| Lutheran World Federation | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
| Type | Communion |
| Classification | Protestant |
| Orientation | Lutheran |
| Scripture | Protestant Bible |
| Theology | Lutheran theology |
| President | Henrik Stubkjær |
| General Secretary | Anne Burghardt |
| Headquarters | [Chemin du Pavillon 2,1218]Le Grand-Saconnex (Geneva, Switzerland) |
| Origin | 1947 |
| Members | 78,431,111 (2023)[1] |
| Official website | www |
TheLutheran World Federation (LWF;German:Lutherischer Weltbund) is a globalcommunion of national and regionalLutheran denominations headquartered in theEcumenical Centre inGeneva, Switzerland. The federation was founded in the Swedish city ofLund in the aftermath of theSecond World War in 1947 to coordinate the activities of the many differing Lutheran churches. Since 1984, the member churches are inpulpit and altar fellowship, with common doctrine as the basis of membership and mission activity.
The LWF now has 150 member church bodies in 99 countries representing over 78 million Lutherans;[1][2] as of 2023, it was the sixth-largest Christian communion (seelist of denominations by membership). The LWF acts on behalf of its member churches in areas of common interest such asecumenical andinterfaith relations,theology,humanitarian assistance,human rights, communication, and the various aspects ofmission and development work.
The Department for World Service is the LWF's humanitarian and development arm. It has programmes in 24 countries and is the UNHCR ninth largest implementing partner. The LWF is a member ofACT Alliance.
On 31 October 1999, inAugsburg, Germany, the LWF signed theJoint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification with theRoman Catholic Church. TheCatholic–Lutheran dialogue is a series of discussions that began during July 1964 as an outgrowth of theSecond Vatican Council. The statement is an attempt to narrow the theological divide between the two faiths. The declaration also states that the mutual condemnations between 16th-centuryCatholic church andLutheranism no longer apply. A similar event took place inLund Cathedral on 31 October 2016, the 499th anniversary of the beginning of theProtestant Reformation, with the signing of theStatement on the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation with Pope Francis and Bishop Munib Younan in a special Catholic-Lutheran dialogue.[3][4]
In 2016, 119 of the 145 member churches (80%) ordain women as ministers.[5]
The LWF was founded atLund, Sweden, in 1947. Based inGeneva, Switzerland, it replaced the more informalLutheran World Convention, which had been founded in 1923 and assembled for conventions in 1923, 1929, and 1935. The goal was to coordinate international activities of the many Lutheran churches, to provide a forum for discussions on theological and organizational issues, and to assist in philanthropy, missionary activity, and exchange of students and professors. A key leader was Executive Secretary Sylvester C. Michelfelder (1889–1951), representing theAmerican Lutheran Church. He had been a leader in organizing $45 million in American help for the rebuilding of Protestant churches in Germany after 1945. By the time of his death in 1951, the federation represented 52 churches in 25 countries.[6]
The 20 largest member churches are (with number of members in millions; 2023 statistics):
The President is the federation's chief official representative and spokesperson. The president presides at meetings of the Assembly, Council and Meeting of Officers, and oversees the life and work of the federation in consultation with the General Secretary.[9]
| No. | Portrait | Name | Term | Church | Nationality |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Anders Nygren (1890–1978) | 1947–1952 | Church of Sweden |  Sweden |
| 2 |  | Hanns Lilje (1899–1977) | 1952–1957 | Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Hanover |  Germany |
| 3 | Franklin Clark Fry (1900–1968) | 1957–1963 |
|  United States | |
| 4 | Fredrik A. Schiotz (1901–1989) | 1963–1970 | American Lutheran Church | United States | |
| 5 |  | Mikko Juva (1918–2004) | 1970–1977 | Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland |  Finland |
| 6 | Josiah Kibira (1925–1988) | 1977–1984 | Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania |  Tanzania | |
| 7 | Zoltán Káldy [de] (1919–1987) | 1984–1987 | Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Hungary |  Hungary | |
