How We Are Alike
In some ways Lutherans are very consciously catholic. This causes us to be criticized by some protestants as “too catholic”–that is, as not sufficiently reformed. The Lutheran perspective is that the reform of the Roman Catholic Church did not require its overthrow, but its repair. Thus, we aimed to reform what needed to be reformed, while retaining as much of the Church’s doctrine, practice and heritage as could be retained and still remain faithful to the Word of God. For an interested Roman Catholic, the discussion of Lutherans and Protestantism may be helpful.
Sacramental
Both Lutherans and Roman Catholics (unlike most protestant church bodies) teach that God works to build up the Church and its members through physical means or instruments which are imbued with and empowered by the Holy Spirit. For example, the Holy Spirit uses human language and words, water, bread and wine, to convert unbelievers, to build and maintain faith in believers, to call to repentance, and to empower believers to lead godly lives.
The Eucharist
Both Lutherans and Roman Catholics (unlike most protestant church bodies) believe that the true body and blood of Jesus Christ are present in the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, not merely symbolically or spiritually, but truly and really. Thus, we both believe and teach that all who partake of the Sacrament–even if they do not believe–receive the Body and Blood of Jesus, although only believers who receive the Sacrament in a worthy manner will receive the forgiveness and life that the Sacrament offers. For both Lutherans and Roman Catholics, the Eucharist plays a central role in Christian worship.
Original Sin, Baptism, and Infant Baptism
Both Lutherans and Roman Catholics teach baptismal regeneration. That is, we both teach that through Baptism God pours out on sinners His Holy Spirit, forgives their sins, delivers them from death and the devil, and sanctifies them. We also teach in common that infants are by nature sinful and as much in need of forgiveness and the Holy Spirit as any other sinner. We do not merely allow the baptism of infants, but insist upon it.
The Liturgical Heritage of the Ancient and Medieval Church
Both Lutherans and Roman Catholics have a very high regard for the worship heritage of the ancient and medieval Church. Lutheran and Roman Catholics share most of the same feasts and festivals, and observe the same seasons of the ancient church calendar, such as Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter, and the like. The Lutheran Divine Service is derived from the Roman Catholic Mass, having a very similar structure and feel to it.
How We Differ
Lutherans are not “halfway” between Catholics and Protestants. As noted above, in some ways we are as catholic as our Roman brothers and sisters. In other ways, however, we differ sharply from them. What follows are some very notable ways in which Lutheran are not Roman Catholics.
The Authority of the Church to Speak for God
Lutherans hold to the doctrine of Sola Scriptura, Scripture Alone. Some take this expression to mean that the only thing that a Christian really needs is the Bible. That is incorrect. Some take it to mean that unless an act of worship or practice is specifically commanded in the Bible, it is forbidden to us. That is incorrect. Some take it to mean that Christians should not have creeds, that “The Bible is our only creed”. That is incorrect also. What Lutherans mean by Sola Scriptura–and we coined the term–is that the Church cannot speak for God to establish doctrines or moral laws without the clear testimony of Scripture. On this very important point Lutherans and Roman Catholics disagree. Roman Catholics believe that the Church, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, has the ability and the authority to define doctrines or moral rules that are not established in Scripture, just as though they were. This belief, more than any other, has and will continue to separate Lutherans and Roman Catholics, and is what is behind many of our most intractable differences.
Prayers to the Virgin Mary and Other Saints
Lutherans find no support in Scripture for a number of beliefs and practices of Roman Catholics concerning the Virgin Mary. While we believe that the Blessed Virgin was indeed an exemplary human being and the very Mother of God, we do not believe that she was immaculately conceived, was without sin, was assumed into heaven bodily, or is in any way a kind of co-mediatrix with Christ. We have no idea whether she hears any prayers at all, let alone every prayer of God’s people, and certainly is without the divine power one would need to answer them all. In truth, there is no proper prayer that a believer might want to bring to Mary that would not better be brought to Jesus Himself. He does hear, and does have the divine power. In fact, regarding prayer, the same can be said for the invocation of any saint. Because the practice of praying to anyone other than God lacks any Scriptural support, and because this sort of thing tends to push Christ into the background in favor of Mary or other saints, Lutherans do not do this, either in our worship practices or in private.
Sacerdotalism
“Sacerdotal” is a general term for the priestly, or mediating, authority of the clergy. It involves the idea that priests and bishops occupy an elevated spiritual plane in the Kingdom of God by virtue of their ordination, and are therefore uniquely empowered to celebrate the Eucharist, to hear confessions and pronounce absolution, and to do certain other things. Lutherans understand that sacramental power in the Church is located in the Word, not the clergy, and that the clergy are mere stewards or managers of the Word. We hold our pastors in high esteem, for the sake of the Word and Sacraments which they are charged to bring to us, and hopefully because of the example they set. They are not, however, spiritually above the rest of God’s people.
Justification
Lutherans teach that a sinner is justified–made right with God– by faith in Christ alone, and Roman Catholics do not like to speak that way. This is the issue that, more than anything else, initiated the Reformation and the eventual split between Lutherans and Catholics which persists to this day. I will not dwell on this, not because it is not a real issue dividing Lutheran and Roman Catholic anymore, but because it is a very complicated issue, and is not what it is often made out to be. Roman Catholics do not believe that anyone is “saved by works”, and Lutherans do not believe that “all you have to do is believe in Jesus.” The truth is, depending on the context, a Lutheran and a Roman Catholic can sometimes sound almost indistinguishable from one another on the issue of Justification, even while each is being completely faithful to their own respective positions.