What We Believe
As Lutherans, we are...
Biblical — 'Whatever is biblical is Lutheran, and whatever is Lutheran is biblical.' We believe that the Bible is the word of God. As such, it is the only source and rule of all that we do as Christians: the proclamation of the Gospel and God's will for our daily lives as individuals and a community.
Confessional — Together with all Christian Churches, we confess the faith summarised in the so-called Ecumenical Creeds: the Apostles', Nicene and Athanasian Creed. Moreover, we confess that the Unaltered Augsburg Confession and other sixteenth-century Lutheran confessions are a true, faithful explanation and summary of God's word. All of these creeds and confessions are found in the Book of Concord. The best brief summary of the Lutheran faith is found in the Small Catechism (PDF).
Evangelical — Our Christian teaching and life centre on the saving message of God's forgiveness through Christ. The Bible teaches that all people are born sinful and separated from God, deserving His righteous condemnation. But it also teaches us that Jesus Christ, God's only Son, lived a perfect life in our place and died to take on Himself the punishment for our sins. We are forgiven by God's grace alone, for the sake of what Jesus has done. We receive this forgiveness only through faith in what He has done for us. (See Romans 3:23–24.)
Here is a good summary of the teaching of the Lutheran Confessions. A more detailed explanation of our beliefs can be found by downloading this document (PDF).