Church Festival Day - Reformation - to be celebrated on Oct. 30
The church festival day of Reformation commemorates the day when Martin Luther, the father of the Reformation, nailed his 95 theses to the door of a Catholic church. Luther took exception to the selling of indulgences common in the Catholic Church, when his interpretation of scripture is that we are saved by the grace of God. Lutheranism advocates a doctrine of justification “by grace alone through faith alone because of Christ alone” which went against the Roman view of “faith formed by love”, or “faith and works”.

The liturgical color of the day is red, which represents the Holy Spirit and the Martyrs of the Christian Church. Luther’s hymn, A Mighty Fortress is our God is traditionally sung on this day. [more]

The fact that Reformation Day coincides with Halloween may not be mere coincidence. Halloween, being the Eve of All Saints’ Day might have been an entirely appropriate day for Luther to post his 95 Theses against indulgences since the castle church would be open on All Saints’ Day specifically for people to view a large collection of relics.

Holy Communion will be celebrated at 7:30 a.m.
Sunday Worship is at 8:30 and 11:00 a.m.

Everlasting Song: God’s Word, Our Song
When you think about how long - oh, let’s say - the Universe has been around, I believe music has been around for about that long as well. Really. The “Music of the Spheres” or the “Cosmic Harmony” it all works for us how God is part of us with music. We come out of the universe. We are made of dust – star dust in fact. So then if you believe that God has given us the music and we use God’s Word with that music - it is all from God. The real cool thing is God’s music and Word becomes our song when we sing and ring or play it. Kind of a neat way to be connected to our God. So let the music begin.

--John Paradowski, Minister of Music

“A Mighty Fortress is our God”
Written in the late 1520s, a time of Luther’s most difficult trials and following a great plague, this familiar hymn also resonates the political situation of the time.

For some 75 years, the Islamic Ottoman Turks had threat­ened Europe. Constantinople fell in 1453 and by the time Columbus arrived in America [1492], they had consolidated their power up to the Danube River, threatening Vienna. In 1520 they captured Belgrade. With a force of 80,000, they captured Hungary and killed some 15,000, beheading the captured prisoners on the Plain of Mohacs. In September of that year, the Islamic army moved towards Vienna with the intention of capturing Europe and making it Moslem territory. Then a miracle occurred; the Viennese held and the Sultan retreated. (This is the root of the modern war in Bosnia, Yugoslavia, and the entire Balkan region).

At this time, the great 46th Psalm came to Luther’s mind. It was probably written dur­ing the days of King Hezekiah of Judah when the Assyrians were making their thrusts westward. In 732 BC, Damascus fell. Ten years later, Ashdod fell, and in 701 BC, Jerusalem was besieged by the Assyrian King, Sennacherib [See 2 Kings 18.3 – 19.37, Micah 1.10-15, Isaiah 10.28-32]. By his records, he had already destroyed 46 of Judah’s fortified cities and deported their popula­tion. Modern excavations at Lachish, which Sennacherib stormed, reveal a huge pit with the remains of some 1,500 bodies along with pig bones and other debris—presumably the garbage of the Assyrian Army. Then a miracle occurred. During the night, “the angel of the Lord went forth, and slew 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians.” [2 Kings 19.35].

Luther regarded the Islamic Turks as “servants of the Devil” declaring in a sermon: they “terrify Christians, slaughter their children, run them through and put them on a spit.. but no pious man will be frightened when he sees his child and wife slaughtered and placed on a spit.”

One of Luther’s greatest accomplishments occurred when he wrote hymns in the common language (and popular musical tunes) of the common people of the day.

Prior to this, church music was regarded exclusively as the property of the clergy and sung only in Latin. The Council of Constance [1414-17] dictated: “If laymen are forbidden to preach and interpret the Scriptures, much more are they forbidden to sing publicly in the churches.” Luther wrote at least 37 hymns, restoring congregational singing in worship. “A Mighty Fortress” is undoubtedly regarded as Luther’s most familiar with its forceful statement of faith. God is the soul’s fortress, Christ the soul’s champion, the devil the enemy whose assaults on the soul are futile, arousing resounding praise from the believer.

--Pastor Ray Stubbe (member of St. Matthew's)

 

Stanza 1 of “A Mighty Fortress” A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing; our helper he amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing. For still our ancient foe doth seek to work us woe; his craft and power are great, and armed with cruel hate, on earth is not his equal.

Click image of monk to watch a video about Luther and "A Mighty Fortress"

Readings for Reformation Day, October 30, 2011

Jeremiah 31:31-34
Psalm 46 (7)
Romans 3:19-28
John 8:31-36

Prayer of the Day
Almighty God, gracious Lord, we thank you that your Holy Spirit renews the church in every age. Pour out your Holy Spirit on your faithful people. Keep them steadfast in your word, protect and comfort them in times of trial, defend them against all enemies of the gospel, and bestow on the church your saving peace, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
or
Gracious Father, we pray for your holy catholic church. Fill it with all truth and peace. Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in anything it is amiss, reform it; where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in need, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

ELCA resources
There is a wealth of information on the history of the Lutheran Church and the ELCA on the ELCA website [here].

A special history is a video history. Public television host, author and ELCA member Rick Steves on a journey through Lutherland! Travel from Eisleben where Luther was born to the university town of Wittenberg where Luther taught and preached. After a pilgrimage south to the Vatican in Rome, you’ll follow the tumultuous events of the Reformation at Worms, Erfurt, Eisenach, Marburg and Augsburg. "Opening the Door to Luther" is available for viewing on the ELCA website [here]. A PDF transcript is available to read, download or print [here].

A brief history of Luther and the Reformation
A monk, a priest and professor of Theology, Martin Luther is better known as the Church Reformer, although his influence is also to be found in Education and Literature. Luther also fought for popularization of the schools and translated the Bible into German.

Luther was born on November 10 in Eisleben, Turingia. He attended Latin schools in Mansfeld, Magdeburg and Eisenach, and was awarded the degree of Bachelor and Master of Arts by the University of Erfurt.

In 1505, he started his studies of law, but had to quit because of a message which he claimed to have received: on a stormy day he pleaded for help with Saint Anne, promising her to become a monk. Since then he retired into the Monastery of the Augustinian Order in Erfurt.

Luther was made priest in 1507. Encouraged by his superiors, he proceeded in his studies and obtained the degree of Doctor of Theology, in 1512. By decision of the Order’s Vicar, Hans von Staupitz, he was made a professor of Theology (Lectura in Biblia) at the Wittenberg University. Is his research, he discovered in the Epistle to the Romans what would be the theme of his future: salvation by faith alone. And, as a professor, he could freely propagate his ideas.

In was in 1517 that Luther fastened to the doors of the Wittenberg church 95 theses rejecting, for the whole part, the practice of selling indulgences and sustaining the proposition that God gives forgiveness freely to whomever believes in Jesus Christ. After they were translated into German these theses spread throughout Germany like a train of gunpowder. The Lutheran Reform had thus begun.