in the church. These are numbers of chants from special collections that are in the hands of the parishioners. At each service, as a rule, several church hymns are sung. These chants were written by Christians of various times and peoples. These are the testimonies of their faith, their prayers and their confessions, to which we join in our singing today.
In the Lutheran church, it is customary to sit on benches or chairs during services so that nothing interferes with the focused perception of the sermon. It is customary to rise from the benches or kneel down only during prayer or at especially important and solemn moments of the liturgy.
Often after the sermon, donations are collected for community or charitable needs.

The service is usually led by an ordained pastor or preacher. However, he does not have any special "grace", he does not differ from other believers. A pastor is an appropriately educated person who, on behalf of the Church, is officially charged with publicly preaching the gospel and teaching the Sacraments.

Concentration on the manifold proclamation of the Gospel (the story of forgiveness and salvation that God gives to man), openness, simplicity, modesty and at the same time careful preservation of the ancient traditions of the Christian Church - these are the main features of Lutheran worship.

ORIGIN OF THE LUTHERAN CHURCH

The medieval German theologian and church leader Martin Luther (1483-1546) was one of those believers who were especially keen on the question of their salvation. He was taught in the monastery that only he will be saved who can sincerely and deeply repent of his sins before God. Luther invariably asked himself: "How do I know that my repentance is sincere and deep enough, how can I know if I have done enough to save myself?" In the end, his answer was: “I don’t know if my repentance is enough, I don’t know if I am worthy of salvation. Most likely not. But I know one thing: Christ died for me. Can I doubt the power of His Sacrifice? Only on her, and not on myself, will I put my trust. " This discovery shocked and inspired many of his contemporaries. Within the western medieval Church, a party of its supporters is rapidly forming, who wish to renew the church's doctrine and preaching. This is how the Reformation begins. Luther himself did not seek to separate from the existing Church and create a new one. His only goal was for the preaching of the Gospel to sound freely in the Church, whatever its external structures, traditions and forms. However, due to historical reasons, the split was inevitable. One of its consequences was the emergence of the Lutheran Church.

LUTHERAN'S CHURCH TODAY
Separate Lutheran Churches, each of which is independent, are today most common in Germany, Scandinavia, the Baltic States and the United States. There are many Lutherans in Latin America and Africa. There are about 70 million Lutherans in the world. Most of the Lutheran Churches are united in the Lutheran World Federation (LWF). Also, most of the Lutheran Churches are in full communion with the Reformed (Calvinist, Presbyterian) Church and with a number of other Protestant Churches that have remained faithful to the traditional principles of the Reformation. Lutheran theologians conduct an interested and fruitful dialogue with representatives of Orthodoxy.

The contribution of the Lutheran Church to the development of theology, to world and Russian culture is enormous. Albrecht Dürer, Johann Sebastian Bach, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Wilhelm Küchelbecker, Paul Tillich, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Rudolf Bultmann are just some of the famous names. Each of them was a staunch Lutheran.
Many researchers associate the economic prosperity and political successes of the modern West with the ethics of the Reformation, which values ​​hard work, responsibility, honesty, following duty, caring for others, the ability to stand firm on one's own feet, but condemning unnecessary luxury.
Already in the sixteenth century, Lutherans appeared in Russia. Before the October Revolution of 1917, Lutheranism was the second largest Church in the Russian Empire in terms of the number of believers and numbered several million believers, mostly of German origin. The head of the Russian Lutheran Church was the Emperor of the Russian Empire himself. In Soviet times, the Lutheran Church on the territory of Russia was almost completely destroyed. Only a few scattered communities managed to survive.
Today there is a complex and laborious process of the revival of the Lutheran Church in Russia and her search for new ways of preaching the Gospel in a completely new situation for her in the modern world.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church is a gathering of people deeply affected by the event of the life, death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Only in this event do they see the basis and center of their spiritual life.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church is a community of people who realize the depth of their guilt before God, all their sinfulness, but at the same time boldly rely on God's love and forgiveness.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church is a traditional Church that recognizes and accepts the main Christian beliefs:
- about the Trinity of God
- about the Divinity of Jesus Christ
- about the need for the Sacraments (Baptism and Communion).
But, at the same time, this is the Church, constantly striving for a new understanding of ancient truths, not afraid to reflect on theological problems, pose new, sometimes "inconvenient" questions and seek their answers to them.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church recognizes the truth of other Christian Churches proclaiming Jesus Christ, is open to dialogue with them and is ready to learn from them.
In her teaching, worship and customs, the Evangelical Lutheran Church is guided by the forms and traditions developed over the millennia in Western Christianity.
Members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church are not fanatics, but ordinary people who are not isolated exclusively in their own circle, but are ready to communicate. People who live a normal daily life, who know how to appreciate the joys of the world around them and do not refuse them.

