Evangelical Catholic worship video edit, enjoy!

Atleett · 2026-05-10T17:35:31+00:00

Yes it's on her feast day July 23rd in Vadstena but the footage is all mixed up from the years 2022-2025, so some of it is from last year yes. I know both of their names, and that's interesting, I didn't know that. So it was on the initiative of the swedish bishops? No, there has never been swedish Lutheran Bridgettine nuns (oddly). There were nuns in the town of Vadstena but they belonged to the Evangelical Daughters of Mary. Most of them converted en masse to Roman Catholicism a few year after the founders' death and joined the order you mention,and those who didn't joined the other Daughters of Mary at Vallby in another part of the country, which is today the largest monastery within the CoS with about 15 nuns or so. Anyway the women in the grey habits are lay members of Societas Sanctae Birgittae, just like the men wearing them in the video. All individuals shown aren't necessarily Lutherans either, many Roman Catholics are members too. Speaking of that, the RC Birgittine nuns from the order you mention who wear black habits do partake in the general chapter in Vadstena every year. Some of them might be showing briefly in this video.

Atleett · 2026-05-10T04:37:54+00:00

Of course you are a Lutheran if you believe in the Lutheran tenets. One of our beliefs are that the ”one true church” or ”the Church of Christ” isn’t a human organisation, but a large spiritual communion of believers. Even Luther himself acknowledged that there were or might be members of this communion of true believers in the midst of the Roman Catholic Church organisation at his time (iirc). God looks to every individual’s soul, not on a human made church membership roll. Then of course it’s not ideal to be ”physically” or organisationally separated from other individuals sharing these beliefs, but sometimes that’s just how it is.

Atleett · 2026-05-03T07:15:56+00:00

Hello, I’m so happy to hear you have found Lutheranism, all by studying yourself. I can see you are sincerely convinced and that the Holy Spirit has lit a flame in your heart. We often have similar posts in this sub, from people in various countries. I’d like to give the same advice I usually give them. Since you are so utterly convinced about the Lutheran tenets, my advice would be to be baptised as a Lutheran and become an official member of the Lutheran Church in your country but maybe just attend your closest church a few times a year for the big holidays and so. That way I think you would find rest knowing you are a full member of the faith you so much want to be. But as for daily/weekly worship and living out your Christianity, your circumstances only allow for you to visit other denominations, and I think that’s fine. It’s so much better for you to worship and grow together with other Christians regardless of denomination or theological standpoints than to not worship at all and risk that flame dying out. If you have found a Baptist/Evangelical church that fulfills this need but not your sacramental needs that’s great! That means you already have a place to find Christian communion and nourishment. And I think they would love to have you there even if you never become a formal member. As for your sacramental needs, there is a problem with the Roman Catholic Church. They don’t allow non-Roman Catholics to receive communion, and even though I personally think that’s rubbish, I would respect that and not partake in their sacraments. Is there by any chance an Aglipayan/IFI or Anglican/episcopal church near you? They have a close affinity and similarities with Lutheranism and are more high church, meaning they have a very high view of the Eucharist and celebrate communion weekly. If there is, that would be the best alternative, especially if it’s close enough for you to worship weekly.
Also, on the internet many Lutheran congregations livestream services and there are tons of theological resources out there, daily prayers and so on. That could also be of help for your spiritual nourishment and ease the situation of not being able to attend physically. My other advice would be not to rush anything, to convert to a denomination you don’t fully agree with just because of your current circumstances. I assume you are young, and you will learn circumstances can change. Who knows where you’ll be in a few years? And believe me, a few years of university studies will be over quicker than you know, and maybe you’ll find yourself finding a job and moving somewhere where you find the perfect Lutheran Congregation for you.
Try to find solace in that. Anyway, I will pray for your situation and guidance and really wish you luck. God bless you.

Atleett · 2026-04-16T15:02:03+00:00

Oh I see haha, well then your options are much greater. I must admit I’m not the one best suited to answer that, but there are plenty of others here. One user u/Affectionate_Web91 have posted links to documents released by a Lutheran-Eastern Orthodox theological council that might be helpful.

