Reformation Sunday Calls for Renewal
Lutherans and Reformed church communities are celebrating Reformation Sunday today to commemorate the time when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the church door in Wittenberg, Germany.
"That dramatic event marked the beginning of a movement of reformation in the churches and set forth a spirit of reform that is at the heart of the gospel and the experience of the New Testament church," said the Rev. Clifton Kirkpatrick, General Assembly stated clerk of the Presbyterian Church (USA), in a released statement.
As president of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, Kirkpatrick called on member churches to remember and celebrate the growth of Reformed movement around the world. There are now some 75 million Reformed Christians, according to Kirkpatrick, most of who are in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
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Reformed Christians across the globe will be centered on four themes that are at the core of faithful Christian living: faith alone, grace alone, Scripture alone; the priesthood of all believers; the sovereignty of God over the whole creation; and the church as a covenant community.
"These callings are at the core of what it means for Presbyterian churches to live out the Reformation in our day," said Kirkpatrick.
Lutherans are also celebrating the day with special services and festivals and Martin Luther's hymn "A Mighty Fortress is Our God."
Reformation Day is Oct. 31, but is now typically celebrated on the last Sunday of October.
"The spirit of the Reformation calls each new age to work for the renewal to which God is calling churches," stated Kirkpatrick.
