How do you evangelize to Lutherans?

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Could someone help me out…I need help finding ways to evangelize to lutherans…specifically things about Catholicism that they disagree with, that can be cleared up, etc.

Thanks in advance.

In Him, through her,
Pio Magnus
 
My wife was Lutheran, she is now Roman Catholic. When I was a Catechist, I wrote Catholic Bible studies (that were the basis for the students and later for adult Catholic studies). My wife helped me proof and edit the studies and in the process she learned a lot about the faith. Not long after that she started to attend Mass and she was shocked as to how familar the Catholic Mass was her–it reminded her of her Lutheran roots. Not long after that she decided to become Catholic, she entered the RCIA and was brought into the Church.

My advice, find a way to get a Lutheran to read material regarding the faith and then later invite them to Mass.
 
Former Lutheran myself. I would say the term would not be so much “evangelizing” as “bringing into the fullness.”
Back to the point, one thing drew me in was the historical continuity of the Catholic Church. Show from the early Church writings how “Romish” doctrines are found in the earliest Fathers. A good resource would be Jurgens’ “The Faith of the Early Fathers.”
 
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drforjc:
Former Lutheran myself. I would say the term would not be so much “evangelizing” as “bringing into the fullness.”
Back to the point, one thing drew me in was the historical continuity of the Catholic Church. Show from the early Church writings how “Romish” doctrines are found in the earliest Fathers. A good resource would be Jurgens’ “The Faith of the Early Fathers.”
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I believe the correct word for this situation is proselytize. If you are attempting to bring someone who is already a baptized Christian to the fullness of the Christian faith (Catholicism), you are attempting to proselytize them.
 
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Apologia100:
I believe the correct word for this situation is proselytize. If you are attempting to bring someone who is already a baptized Christian to the fullness of the Christian faith (Catholicism), you are attempting to proselytize them.
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i was about to type the same thing until i saw your post. it’s funny though, when catholics talk about protestants proselytizing other catholics it is seen as a dirty word but in the context of a catholic attempting the same thing to a protestant it is seen as heroic. i’m not saying that you shouldn’t speak the truth, but don’t go looking for a fight as so many of us seem to do.
 
I was referring more to answering their objections when THEY bring it up (and I’ve seen that happen at least as often as the opposite) than to go out actively trying to convert them. I apologize if I wasn’t clear. However, the rest of my statement still stands.
 
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drforjc:
I was referring more to answering their objections when THEY bring it up (and I’ve seen that happen at least as often as the opposite) than to go out actively trying to convert them. I apologize if I wasn’t clear. However, the rest of my statement still stands.
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I’m just glad that the other participants were able to bring up that the word ‘evangelization’ has a relatively strict definition and should not be used in regards to a dialogue between a Catholic and a Lutheran.

Now in taking such a position is the Church saying that it is just as good for a person to be a Lutheran as it is to be a Catholic? Not at all. It is still an authoritative Catholic teaching that the Church that Christ established subsists in its fullness in the Catholic Church.

The reason we don’t evangelize, strictly speaking, other Christians is that the Church has a high respect for their baptism.

That having been said, the main issues that are likely to come up in a dialogue with a Lutheran will be the nature of the Church and teaching authority in the Church, perhaps the sacraments, especially holy orders and the Eucharist.

If the Lutheran in question is an ELCA Lutheran and he or she brings up justification as an issue that divides Catholics and Lutherans, then I would bring up the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification. Take a close look at it and its appendix (on the same web page). It is an important ecumenical document.
 
Are there any more suggestions on how one would prostelytize a lutheran?

Thanks again,
In Him, through her,
Pio Magnus
 
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PioMagnus:
Could someone help me out…I need help finding ways to evangelize to lutherans…specifically things about Catholicism that they disagree with, that can be cleared up, etc.

Thanks in advance.

In Him, through her,
Pio Magnus
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Lutherans are Christians. Why would they need evangelising ?​

 
Gottle of Geer said:
## Lutherans are Christians. Why would they need evangelising ? ##
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They need to hear the Gospel proclaimed in all its fulness, Geer. As a former Lutheran, I can say with certainty that they love Christ, but they have a warped notion of the nature of His sacrifice, the nature of the Church, and the nature of Grace, one that is clearly incompatible with the teachings of Sacred Scripture and the Fathers of the Church.

At first glance, a lot of people wonder why we should bother reaching out to Lutherans: Afterall, many elements of Lutheran worship closely resemble the Novus Ordo/Divine Liturgy of St John Chrysostom, but this does not mean that they possess the fullness of faith by any means. There’s no Eucharist. No valid sacraments save for marriage and baptism, and the Lutherans only consider the latter to be a sacrament (the Lutheran church has even abandoned the teachings of Luther and his closest followers!). I often hear many Lutherans and Catholics alike saying “we’re so close in belief anyway. Why bother converting in either direction?” It boggles my mind.

Yes, Lutherans are indeed Christians, but they are outside of the fullness of the faith, many of them through no fault of their own. They need to hear the Gospel preached with authority and in its proper context, not some narrow-minded protestant interpretation.
 
Sorry, I used the wrong word. I know better now.

In Him, through her,
Pio Magnus
 
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CatholicNerd:
They need to hear the Gospel proclaimed in all its fulness, Geer. As a former Lutheran, I can say with certainty that they love Christ, but they have a warped notion of the nature of His sacrifice, the nature of the Church, and the nature of Grace, one that is clearly incompatible with the teachings of Sacred Scripture and the Fathers of the Church.