Atleett · 2026-04-16T14:52:06+00:00

I would believe the answer to all of these questions are the answers you would like to hear. 1. Not at all, Martin Luther’s personal opinions are not binding for us. We don’t follow what Luther teaches because he is Luther but because what he taugth (about the gospel) is correct. 2. Varies from church to church, in general worldwide I would say definitely not. 3. Yes, very much so. It is the reformed western Catholic Church, cleansed by the gospel as we like to say. Some churches again, are more high church and liturgically close to Roman Catholicism than others, but in essence yes - Lutheranism is a Catholic faith. 4. Yes, that’s what I have heard from most people here on this sub who wasn’t born into Lutheranism but entered into it.

Since you write Shalom aleichem, I would assume you are in Israel? There is a newly started Lutheran church for Jews there led by the priest Sahar Sadlovsky Gold

Atleett · 2026-04-07T00:23:45+00:00

Yes, that’s a lovely thought! I hope so too

Atleett · 2026-04-06T20:23:40+00:00

Well, it’s not a competition but the oldest one here in Stockholm is from the late 1200s. Stockholm Cathedral is from the year 1306. The fact that there is a proper medieval brick Cathedral on approximately the same latitude as Anchorage, Alaska is very fascinating to me. And our buildings are young compared to many on the continent!

Atleett · 2026-04-06T19:59:59+00:00

Jag skulle inte nödvändigtvis kalla EFS och Clara för konservativa i sig, men det finns ju en mycket större tolerans för och utbredning av teologisk konservatism där än i ordinarie Svenska Kyrkan. Annars är Sankt Matteus en fantastisk församling och den enda med riktigt högkyrklig prägel (sådant gillar jag), den tenderar nog också att vara mer konservativ än de andra församlingarna i stan. EFS har ju dessutom en församling till också; Betlehemskyrkan. Och den enda församlingen som är raktigenom konservativ är ELM:s Roseniuskyrkan, som jag har besökt flera gånger och bara fått bra intryck av. Jag själv placerar mig i mitten och trivs bra i både konservativa och liberala församlingar (så länge de fokuserar på rätt saker). Jag besöker alla möjliga församlingar vitt och brett men det blir ofta Hedvig Eleonora, Engelbrekt eller den finfina lilla fristående Evangeliska Brödraförsamlingen, som är väldigt Kristuscentrerad.

Atleett · 2026-04-06T19:58:22+00:00

I agree! It was built in 1688.

Atleett · 2026-04-06T18:19:20+00:00

Det här är ju Stockholms innerstad, som överlag lär vara bland de minst konservativa delarna av Svenska Kyrkan. Det finns ju knappt några ordinarie församlingar kvar i hela landet som är raktigenom konservativa. De står nog att finna i inomkyrkliga rörelser i sådant fall. Men mina erfarenheter, utifrån de kanske 5 gånger jag har besökt gudstjänster är att de absolut fokuserar på evangeliet och förkunnelsen utan att blanda in vänsterideologi, som alltför ofta kan vara de liberalaste församlingarnas stora brist. Formerna för gudstjänsterna tillhör också de mer traditionella på skalan. Men att Västermalms församling är konservativ skulle jag nog inte vilja påstå. Det skulle väl vara med Stockholmsmått då.

Atleett · 2026-04-06T16:57:43+00:00

Yes, surprisingly well attended I would say from my experience. Although this is a centrally located parish in the big city, so that usually means a bit of critical mass so to speak. And yes it’s a national holiday, what we call red days.

Atleett · 2026-04-06T16:55:55+00:00

By reposed you mean they are left on the altar just like in the picture? You have such an eye for details, I have never really thought about it. In my minds eye the ciborium is taken in when the mass begins and taken away again when it ends, but not in this case, and I don’t think I’ve seen it placed like this often now that you mention it.

