“They’re a really different style, and their lyrics are very theologically Lutheran, which is cool, and they’re deep and they have a lot of meaning - they just relate to the traditions I grew up with,” Szymanski said. St Paul member Paul Szymanski, a lifelong Lutheran who has seen Lost and Found 10 to 15 times in concert, said he jumped at the chance to bring the band’s rock opera to the church. Out front, a banner advertised its “Trunk or Treat” event on Halloween, also celebrated as Reformation Day. On Reformation Sunday (28th October), Lost and Found ended its mini-tour at St Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church, a Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod congregation in the south suburbs of Chicago that stands across the street from its original building, dating back to the 1800s. The Reformation-themed show accompanies a graphic novel. Michael Bridges, left, and George Baum perform their show 'Luther: The Rock Opera' at St Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church near Chicago. This fall, Lost and Found brought performances to five cities across the midwest US. Luther: The Rock Opera debuted to about 600 people last year at the Stadthaus Theater in Wittenberg. Then Melheim, a friend of the band, suggested they write a rock opera to accompany his graphic novel. His post - the 95 theses the German monk-turned-reformer reportedly nailed to the Castle Church door in Wittenberg, Germany, on 31st October, 1517 - kicked off the Protestant Reformation.īridges’ retelling of the start of the Reformation kicked off Luther: The Rock Opera, an hour-long romp featuring 24 upbeat songs performed by Bridges and bandmate George Baum against the backdrop of about 300 illustrations from Luther, the graphic novel by Rich Melheim.īridges and Baum retired from touring three years ago after performing together as Lost and Found for 25 years.

“Little did he know, the church would unfriend him,” Bridges said. Instead, as so often happens on Facebook and other social media platforms, a lot of people started arguing. Michael Bridges, on guitar, and George Baum, on keyboard, perform 'Luther: The Rock Opera' at St Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church on 28th October, 2018, near Chicago. It started when a man decided to stay up late and update his status, posting 95 things on his wall. He hoped his friends would like, comment on or share them.

The Protestant Reformation was a little bit like social media, featuring charismatic influencers, cutting-edge technology and viral content, according to Michael Bridges.

Luther the rock opera