The Augsburg Confession is a statement of faith of the Lutheran Church written by Philip Melanchthon, and presented at the Diet of Augsburg in June 1530.
The document attempted to reconcile differences between the Lutherans and the Catholic Church in 28 articles. The purpose was to defend the Lutherans against misrepresentations and to provide a statement of their theology that would be acceptable to the Roman Catholics.
The document was approved by the Protestant princes in attendance, but rejected by Charles V and the Catholic Church through their Pontifical Confutation of the Augsburg Confession. Even so, the Confession and other documents relating to it became the central affirmation of the Lutheran movement, which was finally recognized as a legitimate religious entity at the Peace of Augsburg in 1555.
The Augsburg Confession became a rallying point for the Lutheran princes of Germany, inspired the creation of other confessions of faith, and remains the affirmation of the Lutheran Church in the present. The Augsburg Confession was written to address all aspects of the Lutheran faith.