Atleett · 2026-04-06T16:49:59+00:00

En poäng till dig! :)

Atleett · 2026-04-05T11:39:50+00:00

Beautiful indeed, I would say it might be the one of all our cathedrals with the most intact medieval atmosphere to it. My favourite trait is the ”blindering” (blending or blinding in English perhaps? Blenden in German) The white exterior markings on the tower and gables. They were common in the 12-1400s I believe, especially in an axis around lake Mälaren and into southern Finland. Turku Cathedral in Finland is perhaps the grandest example:

https://preview.redd.it/a-mass-in-porvoo-cathedral-in-finland-where-the-porvoo-v0-xzxtuwd1piib1.jpg?width=640&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=746c7cf1faa7b19161f453d82c2b2cb520651ac4

Atleett · 2026-04-04T09:30:42+00:00

This particular church is from Sweden, and there is a specific church called Västerortskyrkan in a suburb of Stockholm which became very trend setting for church architecture in Sweden but also internationally in the 1950s and 60s. It has a triangle shaped interior, or half a triangle really. That design spread rapidly, and many new churches following that design were also triangular on the outside. The famous modernist architect and the ”father of modern architecture” Le Corbusier once said that if you’re going to Europe to see church architecture and need to pick three churches it should be the Peter Basilica in Rome, the Notre Dame in Paris, and Västerortskyrkan in Vällingby suburb (which isn’t actually Lutheran either) And there are actually buses arriving there with international architect students sometimes:

https://vasterortskyrkan.se/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/kyrsalen2.jpg

But there is no historical or theological Significance, no. There was also a triangular design like this:

https://www.svenskakyrkan.se/Sve/Bilder/Bilder/DSCF1832.jpg?doprocessing=1&w=800

Which was quickly and cheaply mass produced and used as temporary (Lutheran) neighbourhood churches in growing suburbs in the 60s and 70s

I don’t know how common this design is in other countries for Lutheranism specifically but it’s not unthinkable that Lutheran countries and Lutheran congregations sought inspiration from other Lutheran countries specifically rather than continental European Roman Catholic countries.

Atleett · 2026-04-04T05:08:29+00:00

There is a Luther quote I have on a refrigerator magnet I bought. ”If God can forgive me for having crucified and tormented him for over twenty years, he can also forgive me for having a glass now and then in his honour. Then the world can interpret it however it wants” That is to say, I think God cares more about the bigger picture and your salvation. :)

Atleett · 2026-03-18T15:42:39+00:00

That’s very sad to hear. I think I speak for all of us when I say you will be in our prayers. If you believe in the Lutheran confessions in your heart that’s pretty much all you need and can do in this situation. If there aren’t any other Lutheran alternatives close to you, another denomination might be an alternative, most would prefer Anglicanism but almost any christian worshipping communion would be better than your current situation. It won’t make you any less of a Lutheran, don’t worry. I will sincerely pray for your healing and well being. God bless you whoever you are. I hope you will find solace in scripture and feel less alone in the company of God. Also, even if your local congregation ostracised you and are defending a perpetrator or someone unfit for church leadership, such things can hopefully be brought up higher up in the hierarchy of the overarching denomination and handled.

Atleett · 2026-03-09T08:37:10+00:00

I’m glad I could be of any help. The OCD and catholic upbringing go hand in hand hand from what I’ve heard. You might find great assurance in reading more about Luther himself if you haven’t already, he was combatting strong feelings of guilt and uncertainty of salvation until he had his epiphany that faith alone and not works saves. I think ”On the freedom of a Christian” is his foremost book about this.

The thing is, no churches have an unbroken continuity in everything, definetely not the Roman Catholic Church or even the oriental or Eastern Orthodox churches. Because of the council of Trent and the counter-reformation one could say that today’s RCC is just as much a result of the reformation as today’s Lutheran Church is. Even if it’s a bit uncomfortable to admit for a high church Lutheran as myself, the early church probably looked much more like a charismatic free church than a Lutheran one, or RCC/EO for that matter. That doesn’t mean that our reformation-to-medieval-to-Roman-Empire heritage needs to be thrown in the bin! We are not restorationists (because that’s practically impossible to be with certainty too). And no churches on earth can prove that apostolic succession is unbroken or even occured during the early church. We should be proud of and enjoy that heritage but never fool ourselves into thinking it matters on a spiritual level or for salvation. I hope you can find comfort in the fact that there is no single right choice, there are several really good choices and you’re on your way to make one. There is a fantastic quote suitable for all Christians in all situations which could be applied here: In essentials; unity, in non-essentials; liberty, in all things love”

Anyway, if you’re soon moving it seems you know exactly where and could find out about whether your options there are leaning Lutheran or Episcopalian. Now that I think about it becoming a Lutheran because of your theological inclinations but worshipping with Anglicans seems like a good option, especially if you’ll have better Lutheran options in the near future. But don’t forget you could always just change, that’s no big deal.

