Lutheran History

Lutheranism began in Germany in the 1500’s (1517) as a reform movement within the Catholic Church. Martin Luther, then a monk, priest, and Bible scholar, challenged practices of that time which he believed did not fully reflect the biblical teaching that we are put in right relationship with God only through what God, in and through Jesus, first did for us and not what we need to do first in order to be worthy of God’s love, mercy, and forgiveness.

“Justification by grace alone through faith alone” is at the heart of the Lutheran Reformation.
God’s free gift of love, mercy, and forgiveness is called grace. A simple way to put it is that “God always makes the first move”; God comes “down” to us because He is good, not because (or until) we are good enough; or that we, somehow, have to “meet God half-way”. He comes to us.

The worship, teaching, and leadership offices of the Church are intended to serve and proclaim that truth.
Although Martin Luther did not intend to break away from the Catholic Church, for many reasons division quickly became inevitable and was final by around 1530.

Luther did not wish the reform movement to be named for him (intended originally as an insult by his opponents, but quickly adopted by followers), however, “Lutheran” was widely used even in his lifetime.
Lutheran reforms spread throughout much of Europe, especially in Germany, as well as in most of Scandinavia (Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, etc.). In many of the European countries, however, the Lutheran reforms were suppressed and they returned to the Roman Church.

In addition to Lutheranism, other reforms in various countries (Zwingli- Dutch Reformed, Calvin- Swiss, Calvinism, Anglican in England, and the Anabaptists) also broke with the Roman Church and spread beyond their borders into other areas.
Today, there are approximately 75 million Lutherans throughout the world and in almost every country, with the fastest growing Churches in Africa and Asia.

Lutherans have been in the United States since the 1600’s and their numbers increased with various waves of immigration. Lutherans have a long history in Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York, as well as in many Midwestern states. Lutherans established hospitals, orphanages, colleges, and schools, many of which are still in operation.

Originally, Lutheran immigrants clustered into independent Church groups based largely upon language and culture. As the immigrants became more assimilated into American culture, especially after World War 2, these independent groups began to merge. Some groups (Missouri [1847] and Wisconsin Synods [1850]) formed around cultural and theological differences in the understanding of Lutheranism and remained separated. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) was formed in 1988 after a merger of three Church bodies: The Lutheran Church in America, the American Lutheran Church, and the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches.

There are approximately 8 million Lutherans, assembled in three major Church bodies, in the United States today: The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (3.5 million members), Lutheran Church Missouri Synod (2.1 million members), and Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (approximately 370,000 members). The remaining numbers belong to smaller Lutheran Church bodies.

Lutherans have been in discussions with various Protestant denominations since the 1930’s and with the Roman Catholic Church since the 1960’s. Among the goals of these discussions are celebrating what is held in common, exploring differences, cooperation in service and outreach, as well as working for more visible unity.
The ELCA is in “full communion” relationship with the Episcopal Church, the United Church of Christ, the Reformed Church, the Presbyterian Church (PCUSA), the United Methodist Church, and the Moravian Church.