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The Lutheran World Federation
Lutheran World Information |
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| 05.09.2005 |
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| LWF Council Extends Full Membership to Three Churches Pushing Total Worldwide to 140 |
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LWF Council Meeting in Jerusalem/Bethlehem,
31 August – 6 September 2005
PRESS RELEASE N0. 09-2005
Norwegian, Peruvian and Indian Churches Join LWF
JERUSALEM/BETHLEHEM, 5 September 2005 (LWI) – The Council of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) extended full membership to three churches in India, Norway and Peru, pushing the number of LWF member churches worldwide from the current 138 to 140, as one church was already an associate member church.
The Council approved full LWF membership for the 21,000-member Evangelical Lutheran Free Church of Norway, which has held associate membership since 1997. The Peruvian Lutheran Evangelical Church (ILEP) with 1,110 members was a recognized congregation. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Himalayan States (ELCITHS) in India with 23,350 members has had no previous recognition by the LWF. It has however been a member of the United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India (UELCI) since November 2002.
The new churches increase LWF membership by slightly over 21,500 Christians to 65,948,879 in 78 countries compared to the 65,927,334 in 77 countries recorded at the end of 2004.
Founded in 1877, the Norwegian church has one synod and five presbyteries with 82 congregations all over the country. It has 70 ordained male pastors. In 2005, the church decided to introduce the ordination of women. It is a member of the Christian Council of Norway and the Council of Free Churches in Norway. It has regular relationships with several LWF member churches.
The ILEP is already a recognized congregation of the LWF. It has 12 congregations and three mission points served by 13 pastors, five of whom are women. It has its origins in an initiative from the Lutheran Evangelical Church in Peru, and the missionary work of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America from 1967 to 1982. Its ecumenical work includes participation in an inter-confessional dialogue committee with other Christian denominations, and also with the Jewish community.
The ELCITHS brings together four different churches representing five distinct ethnic communities in the Himalayan States. The church’s current activities include among others, adult literacy education, a child development program and a rehabilitation center for drug addicts.
The Himalayan States’ church has had a close association with the UELCI for the last ten years. It is a member of the LWF National Committee in India. Through the UELCI, a body of eleven Lutheran churches, the ELCITHS is also a member of the World Council of Churches. Women’s ordination is a long tradition of the church that has one woman bishop. (410 words)
*There are around 170 participants in this year’s Council meeting, including representatives from the LWF member churches on the 49-member governing body. Also attending are officials from LWF partner organizations, invited guests, stewards, interpreters and translators, and LWF staff. The Council is the annual governing body meeting between Assemblies held every six years. The current Council was appointed at the July 2003 Tenth Assembly in Winnipeg, Canada. It comprises the President, Treasurer and 48 persons elected by the Assembly. Other members include advisors, who are ordained and lay persons representing the different LWF regions.
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