Gwen Stefani

Lutherans teach that sinners cannot do anything to satisfy God's justice. What condemns them is that they are sinful from the start. For Lutherans, it is not actual sins -- the sinful acts committed by an individual -- that damn someone. Because of this Original Sin -- the sin from which all other sins come -- all descendents of Adam and Eve (thus, all humans) are born in sin and are sinners.

However, Adam and Eve chose to disobey God, trusting in their own strength, knowledge and wisdom. Lutherans believe God made the world, humanity included, perfect, holy and sinless. The central teaching of Lutheranism is the doctrine of salvation by God's grace alone (Sola Gratia), through faith alone (Sola Fide) for the sake of Christ's merit alone (Solus Christus). Those who hold to the former reject modern liberal scholarship, while those that hold to the latter embrace it.

Some Lutheran church bodies also teach Biblical inerrancy. Others adopt the viewpoint that the Bible contains God's Word, but is essentially a human document, subject to error in non-spiritual matters. For this reason, Lutherans who follow the Book of Concord closely, especially conservative Lutherans, often refer to themselves as Confessional Lutherans. Other Lutherans, who agree with the main teachings of the Lutheran Confessions, but may take exception to some of its doctrine, subscribe to the Book of Concord in so far as they are in harmony with Holy Scripture. Traditionally, Lutheran pastors, congregations and church bodies agree to teach in harmony with the Book of Concord because it teaches and faithfully explains the Word of God. Lutherans also hold that the Holy Scripture is explained and interpreted by the Book of Concord -- a series of Confessions of faith composed by Lutherans in the 16th Century.

One of the signature teachings of the Lutheran Reformation is the teaching named Sola scriptura -- "Scripture alone." Lutherans believe that the Bible is divinely inspired and is the only standard by which teachings and doctrines can be judged. Thus, approximately 1 out of every 20 Christians in the world is a Lutheran. Today, approximately 1 out every 4 Christians in the world is a Protestant, and 1 out of every 5 Protestants in the world is a Lutheran. Because Luther sparked this mass movement, he is known as the father of the Protestant Reformation, and the father of Protestantism in general.

In the years and decades following Luther's posting of the 95 theses on the door of the Wittenberg church, large numbers of Europeans left the Roman Church, including the vast majority of Germanic people (the only Germanics who remained in the Catholic church were those under the domain and/or influence of Catholic Austria and Bavaria or the electoral archbishops of Mainz, Cologne, and Trier). Luther and his followers began a large exodus from the Catholic Church known as the Protestant Reformation. This book is still used today, and is referred to as the Book of Concord. This document is known as the Formula of Concord, and in 1580, all documents were bound and distributed in a volume titled The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church.

In 1577, the next generation of Lutheran theologians gathered the work of the previous generation to define the doctrine of the persisting Lutheran church. However, the Lutheran movement was far from defeated. After the conclusion of the Schmalkald War, Charles V attempted to impose Catholic religious doctrine on the territories that he had defeated. These princes would ally to create the Schmalkaldic League in 1531, which lead to the Schmalkald War that pitted the Lutheran princes of the Schmalkaldic League against the Catholic forces of Charles V.

Several of the German princes (and later, kings and princes of other countries) signed the document to define "Lutheran" territories. At the Diet, Philipp Melanchthon presented a written summary of Lutheran beliefs called the Augsburg Confession. Lutheranism would become known as a separate movement after the 1530 Diet of Augsburg, which was convened by Charles V to try to stop the growing Protestant movement. But the 1529 session, also meeting Speyer, the decision the previous Diet of Speyer was reversed — despite the strong protests of the Lutheran princes and free cities (giving rise to the term protestant).

At the 1526 session of the Diet, meeting that year in Speyer, it was decided that, until a General Council could meet and settle the theological issues raised by Martin Luther, the Edict of Worms would not be enforced and each Prince could decide if Lutheran teachings and worship would be allowed in his territories (Cuius regio, eius religio). The conflict would erupt even further into a religious war, fueled by the political climate of the Holy Roman Empire and strong personalities on both sides. What had started as a strictly theological and academic debate had now turned into something of a social and political conflict as well, pitting Luther and his German supporters against the king of Spain (the francophone Charles V who also ruled the Low Countries, the New World and the Holy Roman Empire -- of which Germany was then a part), and the Italian Pope, as well as the supporters of the latter two. Shortly after Luther escaped, Charles V issued the Edict of Worms, which outlawed Luther and his followers, declared Luther and his followers heretics, and banned Luther's writings.

More importantly, the ruler of Luther's land, Frederick the Wise, refused to allow any of his subjects to be condemned without trial. Angered, Charles V wanted to outlaw Luther and his followers, but he was warned by advisors that doing so outright would cause a revolt, since Luther had become so popular. Concerned about the "problem" of Luther, the Pope and Catholic officials decided to send Luther the papal bull called the "Exsurge Domine" in 1520, which called on Luther to recant and abandon his ideas. Luther also gained some powerful enemies, including the Pope in Rome and the youthful Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.

