I’ve heard talk recently about traditions that show our unity: candles on altars, vestments, liturgical elements in the worship service, the style of hymnody, the “look” of our clergy and churches, and the way we educate and prepare pastors.
To be sure, those common threads have created a stream of similarity that has linked us together since the mid-1800s and, in some cases, since Lutheranism was born in Germany in the 1500s.
But are those elements the foundation of true unity? Does the “look” and “feel” of European Lutheranism provide the basis of true unity in the Lutheran Church?
Not according to the Lutheran Confessions—the basis for our confession along with the Holy Bible.
The Augsburg Confession, Article VII, states: “For the true unity of the Church it is enough to agree about the doctrine of the Gospel and the administration of the Sacraments. It is not necessary that human traditions, that is, rites or ceremonies instituted by men, should be the same everywhere.”
“It is enough.” What is enough for the true unity of the Church? “To agree about the doctrine of the Gospel and the administration of the Sacraments.
We shouldn’t bypass this article of faith. It may be tempting and comforting to find “unity” in externals and traditions, but true unity is in the meat and uniqueness of the Lutheran confession.
What other confession stands squarely and unwaveringly on GRACE ALONE? Justification by grace through faith in Jesus Christ is labeled as the chief article of faith by the Confessions. This unconditional grace of God shown boldly through the life, death, resurrection, ascension, and promised return of the Lord Jesus is the central teaching of Holy Writ. It is what the world needs desperately and what the Lutheran Church proclaims boldly. This doctrine joins us together in mission and ministry as too many religious voices want to inject works-righteousness and as the world layers on either condemnation or carelessness.
Let’s lean into the grace that unites us. Let’s study it, convene around it, seek to understand it more, share it, take risks for it, and let it be the glue of our unity. It is enough! Our confessions declare it. Let’s not cast aside what we confess for talk about candles, worship instrumentation, preferences in organizational structure, and the like.
And what about the administration of the sacraments? Tell me another stream of doctrine that lifts up the means of grace as life-giving gifts from God? The regenerative power of Baptism! The mystery of Christ’s forgiving presence for us in the Lord’s Supper! Let’s dive deeply into these gifts. Let’s laud the cleansing work of the Holy Spirit and the transcendent presence of “God with us,” Immanuel, to give us life here and now, to be with us always—not in our imaginations, but in substance and with transformative impact.
Have we exhausted these unifying teachings? Are we bored with them? Have they no value for church members and the non-churched? Do we really need to find new arguments about albs, cassocks, or polo shirts? Does angst about cultural whims trump the doctrinally unique teaching of the Sacraments that Lutherans offer the world?
It's time to show that we subscribe to the Scriptures and Confessions by living out Article VII of the Augsburg Confession. Is it enough? Well then, let’s put the secondary issues in their proper places and focus our attention, our ministries, our relationships with fellow clergy and congregations, our social media, our public press releases, and all of our stewardship of the precious and blood-bought gifts of Jesus Christ on what truly unifies us and what gives life to the world. It is enough! That’s what we confess.
And as we devote all of our redeemed energy to the Gospel and Sacraments, let us not let personal opinions, critiques, preferences, and parties divide us. Let us be bound together in love and support as the Formula of Concord states so eloquently: “So the churches will not condemn one another because of differences in ceremonies when, in Christian liberty, one has less or more of them” (FC SD X 31).
It’s time for a groundswell of what truly unites us.
