More explanation
Recently I abruptly halted my investigations into the Roman Catholic Church. I think I should give at least a bit of explanation here since I did talk about it some in this place over the last several months as I explored that world.
Initially I became interested in the Roman Catholics because of two things. First and probably most important if I am honest, was the fact that many Roman Catholic churches have weekday mass, early Sunday mass, Saturday evening mass and so on. This factor, allowing me to attend at all was very important. But, now the second reason comes, the local Episcopal churches also presented that benefit and for a time I was content with them. Until they I noticed how they were drifting ever farther away from the bible into a meaningless mush of "love" without responsibility to the word of God. They went from accepting and loving the sinner to justifying the sin. This became clear and unacceptable to me with the ordination of an openly homosexual bishop in the American branch of Anglicanism. So I tried the Catholics, not wanting lose the blessings of the Eucharist and the liturgy. I found I could not accept them in the end. I can't pray to Mary, or any other saints, especially since some of them were men of violence. I can't accept that the church is preserved from error by the Pope being made infallible by the Holy Spirit when that same church has waged war in plain contradiction to the teachings of Jesus. Over all I simply cannot adjust, on top of all that, the preaching in most catholic churches really sucks. ;-)
So, on to the Lutherans. I didn't make a proper search of the local area for churches back then, I didn't consider the Lutherans in enough detail. So I tried to accept the Catholic stuff but it is just too strange for this old line Protestant here. I was baptized and confirmed in a Lutheran church, my theology was first developed there, the teachings of Luther are embedded in my mind like a Fox reporter in the Bush administration. Obviously I didn't accept them uncritically, I journeyed far in my seeking for truth, through most of the worlds religions, looking for the reality of what is, looking for God. Later I'll give a brief chronicle of my complete journey, I don't have time this morning.
Now I've come full circle. Back to the Lutheran church I started out in. And I know there is nothing there I can argue with this time, I've seen all the other "answers" out there and I am pretty sure, never totally sure, that in the Lutheran church I will have the most sound doctrine, the most faithful teaching of the real gospel as spelled out in the Holy Bible. Faith and the Word. Salvation by Jesus Christ alone. As I said, I'm home.