Ashlyn Cicuzza

Professor Intawiwat
English 111_25
Ethnography Essay
14 October 2016
Lutheranism

What is Lutheranism? If you were to tell someone that you were of Lutheran faith, surely
this is the response you would get. With my own experiences, and the experiences of others, we
have gathered that Lutheranism is one of the lesser-known faiths; with Christianity and
Catholicism taking that cake. However, to the people within it, this religion means far more than
a little brother trumped by his older siblings; and is certainly not living in their shadows.
Lutheranism is a division of Christianity and Protestantism that came about in the early
1500s (Hillerbrand and Marty, par. 1). One may vaguely remember discussing a man named
Martin Luther and his Ninety-five Theses, of which he posted on the door of a Catholic church.
Upset with the general way that Catholicism went with its teachings and interpreting the Bible,
Martin Luther is believed to have started the Protestant Reformation, consequently leading to the
development of Lutheranism (Ninety-five Theses). With most of Luthers complaints regarding
corruption in the Catholic church, Lutheranism took a much more moral turn. Jokingly referred
to as the hippie church among the youth at Living Savior Lutheran Church in Charlotte, the
teachings of Lutheranism are based on faith and love; and there is a heavy amount of emphasis
placed on love thy neighbor and acceptance that prevails in most sermons and services.
Several smaller differences, such as hymns, liturgy, and confessing sin as a group within service

rather than in a confessional with the pastor, separate Lutheranism from other forms of
Protestantism and Christianity (Hillerbrand and Marty, Church and State).
This rang true from my observations at Living Savior Lutheran Church (LSLC).
However, there were also a few other notable differences, like a distinct lack of discussion about
the afterlife. Even within the span of a few different Sunday services, Heaven was seldom
brought up, and Hell was not ever mentioned. That is not to say that Lutherans do not believe in
Heaven and Hell, as they do, but to them, it is not exactly end-game. Tying into the concept of
acceptance and love, Lutherans do not like to place emphasis on condemnation of non-believers
or non-conformists. For the most part, over the scope of a few people I asked the question to,
most had their own views of how the afterlife and/or Hell worked for Lutherans, rather than a
firm belief guided by the church itself. The woman I conducted my full interview with, a regular
church-goer whom of which I know personally - though she wishes to remain anonymous, said
that she did not even believe in a Hell. This divide of the afterlife among the Lutherans did not
cause any issues, it seemed, as most chose to save the topic of such for another day.
It truly appeared that acceptance was a key component of Lutheranism. It was a feature in
practically every sermon I attended for my observation purposes. I questioned my anonymous
interviewee about this, asking if she had noticed any rifts or difficulties within the community,
and she responded with a general no. She did note of a coming change regarding the merger of
LSLC and another Lutheran church that some were not too keen on, but said that she believed it
to only be a fear of change and a fear of the unknown rather than anything heated. All around,
with questions asked about her favorite part of Lutheranism, an experience take-away from
people who do not stay, and the main beliefs, her go-to answers were acceptance, love, and
compassion. She stated that the church was very inviting.

I asked her if there was any way that these topics of understanding of others affected her,
and this is what she had to say: Of course. I go about my day trying to do the best I can trying
to be the nicest person I can. I slip up sometimes, and I usually dont feel good about it. I would
hate if someone acted in a negative way toward me, so why should I do that to them? Really, I
think a main thing is being Jesus-like. What would Jesus do? He would do his best. He would
have patience and he would care for others. Thats really all that matters.
Despite having more than 65 million Lutherans worldwide (Hillerbrand and Marty, par.
1) starting the 21st century, Lutheranism still isnt too well known to those outside of religious
study or the religion itself. Lutherans do not mind that, however. No matter where you come
from, or if you just discovered the Lutheran church down the street from you, theyre willing to
bring you in. I believe that the most notable difference between Lutheranism and its parent
division of Christianity and Catholicism, is the level of comfort within Lutherans. They are okay
with not being a big religious giant, and they are also fine with others personal choices. Their
only concern is how they can help, or how they can spread love; in turn being Jesus-like. They
have a lot of love to give for such a relatively small community when compared to their older
siblings.

Works Cited

Hillerbrand, Hans J., and Martin E. Marty. "Lutheranism." Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 14 Oct. 2016.
"Ninety-five Theses." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 14
Oct. 2016.
Hillerbrand, Hans J., and Martin E. Marty. "Lutheranism - Church and State." Encyclopedia
Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 14 Oct. 2016.
Anonymous, personal communication, October 10, 2016.