On Oct. 31, 1517, Luther posted his Ninety-Five Theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, which set the Reformation in motion, and is celebrated on the Sunday closest to that date.
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Festive Eucharist will be at First Lutheran Church, 30 S. Wittenberg Ave., and feature a combined worship service at 10:30 a.m.
“Our celebration will be modeled on Martin Luther’s German mass of 1526,” Rev. Paul W. Heine said. “A lot of our history we owe to Martin Luther. My message is not about the past but about reforming and moving ahead.”
The service is open to everyone and a reception will follow.
The Festival Choral Service to Commemorate the Reformation will be 7:30 p.m. Sunday at Wittenberg University’s Weaver Chapel. Music will begin at 7 p.m.
This free service will be unique in that it will involve Lutheran and Catholic clergy and representatives of a variety of other Christian traditions.
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It will be based on a 2016 prayer service in Sweden attended by Pope Francis that recognized the progress of Lutheran-Catholic relations over the past 50 years according to Rev. Andy Tune of Wittenberg.
“The Lutheran heritage is important here,” Tune said. “It’s expressed in the way we value the importance of educational inquiry and of all faiths.”
Weaver Chapel’s tower has a depiction of Martin Luther and there’s a monument of him as well on the campus reflecting his educational and musical sides.
The service will offer thanks to God in word, prayer and song for the reconciliation in the Gospel among Lutherans, Catholics and other Christians. The Wittenberg Choir will also perform.
For more information, go to www.wittenberg.edu/event/wittenberg-series-festival-choral.
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