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Lutheran

Grew from
Roman Catholic
From
1517 AD
Origin
Wittenberg
Confession
Augsburg Confession 1530 AD

Began with Luther's protest over indulgences and the authority behind them; the first Reformation body to produce a confession of its own.

What marks it out

Justification by faith alone as the article by which the church stands or falls. Law and gospel distinguished sharply, as two different words God speaks. Christ's body and blood truly present in, with and under the bread and wine — close enough to Rome to divide Luther from Zwingli at Marburg in 1529 and so to divide the Reformation itself. A high view of the sacraments, retained liturgy, and congregational singing in the vernacular, which Luther wrote for.

Figures

Alongside it

Also from Roman Catholic.

In the record

  1. 1517 AD Reform

    The Reformation begins

    Luther's objections to indulgences opened a wider argument about authority, scripture and justification that divided western Christendom.

What it holds

Each position in the terms this tradition itself uses, with its confessional source.

Baptism Church-dividing
Baptism works forgiveness and new birth, and is offered to children, who are thereby received into God's grace. Augsburg Confession, Article IX (1530)
Church authority Church-dividing
Bishops have authority to preach and administer the sacraments, but not to impose what scripture does not require. Augsburg Confession, Article XXVIII (1530)
Justification Church-dividing
Sinners are justified freely on account of Christ, through faith, and not for any merit or work of their own. Augsburg Confession, Article IV (1530)
Mary Church-dividing
Mary is worthy of honour and called blessed, but is not to be invoked; Christ alone is mediator. Augsburg Confession, Article XXI (1530)
Scripture and tradition Church-dividing
Scripture is the only rule and norm by which all teaching is to be judged; the creeds are received because they agree with it. Formula of Concord, Epitome (1577)
The Lord's Supper Church-dividing
The body and blood of Christ are truly present and distributed in, with and under the bread and wine, without the substance of bread being destroyed. Augsburg Confession, Article X (1530)
The saints and intercession Church-dividing
The saints are to be remembered and imitated, but scripture nowhere commands invoking them. Augsburg Confession, Article XXI (1530)
The state after death Church-dividing
Purgatory is rejected; the dead rest until the resurrection. Smalcald Articles, II.ii (1537)
How many sacraments Genuine disagreement
Two are certainly sacraments, baptism and the Supper; absolution is sometimes counted a third. Augsburg Confession, Article XIII (1530)
Icons and images Genuine disagreement
Images are permitted and used for teaching; they are neither commanded nor forbidden. Formula of Concord (1577)
Ordination of women Genuine disagreement
Practice differs by church body: many Lutheran churches ordain women, others do not. Contemporary practice, summarised
Perseverance of the saints Genuine disagreement
Faith can be lost through unbelief or grievous sin, and is restored through repentance. Formula of Concord, Article XI (1577)
Predestination and free will Genuine disagreement
Election to salvation is by grace alone, but the lost are condemned by their own resistance; God is not the cause of anyone's damnation. Formula of Concord, Article XI (1577)
How the cross saves Difference of emphasis
Holds substitution together with Christ's victory; the cross is both payment and conquest. Held across the confessional standards; no tradition makes one theory a test of communion.
Spiritual gifts Difference of emphasis
Extraordinary gifts are not required; the ordinary means of word and sacrament are emphasised. Lutheran teaching, summarised
The millennium Difference of emphasis
Amillennial; the Augsburg Confession explicitly rejects the expectation of an earthly golden age before the resurrection. Augsburg Confession, XVII (1530) for the Lutheran position; otherwise contemporary practice, summarised.
Inspiration of scripture Broad agreement
Held in common with all the traditions listed here; not a point of division. Held across all confessional standards
Salvation originates in grace Broad agreement
Held in common with all the traditions listed here; not a point of division. Second Council of Orange (529)
The Incarnation Broad agreement
Held in common with all the traditions listed here; not a point of division. Nicene Creed (381); Chalcedon (451)
The Resurrection Broad agreement
Held in common with all the traditions listed here; not a point of division. Nicene Creed (381); Chalcedon (451)
The Trinity Broad agreement
Held in common with all the traditions listed here; not a point of division. Nicene Creed (381); Chalcedon (451)

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