Reformation

Reformation, October 31, 1517, is a big day for us Lutherans. It marks the day that Martin Luther posted his Ninety-five Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany for all to see. Lutherans believe that our salvation is a gift from God and not from anything we have done. It is a gift we receive because of our faith and not because of any good works that we have done. Concordia Publishing House (CPH) has a wonderful resource if you are interested in learning more about Lutheranism. Lutheranism 101 is a wonderful resource on the basics of Lutheransim while also covering a lot of information.

There I began to understand that the righteousness of God is that by which the righteous lives by a gift of God, namely faith. And this is the meaning: the righteousness of God is revealed by the the gospel, namely, the passive righteousness with which merciful God justified us by faith, as it is written, "He who through faith is righteous shall live." Here I felt that I was altogether born again and had entered paradise itself through open gates. There a totally other face of the entire Scripture showed itself to me.

Martin Luther, Luther's Works. American Edition 34:337

My children actually seated themselves in "our" pew before church began. Aren't they cute? I didn't even have to go searching for them.

What could be better than to have a baptism on Reformation Sunday?

"Receive the sign of the holy cross both upon your forehead and upon your heart to make you as one redeemed by Christ the crucified."

"I baptize you in the mane of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."

"Through Baptism God has added you to his own people to declare the wonderful deeds of our Savior, who has called us out of darkness into his marvelous light."

Here's a little video for your entertainment. You might even recognize some of the people in the video.