Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches
Encyclopedia
The Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC) was a U.S. church body that existed from 1976 through the end of 1987. The AELC formed when approximately 250 dissident congregations withdrew from the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod
(LCMS) in 1976, and ended as an independent body when it became part of the new Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA) on January 1, 1988.
(ELIM), a moderate caucus within the LCMS that opposed the Synod's more conservative
turn in the early and mid-1970s. ELIM was formed when, in the wake of conservative victories at the Missouri Synod's 1973 convention, moderate opponents had convened a conference in Chicago to chart out strategies. The conference's 800 delegates promised moral and financial support for church members who faced pressure due to their opposition to LCMS convention actions, and established ELIM as a network and rallying point for the moderate wing of the LCMS.
In 1974, the LCMS was rent by the Seminex
controversy, a walk-out by the vast majority of students and faculty at Concordia Seminary
in St. Louis, Missouri, that led to the establishment of a new, rival "Seminary in Exile." In 1975, presidents of eight LCMS districts
were threatened with removal from office for allowing their congregations to ordain Seminex graduates as ministers, and four were removed in April 1976. In the wake of the Seminex controversy and these removals, a movement to leave the Synod took shape among dissident congregations and church officials, most of them members of ELIM. The largest number of departures came from the LCMS's non-geographical English District
, which had joined the LCMS in 1911. Upon leaving the Missouri Synod, the English District leadership and many of its congregations immediately reconstituted the pre-1911 English Synod, and a number of officials and congregations from other districts followed their lead by exiting the LCMS.
In the end, approximately 250 congregations left the Missouri Synod. In December 1976, these congregations banded together to form a new, independent church body, the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC). Not surprisingly, the AELC proved to be more socially and theologically liberal than the LCMS, and shortly after its inception, it departed from LCMS practice on ordination by opening the ministry to women
with the ordination of Pastor Janith Otte-Murphy. The AELC was a disappointment in some respects, since it garnered far fewer dissident Missouri Synod congregations than its leaders had initially expected. With congregations totaling about 100,000 members, the AELC represented less than 4 % of the membership of the 2.7-million-strong Missouri Synod.
In October 1977, the AELC ordained its first female minister, Janith Otte Murphy of Oakland, California
, and Murphy subsequently took up an associate pastor's position at the University Lutheran Chapel in Berkeley, California
. The AELC was the third U.S. Lutheran church body to ordain a woman as a minister, following similar moves by the American Lutheran Church
and the Lutheran Church in America
in 1970.
The Rev. Will L. Herzfeld, an associate of Martin Luther King, Jr.
and former president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
's Alabama chapter, served as the AELC's second and last presiding bishop. He was the first African American
to lead a U.S. Lutheran church body.
unity in the United States. In particular, the AELC's leaders, Seminex president John Tietjen
among them, served as the catalyst for merger talks between two other Lutheran church bodies: the American Lutheran Church
(with approximately 2.25 million members), and the Lutheran Church in America
(with approximately 2.85 million members). These two churches, both also more moderate than the Missouri Synod, agreed along with the AELC in 1982 to unite as one church. The three bodies officially completed their merger on January 1, 1988, thereby creating the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA). The ELCA today is the largest and most liberal Lutheran church body in the United States.
Note: The designation used for the AELC leader was initially "president," although the title was later changed to "presiding bishop."
Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod
The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod is a traditional, confessional Lutheran denomination in the United States. With 2.3 million members, it is both the eighth largest Protestant denomination and the second-largest Lutheran body in the U.S. after the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The Synod...
(LCMS) in 1976, and ended as an independent body when it became part of the new Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is a mainline Protestant denomination headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA officially came into existence on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three churches. As of December 31, 2009, it had 4,543,037 baptized members, with 2,527,941 of them...
(ELCA) on January 1, 1988.
Formation
The AELC's forerunner was Evangelical Lutherans in MissionEvangelical Lutherans in Mission
Evangelical Lutherans in Mission was a liberal caucus within the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod . It was formed in 1973 as an oppositional group of clergy following sweeping victories by Jacob Aall Ottesen Preus II and the LCMS's conservative wing, known as Confessional Lutherans, at the...
(ELIM), a moderate caucus within the LCMS that opposed the Synod's more conservative
Conservative Christianity
Conservative Christianity is a term applied to a number of groups or movements seen as giving priority to traditional Christian beliefs and practices...
turn in the early and mid-1970s. ELIM was formed when, in the wake of conservative victories at the Missouri Synod's 1973 convention, moderate opponents had convened a conference in Chicago to chart out strategies. The conference's 800 delegates promised moral and financial support for church members who faced pressure due to their opposition to LCMS convention actions, and established ELIM as a network and rallying point for the moderate wing of the LCMS.