In his polemic against Luther and his supporters. Moreover, this definition was used in a derogatory sense. Only over time did the name acquire a neutral connotation. Luther rarely used it; it does not appear in the Book of Concord. Even at the beginning of the 17th century, the term was not generally accepted - theologian Philip Nicolai was surprised that in Holland they called German Protestants that way. This name began to be used more widely only after the end of the Thirty Years War. Nevertheless, the terms "evangelical Christianity" and "evangelical Christians" are more correct.

History

Creed

The creed (denomination) is exhaustively stated in the Book of Concord. Lutherans consider themselves to be Trinitarians theists (Holy Trinity) and confess the God-human nature of Jesus Christ, crucified on the cross, descended into hell, rose again and ascended into heaven, so that at the end of time he would come again to judge the living and the dead. An important place in the doctrine is occupied by the concept of original sin, which can be overcome exclusively by the action of grace (Latin Sola Gratia), expressed in faith (Latin Sola Fide). At the same time, denying the role of freedom in salvation, Lutherans do not deny freedom in worldly affairs, therefore they are not supporters of predestination (God knows everything, but not everything predetermines). They consider the Bible (lat. Sola Scriptura) to be the main and only criterion for the correctness of faith. As an additional authority, Lutherans resort to the Holy Tradition of the Church Fathers and other traditional sources, not necessarily Lutheran, but emphasizing that they (like the Book of Concord) are true as much as they correspond to Scripture (the Bible), and in no case are self-sufficient. The same critical view is applied to the opinions of theologians who stood at the origins of the confession, including the writings of Luther himself, the attitude to which among Lutherans is respectful, but without cult.

Lutherans recognize two sacraments: baptism and communion (at the same time, the Apology of the Augsburg Confession includes confession and ordination as sacraments, art. XIII). Through baptism, people become Christians. In the sacrament, they are strengthened in faith. A feature of the Lutheran communion within the Western tradition is that all believers, and not only priests, receive communion with the chalice. This is due to a special view of the church, where priests are only pastors (preachers), that is, only special professionals in their community, and are not raised above the laity in any way. Meanwhile, the Lutheran Church traces its succession back to apostolic times. This succession is not necessarily understood directly, as, for example, in Orthodoxy, but rather in a spiritual sense [ ]. In the strict sense, they do not have the status of a sacrament: confirmation, wedding, funeral service and ordination.

Theology

Liturgical practice

Lutherans celebrate the Liturgy as the highest divine service, including confession and absolution, with the blessings of the sign of St. cross, traditional liturgical chants (Kyrie, Gloria, Sanctus, Agnus Dei).

State of the art

More than 85 million people all over the world consider themselves to be Lutheran. However, due to geographical, historical and dogmatic reasons Lutheranism is not a single church. There are several large church associations that are very different from each other in dogmatic and practical issues - the Lutheran World Federation, the International Lutheran Council, the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference, and there are also a number of Lutheran denominations that are not included in any associations. Formally, the largest Lutheran denomination is currently the Church of Sweden (about 6.9 million people). Lutheranism is much less homogeneous than other groups of churches that recognize apostolic succession. Actually in Lutheranism there is also a "high church" trend, which considers (and not without reason) itself as reformed Catholics.

Liberal denominations

The liberals, who formally constitute the majority, consider it a good tradition to belong to the Evangelical Church. Many of them do not attend or rarely attend church services. In some liberal communities, sometimes rather unusual services are held - for example, with the presence of pets (which is motivated by the commonality and value of all living things). Most of the liberal denominations are united in the Lutheran World Federation. This association includes, among other things, the "old" state (or formerly state) Churches of the Old World. The liberal movement is trying to include all people in the church, regardless of the biblical texts, the literal reading of which justifies the exclusion from the church of representatives of quite a few strata of modern society (the Church of Sweden turned out to be the most consistent in this regard). At the same time, it cannot be said that the liberals constitute the majority in the WLF; nevertheless, they are the most visible and influential.

Denominational denominations

Confessional Lutherans are more conservative, do not recognize not only the female priesthood and same-sex marriages, but even inter-communion with Anglicans and Calvinists. In their polemics with liberals, they appeal to the Bible and the Book of Concord. Most of the denominational churches are members of the International Lutheran Council. The most conservative are united in the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference.

Discussion questions

The subject of fierce controversy is such innovations of liberal Lutheran denominations as the ordination of women (the world's first female bishop was Lutheran Maria Jepsen) and the blessing of same-sex marriages, which are rejected by the denominational. Lutheran Bishop Gunnar Staalset criticized the position of Catholics who prohibit the use of condoms.

The relationship of Lutherans with other faiths

Lutheranism in the CIS countries

Lutheranism in Russia

Lutheranism appeared on the territory of Russia back in the 16th century thanks to German settlers. In 1832, all streams and organizations of Lutheranism (with the exception of Finland and Poland proper) were united into the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Russia (ELCR), which received a single charter, according to it, the head of the church was the Russian emperor, but his non-interference in religious affairs was stipulated ...