As a result, Luther gained many supporters and followers from all levels of society, from peasants who considered him a folk hero, to knights who swore to protect him, to rulers of German lands who wanted more independence from papal interference in their domestic policies. Between 1517 and 1520, Luther preached and published his scathing criticisms of the Catholic Church in books and pamphlets. His ideas were supported by many other Christian theologians, and they also had a certain populist appeal. The symbolic beginning of the Protestant Reformation occurred on October 31, 1517, when professor Luther posted an open invitation to debate his 95 theses (statements) involving current Catholic dogma and practices upon the door of All Saints Church (customarily used as a notice board by the University) attached to the castle in Wittenberg, Saxony (Germany). Lutheranism as a movement traces its origin to the work of Martin Luther, a German religious scholar who sought to reform the practices of the Roman Catholic Church in the early 16th century.

See Protestantism for further discussion. The Lutheran movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity by the original definition. writer and radio host Garrison Keillor. Seuss and John Updike.

writers Dr. travel writer Rick Steves. theologian Richard Charles Henry Lenski (immigrated from Prussia). sports figures Troy Aikman, Dale Earnhardt, Lou Gehrig, and Tom Landry;.

several current and former US governors, as well as several dozen US congressman and senators;. musicians Kris Kristofferson and John Mellencamp;. militaryman Norman Schwarzkopf;. filmmaker John Woo;.

entertainment journalists Mary Hart and Pat O'Brien;. co-founder and CEO of Apple Computer Steve Jobs;. comedian Dana Carvey;. Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court William Rehnquist;.

cartoonist Gary Larson;. Macy, and Bruce Willis;. actors David Hasselhoff, William H. This figure includes both Brazilian LWF and non-LWF churches.

Australian Census statistics show that there are 250,000 Lutherans living in Australia[4] (http://www.adherents.com/loc/loc_australia.html). Canadian census statistics show that there are 640,000 self-described Lutherans living in Canada[3] (http://www.statcan.ca/english/Pgdb/demo32a.htm). That means there are 13.6 million American Lutherans.[2] (http://adherents.com/rel_USA.html#families). The American Religious Identification Survery (ARIS) found that 4.6% of Americans are self-described Lutherans.

In 2003, the Latvian Lutheran church estimated the number of Lutherans in the country to be 556,000[1] (http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2004/35465.htm). The EKD (Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland - German Evangelical Church) released a figure in November 2004 that said that 25.8 million Germans (31.3% of the national population) are Lutherans. Others – 20,000. Guyana – 10,000.

El Salvador – 10,000. Chile – 20,000. Bolivia – 20,000. Argentina – 50,000.

Brazil – 940,000 ⁶. Others – 30,000. Bangladesh – 10,000. Philippines – 30,000.

Japan – 30,000. Hong Kong – 40,000. Malaysia – 90,000. Australia – 250,000 ⁵.

Papua New Guinea – 960,000. India – 1.7 million. Indonesia – 4.3 million. Others – 20,000.

Rwanda – 20,000. Botswana – 20,000. Angola – 20,000. Ghana – 30,000.

Central African Republic – 60,000. Liberia – 70,000. Kenya – 90,000. Zimbabwe – 110,000.

of) – 140,000. Congo (Democratic Rep. Cameroon – 280,000. South Africa – 880,000.

Namibia – 920,000. Nigeria – 1.3 million. Tanzania – 2.5 million. Ethiopia – 4 million.

Canada – 640,000 ⁴. USA – 13.6 million ³. Others – 30,000. Slovenia – 20,000.

Netherlands – 20,000. Lithuania – 20,000. Serbia – 50,000. Romania – 50,000.

Poland – 80,000. United Kingdom – 120,000. Czech Republic – 150,000. Estonia – 200,000.

France – 260,000. Russia, Belarus, Ukraine combined – 270,000. Iceland – 270,000. Hungary – 300,000.

Slovakia – 370,000. Austria – 380,000. Latvia – 560,000 ². Norway – 3.9 million.

Finland – 4.6 million. Denmark – 4.6 million. Sweden – 7.2 million. Germany – 25.8 million¹.

Ambassador Publications (http://www.aflconline.org/parish-ed/index.html) (AFLC). Openbook Publishers (http://www.openbook.com.au/) (Lutheran Church of Australia). Northwestern Publishing House (http://www.nph.net/) (WELS). Augsburg Fortress (http://www.augsburgfortress.com/) and Fortress Press (http://www.fortresspress.com/) (ELCA).

Concordia Publishing House (http://www.cph.org/) (LCMS). Amillennialism. The Real Presence of Christ's Body and Blood "in, with and under" the Bread and wine of the Lord's Supper. Baptismal Regeneration.

Infant Baptism. Unlike Calvin, who explained how the reprobate come to be damned (double predestination), Luther said it was a mystery -- something which humanity cannot, and probably should not, comprehend. Single Predestination: God chose to save His children before the world was created, but does not predestine the lost to be damned.