| 8 | Johannes Hanselmann [de] (1927–1999) | 1987–1990 | Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria | Germany | |
| 9 | Gottfried Brakemeier [pt] (born 1937) | 1990–1997 | Evangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession in Brazil |  Brazil | |
| 10 | Christian Krause [de] (1940-2024) | 1997–2003 | Evangelical Lutheran Church in Brunswick | Germany | |
| 11 |  | Mark Hanson (born 1946) | 2003–2010 | Evangelical Lutheran Church in America | United States |
| 12 |  | Munib Younan (born 1950) | 2010–2017 | Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land |  Palestine |
| 13 | Musa Filibus (born 1960) | 2017–2023 | The Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria |  Nigeria | |
| 14 |  | Henrik Stubkjær (born 1961) | 2023–present | Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark |  Denmark |
The Lutheran World Federation Council elects the General Secretary for a seven-year term. The person appointed is eligible for re-election. The General Secretary conducts the business of the federation assisted by the Communion Office Leadership Team, comprising department and unit heads appointed by the council, and carries out the decisions of the Assembly and Council.[10] On 19 June 2021, the LWF Council elected Estonian theologian Anne Burghardt as the next General Secretary. She is the first woman to serve in this role and assumed office on 1 November of that year.[11]
| No. | Name | Term | Nationality |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sylvester Michelfelder (1889–1951) | 1947–1951 | United States |
| 2 | Carl Lund-Quist [de] (1908–1965) | 1951–1960 | United States |
| 3 | Kurt Schmidt-Clausen [de] (1920–1993) | 1960–1965 | Germany |
| 4 | André Appel [fr] (1921–2007) | 1965–1974 |  France |
| 5 | Carl Henning Mau Jr. (1922–1995) | 1974–1985 | United States |
| 6 | Gunnar Stålsett (born 1935) | 1985–1994 |  Norway |
| 7 | Ishmael Noko (born 1943) | 1994–2010 |  Zimbabwe |
| 8 | Martin Junge [de] (born 1961) | 2010–2021 |  Chile |
| 9 | Anne Burghardt (born 1975) | 2021- |  Estonia |
This map shows the global distribution of Lutheranism based on The LWF 2019 membership data.[12][a]
| Year | Number of denominations | Number of individual members | % of global population[13] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009[14] | 140 | 70,053,316 | 1.01% |
| 2013[15] | 142 | 72,268,329 | 0.99% |
| 2015[16] | 145 | 74,261,862 | 0.99% |
| 2019[17] | 148 | 77,493,989 | 0.99% |
| 2023[1] | 150 | 78,431,111 | 0.97% |
Between 2009 and 2023, the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) grew from 140 to 150 member denominations. In the same period, individual membership grew from 70,053,316 to 78,431,111 people.[14][1] This represents a growth of 11.95% in 14 years. In the same period, the global population grew by 18.22%.[13]
LWF statistics from 2009 to 2023 show growth in membership in Africa and Asia. At the same time, membership is declining in Europe and America.[14][15][1]
Sorted by country in alphabetical order
Some member denominations have recognized same-sex unions through marriage, a blessing rite, or special prayers. These include theChurch of Denmark,Church of Iceland,Church of Norway,Church of Sweden,Protestant Church A.B. in Austria,Evangelical Lutheran Church in America,Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, Evangelical Lutheran Church of Chile,Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland,Evangelical Lutheran Church in Geneva,Evangelical Lutheran Church in Italy, a majority of the churches within theProtestant Church in Germany,Evangelical Church of the River Plate,Protestant Church in the Netherlands, and theUnited Protestant Church of France.[18]
On the other side, several churches, including theEthiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus,Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania, theMalagasy Lutheran Church, theEvangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia and theEvangelical Lutheran Church of Lithuania, which recognize marriage as solely the union between a man and a woman, have broken ties with many of the churches supporting same-sex unions.[19]
TheEvangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession in Brazil supportscivil same-sex marriage, but does not allow its ministers to celebrate same-sex unions, neither does it ordain ministers who are living in same-sex unions.[20]
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