How do I become part of the Lutheran church?

Question

I am with my long term boyfriend that is largly involved with his Lutheran church. We are talking marriage and he has children that attend private Lutheran schools. I need to be able to attend services with him comfortably on Sundays and become a member of the Lutheran church. I want to surprise him since he knows I am not of any faith. I have never been to church. I want to be involved with his family and faith part of life as much as possible. What do I do?

Answer 1

If you are not a live-in bf/gf, then attend an ELCA church on Sunday morning.
There are 3 branches of Lutheran - ELCA which is the more "liberal", Lutheran Church Missouri Synod - LCMS which is conservative, and Wisconsin Synod which is very conservative. Each congregation has its own guidelines for joining. In general, you would find that LCMS is likely to be the church your bf belongs to. As a pastor, I strongly encourage you to involve your bf in your faith awakening. A shared spiritual life is one of the great underpinnings in a marriage.

Answer 2

Just start attending services. There isn't any type of *conversion* that you have to go through. I was Southern Baptist and on my spiritual quest for the truth I attended a Lutheran church for a number of years. The ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church of America). If you aren't a christian, and you think you want to become one, then I suggest speaking to the pastor at the church. At the church I attended I had to complete a 6 week Sunday School class that explained Lutheran doctrine and how the Lutheran church came into existance. But you need to do this for yourself ONLY. If it is what you want, then go for it. But don't do it just to please someone. You want to do it for the right reasons.

Answer 3

Go to the church with him next Sunday and have him introduce you to the pastor. Tell the pastor you want to become a member. Each church is different, and you may have to sit through a whole one hour class first, depending on the pastor. And you'll be in! Lutherans accept new members as part of the regular Sunday service. It takes maybe 5 minutes to do.

Answer 4

It is very important that you NOT surprise him by joining without him knowing it. Talk to him. Have him participate in the process. It will truly strengthen your relationship.

From there, it is important for you to talk to his pastor. His pastor and his congregation will have a process in place for learning the doctrine and bringing you into membership.

On your own, you can read Martin Luther's Small Catechism, which is a very important document in the Lutheran Church. That really has all the basics of what we believe.

Lastly, it is important that you join ONLY if you truly believe what we teach. Church membership is not to be entered into lightly. If you are confirmed into the Lutheran Church, you are taking an oath that you will hold true to the faith even unto death. This is not child's play. If you don't believe what you learn, then it is better for you not to join.

I hope all goes well for you!

Answer 5

What do you advise by using "severe"? Lutherans are only slightly removed from Catholics because of the fact the Lutheran circulation grew to become into between the 1st protestant strikes that attempted to straighten out problems in the Roman Catholic church. in case you advise Lutheran amenities have loads of similarities to Catholic amenities, you're good. yet there additionally are church homes that have present day amenities that are no longer almost as classic. I only had an thought, in case you meant "gloomy" or "no longer joyful" once you mentioned severe, then you quite are in the incorrect Lutheran congregation. some are very gloomy and depressed. Others are very upbeat and lightweight. detect a diverse one.

Answer 6

You may wish to go his church on your own, make an appointment with the minister there, seek the guidance of that minister and follow through with the procedures for becoming a member of the church. If you tell the minister that you wish to keep your conversion a surprise for your boyfriend, your request should most certainly be respected.

Above all, make sure that you fully understand and accept the teachings of the Lutheran Church before you join it. Religion is an individual choice and its teachings must resonate within you in order for you to fully appreciate it.

Answer 7

Real simple, my wife went through the same process after we got married. She went through an Adult Confirmation Class. This gave her a chance to go through a class to introduce her to the Lutheran Faith and help me make a decision on whether to join the church or not. Once she made a decision to join the church, it was approved by the Church Council and ratified at the Voters Meeting.


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WOW Jack! Way to NOT answer her question! And totally insert a comment that is not germane to the Question!

Answer 8

Go to a Lutheran church and talk to a pastor. They are an open church. They are a little like Catholic, Anglican , Methodist. They are an okay bunch from a Baptist perspective. They may require you to be baptized in order to be a member. Good luck.

One other word. Any Christian denomination is okay. But a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ what will count. God does not care what church you go to, He cares where your heart is.

Answer 9

Do you really believe what he believes? If you were of no particular faith before, how did you now come to faith? Don't join a church merely to pursue a relationship with another person, join to pursue a relationship with God. It would appear that you don't know much about being a Lutheran, why would you join some thing that you didn't really understand?

Answer 10

attend a Lutheran church