Christianity and Jesus

Christianity is one of the world’s major monotheistic religions. Christians believe in Jesus Christ and seek to follow his teachings. We believe Jesus is God’s own Son, sent by God to become human: divine, and also a human being who lived among us more than 2,000 years ago. Followers of Jesus are part of God’s people, whose heritage includes the Jewish people and the Christian Church throughout the world.

Who was Jesus?

Jesus of Nazareth was a Jew who lived in biblical Israel under Roman rule. In his adult ministry, he traveled with his disciples, teaching about God and sharing a message of love, peace, hope, and forgiveness. He healed the sick, fed the hungry, and gathered followers who were moved by his teaching.

As opposition to Jesus grew, Judas—one of his disciples— handed him over to the Roman authorities. The governor, Pontius Pilate, sentenced Jesus to death. He was crucified outside Jerusalem. Christians believe that death did not contain him: on the third day, the day we celebrate as Easter, Jesus appeared to his followers as the risen, living Lord. He continued to teach and share the good news for forty days before returning to heaven. The New Testament tells the story of his life and resurrection.

We believe Christ lives among us today by the power of God’s Spirit, present when the good news is preached and the sacraments are administered.

A life of faith and service

Because of Jesus Christ, we believe Christians are called and empowered by the Holy Spirit to serve the world. Through acts of love and justice, worship, and witness, we share God’s boundless love.

As members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), we share with Christians around the world in a worldwide community of faith. Through Christ, we are united with other Christians and recognize a wide fellowship of churches. We work alongside them in ecumenical ministry and service in the United States and across the globe.

What Lutherans believe

Lutherans are Christians shaped by the teachings of Martin Luther (1483–1546), a German theologian. Luther saw differences between what he read in the Bible and some church practices of his time. On October 31, 1517, he presented his “95 Theses,” inviting debate about how the church could bring its practice and preaching into closer accord with the Word of God. The debate grew into a reforming movement, and “Lutheran” became the name for those who shared Luther’s convictions.

The Reformation is remembered on October 31. Three principles often summarize the heart of Lutheran teaching:

Reformation, the ELCA, and our neighbors

Lutheran church bodies have formed to serve communities around the world. The ELCA serves congregations in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It was founded in 1988 when three North American Lutheran church bodies united: The American Lutheran Church, the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches, and the Lutheran Church in America.

Lutherans are part of a reforming movement within the Christian Church. The ELCA and its predecessors have engaged in ecumenical dialogue with other church bodies for decades. The ELCA has full-communion agreements—shared convictions about theology, mission, and worship—with other churches, including the Moravian Church, The Episcopal Church, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the Reformed Church in America, and the United Church of Christ.

The ELCA also continues dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church. In 1999, representatives of the Lutheran World Federation and the Roman Catholic Church signed the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification, expressing a historic consensus on key issues of faith and calling for further dialogue and study together.