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Search the LHF Publications Database. LHF has published more than 500 titles in 61 languages, with many more books in progress in many more languages.
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 What’s the faithful Lutheran pastor to do?
What is a pastor to do when Lutherans are only .3 percent of the population, a mere drop in the sea of millions of Catholics? What is he to do when the children of his parish are taught Catholicism as part of their ethics classes in the public schools? When there are no Lutheran materials in the language of his people that he could use to teach them himself?
How does a pastor answer the call to faithfully shepherd his people, to preserve the Lutheran heritage and pass the pure Gospel on to the next generation?
These are the questions that pull at the hearts of Lutheran pastors in Poland, home of the late Pope John Paul II and 35 million other Catholics.
But now, through the faithful support of many LHF donors, Polish pastors will have exactly what they need to help teach their people: Luther’s Small Catechism with Explanation.
“In theory, Poland is a secular state with full freedom of religion, but in practice, because a great majority of the society is Catholic, non-Catholic citizens can experience some difficult situations,” said Dr. Matthew Oseka, who translated the catechism. “In everyday life, especially outside large cities, non-Catholic parents and children feel a strong pressure to participate in Catholic religion classes, which bring spiritual damages and humiliate Lutherans.”
Challenges to the Lutheran faith come from other, perhaps more surprising quarters as well: the Lutheran Church in Poland (LCP) itself.
For many years, the LCP has been a member of the Lutheran World Federation and has been in pulpit and altar fellowship with the Reformed and Methodist Churches. Without Lutheran materials in their own languages, Polish Lutherans have resorted to using Reformed and Methodist Bible studies, children’s materials, and devotions.
“In my opinion, the most serious problem in the LCP is a lack of consistent Lutheran training on the congregational level, which opens the door to all kinds of religious ideas and practices,” said Dr. Oseka. “In plain words, many members of the LCP don’t know what it means to be Lutheran in the true sense of this notion.
“Luther’s Small Catechism will make a difference, for it presents in a simple, but confessional way the pure Biblical doctrine.”
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