The ROAD TO REFORMATION In observation of the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The series continues with major events in the life of the Reformer that took place after 1517. Luther was a fearless reformer who plunged ahead heedless of personal cost… Read More »Luther Reforms the Liturgy —1526— Read More

Updates from congregations around the Church of the Lutheran Confession Saint Peter’s has not celebrated its anniversaries because we don’t know exactly when we started. The earliest services were held in the late 1880’s and were conducted in homes. We shared buildings and pastors for a time. Our own church building was erected in 1907… Read More »Saint Peter’s Lutheran Church – Iron River, Michigan Read More

Johann Gerhard As we approach the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, we take a brief look at the lives of some of the most influential and important Lutheran theologians. Johann Gerhard (1582-1637) was born into a well-to-do family of the minor nobility of the central German city of Quedlinburg. He seems to have been a… Read More »Johann Gerhard Read More

When Wilhelm Loehe, a mission-minded German pastor and church leader, heard from America of an urgent need for pastors to lead the many emigrants who had come there, he publicized that need, then approached several pastors about moving to America. Loehe even helped establish an emergency seminary to quickly supply the need. One of those… Read More »John Schaller (1859-1920) Read More

AS WE APPROACH THE 500TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE REFORMATION, WE TAKE A BRIEF LOOK At THE LIVES OF INFLUENTIAL AND IMPORTANT LUTHERAN LEADERS AND THEOLOGIANS What would you expect from a child born to a religiously indifferent father, whose body—weakened by typhoid fever—made a military career impossible, who then chose the ministry only after being… Read More »Adolf Hoenecke (1835-1908) Read More

The white-haired man was easily recognized by all as he took his regular walk to the post office in his dark suit and tie, for he seldom wore an overcoat or hat even in the Wisconsin winters. Who was this hardy gentleman? His parents had named him John Peter Carl Meyer, but he often went… Read More »J.P. Meyer, 1873-1964 Read More

As we approach the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, we take a brief look at the lives of influential and important Lutheran leaders and theologians. Carl Monrad Gullerud was born into the Norwegian Synod in 1908. His father was a pastor in that synod, serving in Tracy, Minnesota; and when the majority agreed (in 1917)… Read More »Carl Monrad “C. M.” Gullerud (1908-1995) Read More

The ROAD TO REFORMATION In preparation for the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The series will culminate in the October 2017 issue with an account of his posting of the Ninety-Five Theses. When Luther reflected upon his life, he would speak of… Read More »Life of Luther—1498-1503 Read More

The ROAD TO REFORMATION In preparation for the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The series will culminate in the October 2017 issue with an account of his posting of the Ninety-Five Theses. Brother Martin, the Augustinian monk, became Father Martin. This was… Read More »Luther Begins Teaching: 1508-1509 Read More

Stambaugh, Michigan, began as a mining town. Iron was discovered in 1851, but since the region was so remote, exploration did not begin in earnest until the 1870’s, and the first mine was opened in 1880. Soon there was a rush of activity, and numerous mines were in operation by 1910. The earliest mines were… Read More »St. Peter’s Evangelical Lutheran Church Iron River, Michigan Read More

The ROAD TO REFORMATION In preparation for the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The series will culminate in the October 2017 issue with an account of his posting of the Ninety-Five Theses. Luther struggled mightily to find peace with God and certainty… Read More »Luther Finds the Pearl of Great Price 1514-1515 Read More

The ROAD TO REFORMATION In observation of the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The posting of the Ninety-Five Theses started a series of events which can only be described as a trial. Luther published and distributed the theses to many of his… Read More »Luther on Trial—1518-1520 Read More

The ROAD TO REFORMATION In observation of the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The series continues with major events in the life of the Reformer that took place after 1517. Carlstadt Luther often had reason to be disappointed with those who were… Read More »Unrest in Church and State 1524-1525 Read More

ERROR’S ECHO In this series we take a look back at some of the most notorious errors and heresies that have threatened the church over the centuries, as well as the subtle (and not so subtle) ways in which those false teachings continue to haunt 21st century thought and theology. In the Error’s Echo series,… Read More »Heresy Hunters Read More

The ROAD TO REFORMATION In observation of the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The series continues with major events in the life of the Reformer that took place after 1517. The birthday of the Lutheran Church is often placed on June 25,… Read More »—1530— Luther and the Augsburg Confession Read More

The ROAD TO REFORMATION In observation of the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we have presented a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The series concludes with this installment. Luther’s life was very busy, and he was often in the center of much activity. In the final years, his life fell into… Read More »Life of Luther — The Final Years Read More

They think they have identified it, submerged in the clear, shallow waters near the shores of Iznik Golu in modern Turkey. This ancient church was destroyed centuries ago by an earthquake that also caused the ground to sink into the lake. The ancient name of Iznik was Nicea. In this church the Council of Nicea… Read More »The Nicene Creed Read More

Imagine for a moment—people are looking to you to establish order in all the churches of your entire state and those in three or four nearby states also! Where would you even start? How would you begin? Luther found himself in that very situation as the Reformation started to take hold. It is almost impossible… Read More »The Large Catechism Read More

“THIS WE BELIEVE” In ongoing observation of the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief overview of those confessional documents that make up the Book of Concord. From the beginning of his dispute with Rome, Luther had asked that a council be convened to weigh his arguments fairly on the basis… Read More »The Smalcald Articles Read More

“THIS WE BELIEVE” In ongoing observation of the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we have presented a brief overview of those confessional documents that make up the Book of Concord. This is the last article in the series. When Will Durant sought a title for the volume of his magnificent eleven-volume The Story of… Read More »The Formula of Concord, Thorough Declaration Read More