ML 500 - LUTHER would be "Amazed" !

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➤    F a s t    F o r w a r d     . .    500  Years
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Luther  would  be  amazed  !

______________  Growth   of   “PROTESTANT”ISM  ______________

900  Million   Christians  on  Earth   . .   40%   are  Protestant

19  million  Protestants  in   . .  INDIA

19+  million  Protestants  in   . .  KENYA

29  million  Protestants  in   . .   GERMANY  
(Luther’s  home  -  where  “ Reformation ”   and  “ Protestantism ”  began )

31+  million  Protestants  in   . .   Africa’s  CONGO

37  million  Protestants  in   . .  SOUTH  AFRICA

41  million  Protestants  in   . .  BRAZIL

58  million  Protestants  in  . . CHINA  . .  
( by  2030  China  is  estimated  to  have  more   “Christians”   than  USA )

60  million  Protestants  in   . .   NIGERIA   . .   ( AFRICA’S  largest )

(20%  of  Global  Protestantism)  . .  160  million  Protestants  in   . .  UNITED STATES

The  Lutheran  World  Federation

Headquartered 

in

Geneva,  Switzerland

  reports   “rapid”    Growth    in   Africa  &  Asia   
. .    with    . .    Declines    in  the   Americas

The  Church  of  SWEDEN   is  the  Largest  LUTHERAN  Church  in  the  World

TANZANIA   now  has  the  2nd  largest  LUTHERAN  Church  in  the  World

ETHIOPIA   has  the  3rd  largest  LUTHERAN  Church  in  the  World

Also  experiencing  fast  growth :

MADAGASCAR

NIGERIA

MOZAMBIQUE

ANGOLA

NAMIBIA

On  31  October  1999

 in

Augsburg,  Germany

 the

  Lutheran  World  Federation

 signed  the

★

Joint   Declaration

on  the

Doctrine   of   Justification

with   the

 Roman   Catholic   Church

 The  statement  is  an  attempt  to
➤     narrow   the   theological   divide

between  the  two  faiths.

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The  declaration  also  states  that  the

➤     mutual   condemnations

between

( 16th - century  . .  1500s )

  Lutherans   and  the   Roman Catholic Church

➤    no  longer  apply

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2013

 Mark Hanson,   ( 11th  President  of the  Lutheran  World  Federation )  
then Presiding Bishop of the   Evangelical Lutheran Church in America  (ELCA), 

greeted  news  of  Bergoglio's  election  with  a  public  statement 
praising   [the  new  pontiff's]   work  with  Lutherans  in  Argentina.

Pope Francis

October   2013

  

During  an  interview,    Francis stated: 

 " I  believe  in  God,

not  in  a  . .  Catholic  God,

there   is   no   Catholic   God "

Pope  Francis  emphasized  his  commitment  to 

ecumenism, 

stating: 

" For  me,   ecumenism  is  a  priority."

  

In  some  countries  they  kill  Christians

because  they  wear  a  cross  or  have  a  Bible,  and  before  killing  them  

they    don't  ask    if  they're 

✔️  Anglicans    ✔️  Lutherans   ✔️ Catholics    ✔️   Orthodox " 

Pope  Francis  on     UNITY     has  said

"Division   is  the  work  of  the   Father  of  Lies" . . 

" . .  C h r i s t i a n s    are
  Disciples  of  Christ    . .    One   . .    Brothers ! "

He  doesn't  care  if  they  are

✔️ Evangelicals   ✔️  Orthodox  ✔️  Lutherans  ✔️  Catholics  ✔️  Apostolic

    They  are    . .    C h r i s t i a n s

   

.     Keep  on  doing   ..   what  we  are  doing   ..   today :

 dialogue   " together "   
.     strengthen  bonds  of  " brotherhood "

During   the 

2016
  
Octave   of   Christian   Unity

 ★

Pope  Francis   " asked

 f o r g i v e n e s s

➤    for    the   way   Catholics   had   treated  
other   Christian   believers    over  the  years,

and  invited

  ➤    Catholics    to    pardon   those   who   
had   persecuted   them "

On     . .    31  October 2016

  Pope  Francis    
commemorated

 499th   anniversary   of   the   Reformation 

"with"     Lutherans    in    Sweden

This  event  opened  the  500th  year
since  the  Reformation  began 
with  Martin  Luther  posting  his  Ninety - Five  Theses  in  Wittenberg  in   1517.

 The  Pope  visited  the  950  year  old  Lund  Cathedral,
 located  in  Sweden's  southernmost  and  originally  Danish  province  of  Scania.

He   celebrated   an   ecumenical   liturgy    together  with    the  president  of  the  Lutheran   World   Federation   Bishop   Dr.  Munib  Younan

 Pope  Francis  expressed  his  
shared desire 
with  leaders  of  the  Church  of  Sweden  to 
achieve   full   communion
  but  stated  that

 more  ecumenical  work  needed  to  be  done  
in  order  to  work  towards  "communion". 

The  two  churches  called  for
   focusing  on  what   ..   unites   ..   their  faith   
rather  than  what  
separates  

Obviously  ..  a  topic  of  gigantic  importance !