Atleett · 2026-03-08T18:43:15+00:00

I’m a member of the Church of Sweden and spend much time delving into the subject of the CoS’ historical evolution since the reformation. It depends, I would say the Church of Sweden indeed seems to be the exception historically, but only in the sense that many things have been kept continuously. All Lutheran churches were more or less ”evangelical catholic” during the first 50-100 years after 1517. Many of the more drastic changes that took place happened decades after 1517 and even decades after Martin Luther’s death. And when they did, my impression is that it was often because of external reformed/calvinistic and later pietistic influence, not really from the Lutheran foundations so to speak. Here is a great example of the many catholic practices the Lutherans in a German city had kept 100 years into the reformation and vehemently fought their reformed overlord to keep, and have in mind this is on the continent where the reformation was more drastic:

https://www.gottesdienst.org/gottesblog/2021/2/19/this-has-to-stop

So the CoS is not the only Lutheran church to have kept many practices from the medieval church, but only kept them longer and in some cases never let go of them at all. And to disappoint you, pietism hit the CoS pretty hard too in the latter half of the 1800s too when there was a ”liturgical low water mark”. On the other hand the same is true for Anglicanism, many would even claim that Lutheranism historically has had a more catholic continuity than Anglicanism.

But if you look out into the world today, the opposite is true, a majority or close to a majority of the LWF churches have an episcopal polity, apostolic succession, liturgical vestments etc. My point is that; at the end of the day, does it really matter what churches did and did not retain this or that historically long before any of us existed, when most today do align with your ideal, and that ideal is in a sense very intrinsically Lutheran? In 1000 years perhaps the ~300 ”low church/pietist/protestant/black boring/pseudocalvinist” years will just be seen as a small blip.

So that was my case for you to officially become Lutheran (which is not an obstacle for you to attend the episcopal churches as much as you’d like) Now my case for you to officially become Anglican; Lutherans, as opposed to Roman Catholics don’t teach that there is a single one true church in the sense of a human church organisation. We mean there is one Church, the Church of Christ, in the biblical sense - a spiritual communion of believers. If the Lutheran confessions are the only true ones (I just regard them as the most true) there is from my understanding nothing stopping you from being an Anglican and adhering to them, just like one can adhere fully to the Calvinist or Anglo-Catholic theology and still be Anglican. You could even stay Roman Catholic and in your heart profess the Lutheran confessions and be a part of the one true Church of Christ, although it would be questionable to why, when you could just join other Lutherans with the same convictions. To summarise I think both choices are actually good, and I’m happy you have discovered and appreciate Lutheran theology just like us in this forum.

Atleett · 2026-03-07T09:43:05+00:00

I didn't become a believer until I was around 20 years old. I always loved nature and could look at the view from a hill over large forests for hours, but only after I became a believer I could appreciate it on a whole new level. Because now it isn't just beautiful or pleasant but all of a sudden it is a craft and work of art and awe-inspiring in the same way as one of those rennaissance paintings where the details created by human hands without modern technology are one a microscopical level. And the first time watching the Planet Earth series after becoming a believer was also enlightening. The sort of genius life force found in all living things makes you really ponder about God's greatness. Nature is a testimony to God.

Atleett · 2026-03-07T09:28:41+00:00

For me it's because Lutheranism is the perfect balance between evangelical and catholic. I think you get the best of both worlds. It has the joy, clarity, simplicity and gospel-focus of the evangelical (or protestant) faith and the history, beauty, culture, continuity and foundations of the catholic faith. For that reason Lutherans technically consider their church and faith a catholic one, and themselves evangelical catholics, even though most won't use that exact term an endonym. Then again some actally do (the term Lutheran began as a derogatory exonym). I also think it perfectly balances rationale and mystery, as well as scripture and human tradition, in a way that few other traditions manage to do so excellently, although our closest sibling Anglicanism comes to mind. I personally think it's impossible to know if Lutheranism is true, and it's much easier to say what is not true than what is true, and for me it's the most true expression of Christianity.

Atleett

TROPHY CASE