“The future of our churches”

the missionary challenge, based on Lutheran theology

Abstract

This article discusses missionary theory and practice from a Lutheran perspective. Initially, it briefly describes their history, indicating that the topic of mission was, in the tradition associated with Martin Luther, constantly threatened by the secondary position assigned to it and sometimes was even banned altogether. Then the article presents the current consensus on the relevance of Mission in the Evangelical Church of Lutheran Confession in Brazil (IECLB), a consensus materialized in the so-called “IECLB’s Plan of Missionary Action” (PAMI). After that, two suggestions for the missiological reflection and the missionary practice are presented from the point of view of Lutheran tradition: the first one is based on the theology of the cross and the second emphasizes Christian liberty. The text ends with reflections about challenges and future perspectives for the IECLB.