CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Church Council of Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America (ELCA) called on the church's 65 synods, 10,549
congregations and 4.85 million members to support the Lutheran
World Federation (LWF) and join in preparations to celebrate the
LWF's 60th anniversary in 2007.
The Church Council is the ELCA's board of directors and
serves as the legislative authority of the church between
churchwide assemblies. The council met here Nov. 11-13.
Assemblies are held every other year; the next is here Aug. 6-11,
2007.
The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the
Lutheran tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund, Sweden, the LWF has
140 member churches in 78 countries around the world, with a
total membership of 66.2 million.
Based in Geneva, Switzerland, the LWF acts on behalf of its
member churches in areas of common interest such as ecumenical
and interfaith relations, theology, humanitarian assistance,
human rights, communication, and the various aspects of mission
and development work.
The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop, is president
of the LWF. The ELCA is the second largest member church of the
LWF. The Church of Sweden has nearly 7 million members.
The ELCA Church Council adopted a resolution "that the
synods and congregations of this church commit to hold the
Lutheran World Federation in prayer."
The resolution encouraged ELCA synods and congregations to
use resources -- prayers, litanies, devotional readings and
stories -- that will be available to mark the anniversary and LWF
Sunday, usually the first Sunday of each October, "to become
better informed and also to understand more deeply the
relationship of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America to the
global Lutheran family."
The council also urged ELCA members "to support the work of
the LWF with gifts and special offerings for the LWF Endowment
Fund" so that the LWF will continue to be "strong and vital" for
the next 60 years.
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The home page of the Lutheran World Federation is at
http://www.lutheranworld.org/ on the Web. Resources to mark the
anniversary will be available online through the LWF Regional
Office for North America at http://www.ELCA.org/lwf/ on the ELCA
Web site.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news
ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