At first glance, a lot of people wonder why we should bother reaching out to Lutherans: Afterall, many elements of Lutheran worship closely resemble the Novus Ordo/Divine Liturgy of St John Chrysostom, but this does not mean that they possess the fullness of faith by any means. There’s no Eucharist. No valid sacraments save for marriage and baptism, and the Lutherans only consider the latter to be a sacrament (the Lutheran church has even abandoned the teachings of Luther and his closest followers!). I often hear many Lutherans and Catholics alike saying “we’re so close in belief anyway. Why bother converting in either direction?” It boggles my mind.

Yes, Lutherans are indeed Christians, but they are outside of the fullness of the faith, many of them through no fault of their own. They need to hear the Gospel preached with authority and in its proper context, not some narrow-minded protestant interpretation.
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Well said, CN!
I just found out that a devout Lutheran friend of a friend is dissatisfied with her church and is searching…hates the Catholics though…I extented the invitation to come home to my friend, who is a devout anti-Catholic(left the Church year ago… Messianc Fudemendalist, or something like that, is what she is following now)and asked her to tell her friend to take a look at the Catholic Church as well. Pretty bold of me…but it just came out…and she didn’t even get mad…prayers are need here!🙂 Annunciata
 
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drforjc:
I was referring more to answering their objections when THEY bring it up (and I’ve seen that happen at least as often as the opposite) than to go out actively trying to convert them. I apologize if I wasn’t clear. However, the rest of my statement still stands.
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The first thing to remember is that Catholicism and Lutheranism aren’t very far apart. We have far more in common than we have different. There are also a lot of Catholics who are more “Lutheran” and more Lutherans who are pretty darned “Catholic.”

So what separates us? Sola scriptura is a big part of it. If you want to share your faith, you have to do it on their terms. Be solid in your knowledge of scripture, but also in the Councils of Nicea and Trent, and canonization of scripture (particularly the deuterocanonical texts) and why Judaism made the shift away from the Septaguint.

It’s the historical details that are going to be important in substantiating the RCC’s position that the deuterocanonical texts were used at the time of Christ, were the fullness of scripture inspired by the Holy Spirit and were part of the canon approved at Nicea. Educate yourself on the Library at Alexandria and its importance to scholarly integrity.

It’s been my experience to teach what we believe, rather than challenging what someone else believes. Find common ground wherever it exists so that they’re comfortable with how you’re approaching the issue. That’s how Luther successfully pressed his case and it’s how the Lutheran faith has developed. He didn’t discredit every facet of Catholic faith, just those which he found abusive or theologically unsound. Further, it bears noting that on some issues he really was right. Acknowledging that isn’t bad because those issues are ones that we know longer have in our faith and most have been gone basically since the time of the Counter Reformation. Get to know them so that you can speak on par with the Lutherans…because they DO know what they are and why they’re unsound doctrines.

The other major factor separating our two faiths is the Marian theologies. They don’t recognize any level of superior holiness in Mary beyond her complete obedience to God and undying devotion to her son. She is on par with all other saints, but neither Mary nor any of the saints should be considered a “mediator”. The Rosary won’t convince any Lutheran that you’re theologically sound. Here’s a link to the LCMS’s stance on Catholic ecumenical discussions which will help you a lot: lcms.org/graphics/assets/media/CTCR/mediate.pdf

Lastly, you need to understand the different factions/synods of the Lutheran faith and how they’re different. Evangelical Lutherans are much more hardline in their faith than say the Wisconsin Synod. One Lutheran bishop was put through the moderan Lutheran equivalent of the inquisition just for participating in an interfaith prayer service after 9/11.

But be a good friend and a good communicator/listener. We’re all firm in what we believe to be true. We can only learn something when we’re open to it and when the teacher understands and accepts us on a level that uplifts our integrity and maks us feel good about ourselves.
 
That last post was quite helpful, thank you.

In Him, through her,
Pio Magnus
 
Grace to you and Peace from God our heavenly Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Writing as an ELCA pastor–a very RCC FRIENDLY ELCA pastor—I am pleased to see so many folks who point out how very close we are in fact. And that is what we need to emphasize…I’m not even sure proselytizing is the right word for Lutherans…reconciliation would be a better word…we treasure so many of the same basic truths and squabble often over minutiae. We need to learn to love one another and to hear one another and to serve together in a world increasingly hostile to Christianity in ALL its forms. I think for this *reconciliation * it is important to emphasize the continuity of authority between Scripture and Tradition. I studied in the LCMS [that’s where the president was almost lynched for praying with non-Christians after 9/11]—the plenitude of different stripes of Lutherans has already been addressed—and they are still fighting the battles of the 17th Century. Authority: I think that’s the basic issue. And approach ALL Christians in brotherly love. You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar—my Mom says it and it’s so true.
 
My apologies for confusing the ELCA with the LCMS. Too many letters, too little time.
 
Brother, no need to apologize…we refer to it as “Lutheran Alphabet Soup” It confuses us too. I’ve often said “You put 3 Lutherans in a room together and you wind up with 3 different synods” Initially of course, the bulk of that came from different ethnic groups setting up their own church bodies, the Germans, the Swedes, Norwegians, Danes, Finns etc That much is understandable. The theological eye-poking and beard-pullling came later, egged on in large part by the LCMS and its insistence that it [and its ‘running dogs and lackies’ in the old Synodical Conference] is “The True Visible Church of Christ on Earth” Hand on my heart, I swear it’s true. That is an article by their founding big wig Dr. Walther [1809-1887] .

Interestingly enough, the city where I did my undergraduate work in Pennsylvania still had the Catholic parishes divided ethnically, German, Polish, Spanish, Lithuanian,Slovenian etc etc I kind of liked the diversity. My parish in Pennsylvania still sang hymns in German.
 
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