Difference Between Wesleyan and Lutheran?

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I know there are many differences within Lutheran and Wesleyan denominations, but generally speaking, from a theological perspective, what is the difference between Wesleyan theology and Lutheran theology?
 
jinc1019 said:
I know there are many differences within Lutheran and Wesleyan denominations, but generally speaking, from a theological perspective, what is the difference between Wesleyan theology and Lutheran theology?
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Martin Luther left the Catholic Church directly. He was a leader in the magisterial Reformation, meaning that he believed that church and state should be interrelated. Lutherans also kept many of the practices of Catholics.

Wesleyans derive their theology from John Wesley. Wesley was an Anglican priest who was dissatisfied with the coldness and going-through-the-motions attitude of many Anglicans at his time. Wesley became a leader among evangelical Anglicans and other Christians in England. They began to look for a more deeper peity and a more holy and faithful life. They were very methodical about how they structured their spiritual lives, and became known as Methodists. Methodists and other Wesleyans have traditionally placed a very big emphasis on sanctification and holiness.
 
There is a big difference between Wesleyan ( Methodist ) and Lutherans. A good book on this subject is The Lutheran Difference, An Explanation & Comparison of Christian Beliefs. This book can be found at cph.org or amazon.com.
 
I appreciate the post! I am not sure I agree that Martin Luther truly believed that government and religion should be intertwined. Rather, he was a practical man and understood he needed the support of secular leaders.

I appreciate the background information but I was hoping to find out more about the theological differences. Any help with that would be great!
 
hn160 said:
There is a big difference between Wesleyan ( Methodist ) and Lutherans. A good book on this subject is The Lutheran Difference, An Explanation & Comparison of Christian Beliefs. This book can be found at cph.org or amazon.com.
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Thank you for the information! I greatly appreciate the book reference.

Since you are LCMS, I was wondering you could answer another somewhat related question…How much conformity does the LCMS require for lay members? In other words, if an LCMS member has a different view of predestination or something that differs with the creed…or perhaps the view that the office of the Pope is the Anti-Christ, can a member continue being in good standing in the LC-MS and receive communion? Or, must everyone accept every word of the confessions?
 
jinc1019 said:
Thank you for the information! I greatly appreciate the book reference.

Since you are LCMS, I was wondering you could answer another somewhat related question…How much conformity does the LCMS require for lay members? In other words, if an LCMS member has a different view of predestination or something that differs with the creed…or perhaps the view that the office of the Pope is the Anti-Christ, can a member continue being in good standing in the LC-MS and receive communion? Or, must everyone accept every word of the confessions?
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The Lutheran confessions, I forgot which, does say the Pope is the anti-Christ.
 
pablope said:
The Lutheran confessions, I forgot which, does say the Pope is the anti-Christ.
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The Lutheran Confessions state that the Office of the Papacy is the anti-Christ, not the person of the Pope. We would not have a problem with the office of the Bishop of Rome.
 
jinc1019 said:
Thank you for the information! I greatly appreciate the book reference.

Since you are LCMS, I was wondering you could answer another somewhat related question…How much conformity does the LCMS require for lay members? In other words, if an LCMS member has a different view of predestination or something that differs with the creed…or perhaps the view that the office of the Pope is the Anti-Christ, can a member continue being in good standing in the LC-MS and receive communion? Or, must everyone accept every word of the confessions?
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Since the LC-MS practices closed communion, it is assumed that everyone at the altar rail is of like mind on doctrine and practice the same as it is for Catholics. At my church, the pastor would not commune anyone that he knows that is not a LC-MS Lutheran, living in sin or not in agreement with Church doctrine.
 
hn160 said:
Since the LC-MS practices closed communion, it is assumed that everyone at the altar rail is of like mind on doctrine and practice the same as it is for Catholics. At my church, the pastor would not commune anyone that he knows that is not a LC-MS Lutheran, living in sin or not in agreement with Church doctrine.
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We have a LCMS church in our area that I believe does allow non-LCMS members to commune; however, you need to speak to the pastor first regarding your beliefs (found this out on their website).

The ELCA allows anyone to commune with them–they are pretty loosey-goosey.
 
hn160 said:
The Lutheran Confessions state that the Office of the Papacy is the anti-Christ, not the person of the Pope. We would not have a problem with the office of the Bishop of Rome.
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What is the difference between the bishop of Rome and office of the Papacy? They are symbiotic.

Are you trying to rationalize the Lutherans of calling the Pope the Anti-Christ?
 
hn160 said:
Since the LC-MS practices closed communion, it is assumed that everyone at the altar rail is of like mind on doctrine and practice the same as it is for Catholics. At my church, the pastor would not commune anyone that he knows that is not a LC-MS Lutheran, living in sin or not in agreement with Church doctrine.
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I understand that they practice closed communion…But for instance, if you didn’t believe the office of the Pope is the Anti-Christ, can you take communion? Or, are you required to believe in every single word of the Confessions?
 
What I am trying to determine is whether LCMS Lutherans are required to believe in every single word of the confessions or whether there can be some diversity, especially on the issues where it isn’t clearly spelled out in the Bible, as is the case with the office of the Pope being the Anti-Christ.
 
hn160 said:
Since the LC-MS practices closed communion, it is assumed that everyone at the altar rail is of like mind on doctrine and practice the same as it is for Catholics. At my church, the pastor would not commune anyone that he knows that is not a LC-MS Lutheran, living in sin or not in agreement with Church doctrine.
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John, I really appreciate your to the point informative posting style.
Mary.
 
unfortunately there are some LCMS churches that don’t strictly practice close communion. We do at our parish.

As to agreeing with every single word of the confessions…that’s a good question. I haven’t really ever pondered that. We believe that the confessions are normed by scripture, so I would lean more to the side of yes, you should agree with the confessions. Is it something that should keep you away from the grace provided through receiving the Holy Eucharist? In most cases, I would think not. I have a lot of problems with how some of the LCMS distiricts conduct themselves, but I consider myself in total agreement with worship at our local parish.
 
pablope said:
What is the difference between the bishop of Rome and office of the Papacy? They are symbiotic.

Are you trying to rationalize the Lutherans of calling the Pope the Anti-Christ?
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There is a difference in being a bishop of a diocese and being a Pope. One can be a bishop of Rome without embracing what Protestants find wrong with the papacy.
 
jinc1019 said:
I appreciate the post! I am not sure I agree that Martin Luther truly believed that government and religion should be intertwined. Rather, he was a practical man and understood he needed the support of secular leaders.

I appreciate the background information but I was hoping to find out more about the theological differences. Any help with that would be great!
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Well, one theological distinctive of Wesleyanism is Christian perfection. Wesley taught it. I’m not sure how much modern Methodists emphasize it today though. You can read Wesley’s A Plain Account of Christian Perfection online at:

wesley.nnu.edu/john-wesley/a-plain-account-of-christian-perfection/
 
Jeff77 said:
have a lot of problems with how some of the LCMS distiricts conduct themselves, but I consider myself in total agreement with worship at our local parish.
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Jeff,

Not to be used against you… In what ways do you have a lot of problems?

Curious I am…

Thank you, Pork
 
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