In Soviet times, the church was destroyed by 1938. In September 1948, an Evangelical Lutheran congregation was registered in Latvia, the first in the USSR and then in Estonia. In 1980, there were about 80 registered Lutheran communities. However, they were all independent from each other, not united into a church.

During perestroika, the state recognized the entire Church and it was necessary to recreate the structure of government. The head of the newly formed church was Harald Kalnins (who had previously visited congregations in Russia for a long time on his own initiative), who was consecrated by the bishop in Riga. The reconstructed church was named "German Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Soviet Union". In 1990, the Consistory (the head of the church) was established.

• After the collapse of the USSR, formally independent Lutheran denominations arose in most of the newly formed states, which, however, united into one union - ELKRAS. ELKRAS is believed to be the church of the German tradition. However, today there is no strict ethnic orientation, although some congregations receive official support and funding from the Evangelical Church of Germany [ ]. For a long time ElKRAS did not have a single administrative and spiritual center. Today, the Spiritual Administration is carried out by the Archbishop, more recently Dietrich Brouwer has performed his duties. The central office is located in St. Petersburg. Administrative centers in Moscow and Omsk.
• In 1992 the Church of Ingria separated from it.
• For a long time, the mission of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church (EELC) existed in Siberia, which in 2003 became an independent Siberian Evangelical Lutheran Church with its center in Novosibirsk. It is a supra-ethnic Lutheran church with parishes located in both the Eastern and European parts of Russia.
• The Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Augsburg Confession (ELCAI) is a Lutheran denomination established in 2006 (officially registered in 2007). Positions itself as a supranational church. It was created after the Church of Ingria and ELKRAS refused to accept new Lutheran communities created on the territory of the Russian Federation. She has repeatedly shown the initiative to unite with other Lutheran churches, stating that the only purpose of its creation is to provide the opportunity for legal registration of Lutheran communities that were not accepted into the composition of pre-existing churches. ELC AI is consistently establishing cooperation with Lutheran churches outside the Russian Federation, in particular with Lutherans in Germany, Sweden and Finland.
• Evangelical Lutheran Church "Consent" - One of the five officially registered Lutheran churches in the Russian Federation. It was formed with the assistance of missionaries from the Synod of Wisconsin at the end of the 20th century. In 1992, a group of believers from the Novosibirsk Academgorodok invited missionaries to organize a conservative Lutheran church in Russia with its center in Novosibirsk. In 1996, the Concord Evangelical Lutheran Church became independent from the Wisconsin Synod and entered the international conference of the most conservative Lutheran Churches (CELC). Now the church has six parishes, there are four Russian pastors and a missionary pastor. The Chairman of the Synod is Pastor Arkady Pavlovich Sedelnikov. The leading theologian and professor of the Theological Seminary is Pastor Alexei Evgenievich Feringer.

Lutheranism in Ukraine

Spreading

Art

Architecture

Unlike many Protestant denominations, Lutherans attached great importance to architecture, as a result, most churches are, if not architectural masterpieces, then the attractions of the settlements in which they are located. Some of the buildings passed to the Lutherans from Catholics (though not always peacefully), then buildings were built in modern (at the time of construction) styles - baroque, then classical. Since the end of the 19th century, the neo-Gothic style was very actively used, later, in the 20th century, a large number of Art Nouveau churches were built. The doctrine itself does not impose any restrictions on the style of church buildings, therefore, if the customer has the means and desire, the architect has a noticeable freedom for creativity.

Music

Lutheran liturgical gatherings are characterized by choral performance of hymns (including by all those gathered, and there may be several thousand of them), as well as the active use of organ music, which can either accompany the singing of chorales or be sung separately. One of the most famous and prolific composers who composed music for Lutheran gatherings is Johann Sebastian Bach. In the XX and XXI centuries, modern musical styles began to be actively used, including since 2004 metal masses have been held in Finland.

Painting

Unlike the Calvinists, the Lutherans never rejected church painting, however, it is not given such a sacred meaning as the Catholics. Since the doctrine does not attach significant importance to the decor of churches, images in churches are often limited to the presence of an altar picture or mosaic, stained-glass windows may be found. On the other hand, if desired and possible, a complex decoration with paintings in a variety of styles can be created. For example, the Church of the Ascension in Jerusalem, the Memorial Church of the Protest in Speyer, etc. are richly decorated.

In addition to the painting of buildings, there is also a portrait Lutheran painting. So, the appearance of many leaders of the Reformation is known from the works created, among other things, by Albrecht Durer and Lucas Cranach the Elder.

Graphics

This genre was also developed due to the need to illustrate printed books, including the Bible. A similar trend appeared already during the Reformation, but did not stop in subsequent centuries. For example, in the 19th century, the German romantic artist Julius Schnorr von Karolsfeld created a cycle of engravings on various biblical subjects, which is actively reprinted to the present day.

Notes (edit)

1. Mitrokhin L. N. Lutheranism// New Philosophical Encyclopedia /; Nat. socio-scientific. fund; Prev. scientific-ed. Council V.S.Stepin, deputy chairpersons: