How To Kill Lutheranism: Just Change The Worship
Rev. Will Weedon recently shared the following online from Dr. Joe Herl of Concordia University, Seward, regarding Johann Georg:
"... the year was 1616. Johann Georg, Margrave of Brandenburg, converted to Calvinism and sought to enforce Calvinism on his very Lutheran territory. What changes did he demand?
- All images are to be removed from the Church and sent to the court.
- The stone altar is to be ripped from the ground and replaced with a wooden table.
- When the Lord's Supper is held, a white cloth covers the table.
- All altars, crucifixes, and panels are to be completely abolished.
- Instead of the host, bread is to be baked into loves, cut into strips, and put in a dish from which the people receive it in their hands; likewise the chalice is received by the people with their hands.
- The words of the Supper are no longer to be sung, but rather spoken.
- The golden chalice to be replaced by wooden.
- The prayer in the place of the collect is to be spoken, not sung.
- Mass vestments and other finery no longer used.
- No lamps are candles to be placed upon the altar.
- The houseling cloth is not to be held in front of the communicants.
- The people are not to bow as if Christ were present.
- The communicants shall no longer kneel.
- The sign of the cross after the benediction is to be discontinued.
- The priest is no longer to stand with his back to the people.
- The collect and Epistle no longer to be sung, but spoken.
- Individuals are no longer to go to confession before communing, but rather register with the priest in writing.
- The people are no longer to bow when the name of JESUS is mentioned, nor are they to remove their hats.
- The Our Father is no longer to be prayed aloud before the sermon, but rather there is to be silent prayer.
- Communion is not to be taken to the sick, as it is dangerous, especially in times of pestilence.
- The stone baptismal font is to be removed and a basin substituted.
- Epitaphs and crucifixes are not longer to be tolerated in the Church.
- The Holy Trinity is not to be depicted in any visual form.
- The words of the sacrament are to be altered and considered symbolic.
- The historic Epistles and Gospels no longer used, but rather a selection of the Bible by the minister, read without commentary." [1]
It is quite obvious that Johann Georg's changes were not neutral They weren't random stylistic updates or mere cultural adjustments They were surgical strikes—liturgical and theological moves designed to strip Lutheran theology and align the churches of his territories to Calvinist norms Dr. Herl nailed it: Johann Georg believed that the only way to root out Lutheran doctrine was to change Lutheran worship—to get rid of worship that confessed in action what Lutherans believed in their hearts.[2]
What can we learn from this, though?
First, examining what Johann Georg abolished, removed, and reformed helps us understand what the Lutheran Church was actually like in the 1500s In other words, Georg's removal of crucifixes, chanting, stone altars, reverence at the name of Jesus, kneeling for communion, and even private confession (to name a few) shows that the early Lutheran Church was not embarrassed by ceremony The Lutheran Reformers did not avoid the beauty of liturgy or reverence out of fear of "looking too Catholic." No, they understood that worship practices confess doctrine. They knew that reverence wasn't optional—it was an extension of faith.
Second, Johann Georg's removal of chanting and the stripping away of liturgical furniture most certainly weakened the sanctuary's sacred spaces, making the sacred appear more like the common.
Third, the piety of the laity was stripped away. The removal of bowing, for instance, erased bodily catechesis. That is to say, bowing is a physical confession of faith. Without these physical confessions of faith, worship can become internalized, individualized, and emotionally driven. When posture no longer teaches, the piety of the laity resorts to internalized feelings of the heart.
Fourth, the Sacraments were substantially reduced and diminished. This wasn't a minor adjustment. It was a theological decapitation. The very heart of Lutheran worship—the second half of the Small Catechism—was undermined. Alas, when the Sacraments go, not only is assurance displaced but Lutheranism ceases to exist.
This begs the question:
What does it say when Lutheran churches today voluntarily do the very things Johann Georg forced on the Lutheran Church in the 1600s?
What does it say when Lutheran worship looks more Calvinist than Lutheran?
Yes, theology most certainly shapes practice. But we must also recognize this: our actions, ceremonies, and liturgical habits teach. They shape how we think, believe, and confess. In other words, practice is not neutral—as already stated above. Practices carry theological weight. They are not a blank canvas we're free to paint over however we wish. Every practice—every posture, every song, every rite—either reinforces the truth or introduces error.
This is why the Lutheran Church must not only preserve sound doctrine but also the sound practices of the Lutheran faith. Let us not be so naive as to think the Lutheran Church can adopt Reformed or Evangelical practices without compromising Lutheran doctrine. Let us not be so naive as to think that doctrine and practice are not joined at the hip.
Mark this well: To confess rightly, we must worship rightly To worship rightly, we must believe rightly Anything less, and we're not just rearranging furniture—we're undermining the theological foundation of the Lutheran Church.
So, guard Lutheran practice Guard Lutheran doctrine.
Because in the end, it's all one confession.
[1] Joseph Herl, Worship Wars in Early Lutheranism: Choir, Congregation, and Three Centuries of Conflict (Oxford University Press, 2004), 111, referenced in a Twitter post by Rev. Will Weedon (12-30-25)
[2] Ibid, passim.
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