In 1974, the LCMS was rent by the Seminex
Seminex
Seminex is the widely used abbreviation for Concordia Seminary in Exile . An institution for the training of Lutheran ministers, Seminex existed from 1974 to 1987. It was formed after a walk-out by dissident faculty and students of Concordia Seminary in St...
controversy, a walk-out by the vast majority of students and faculty at Concordia Seminary
Concordia Seminary
Concordia Seminary is located in Clayton, Missouri, an inner-ring suburb on the western border of St. Louis, Missouri. The institution's primary mission is to train pastors, deaconesses, missionaries, chaplains, and church leaders for the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod . The current president of...
in St. Louis, Missouri, that led to the establishment of a new, rival "Seminary in Exile." In 1975, presidents of eight LCMS districts
Districts of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod
The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod is organized into 35 districts, 33 of which are defined along geographic lines. Each district has a president who oversees the congregations in his district, which are further subdivided into local circuits...
were threatened with removal from office for allowing their congregations to ordain Seminex graduates as ministers, and four were removed in April 1976. In the wake of the Seminex controversy and these removals, a movement to leave the Synod took shape among dissident congregations and church officials, most of them members of ELIM. The largest number of departures came from the LCMS's non-geographical English District
English District (LCMS)
The English District is one of the 35 districts of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod . It is one of the Synod's two non-geographical districts, along with the SELC District, and has its origins in the congregations of the former English Evangelical Lutheran Synod, which merged with the LCMS in...
, which had joined the LCMS in 1911. Upon leaving the Missouri Synod, the English District leadership and many of its congregations immediately reconstituted the pre-1911 English Synod, and a number of officials and congregations from other districts followed their lead by exiting the LCMS.
In the end, approximately 250 congregations left the Missouri Synod. In December 1976, these congregations banded together to form a new, independent church body, the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC). Not surprisingly, the AELC proved to be more socially and theologically liberal than the LCMS, and shortly after its inception, it departed from LCMS practice on ordination by opening the ministry to women
Ordination of women
Ordination in general religious usage is the process by which a person is consecrated . The ordination of women is a regular practice among some major religious groups, as it was of several religions of antiquity...
with the ordination of Pastor Janith Otte-Murphy. The AELC was a disappointment in some respects, since it garnered far fewer dissident Missouri Synod congregations than its leaders had initially expected. With congregations totaling about 100,000 members, the AELC represented less than 4 % of the membership of the 2.7-million-strong Missouri Synod.
In October 1977, the AELC ordained its first female minister, Janith Otte Murphy of Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
, and Murphy subsequently took up an associate pastor's position at the University Lutheran Chapel in Berkeley, California
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
. The AELC was the third U.S. Lutheran church body to ordain a woman as a minister, following similar moves by the American Lutheran Church
American Lutheran Church
The American Lutheran Church was a Christian Protestant denomination in the United States that existed from 1960 to 1987. Its headquarters was in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Upon its formation in 1960, the ALC designated Augsburg Publishing House , also located in Minneapolis, as the church publisher...
and the Lutheran Church in America
Lutheran Church in America
The Lutheran Church in America was a U.S. and Canadian Lutheran church body that existed from 1962 to 1987. It was headquartered in New York City and its publishing house was Fortress Press....
in 1970.
The Rev. Will L. Herzfeld, an associate of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the...
and former president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference is an African-American civil rights organization. SCLC was closely associated with its first president, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr...
's Alabama chapter, served as the AELC's second and last presiding bishop. He was the first African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
to lead a U.S. Lutheran church body.
Merger
The AELC did play an important role in efforts toward LutheranLutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
unity in the United States. In particular, the AELC's leaders, Seminex president John Tietjen
John Tietjen
John Tietjen was a Lutheran clergyman, theologian, and national church leader in the United States. He is best known both for his role in the Seminex controversy which roiled the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod in the mid-1970s, and for his efforts on behalf of Lutheran unity that resulted in...
among them, served as the catalyst for merger talks between two other Lutheran church bodies: the American Lutheran Church
American Lutheran Church
The American Lutheran Church was a Christian Protestant denomination in the United States that existed from 1960 to 1987. Its headquarters was in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Upon its formation in 1960, the ALC designated Augsburg Publishing House , also located in Minneapolis, as the church publisher...
(with approximately 2.25 million members), and the Lutheran Church in America
Lutheran Church in America
The Lutheran Church in America was a U.S. and Canadian Lutheran church body that existed from 1962 to 1987. It was headquartered in New York City and its publishing house was Fortress Press....
(with approximately 2.85 million members). These two churches, both also more moderate than the Missouri Synod, agreed along with the AELC in 1982 to unite as one church. The three bodies officially completed their merger on January 1, 1988, thereby creating the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is a mainline Protestant denomination headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA officially came into existence on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three churches. As of December 31, 2009, it had 4,543,037 baptized members, with 2,527,941 of them...
(ELCA). The ELCA today is the largest and most liberal Lutheran church body in the United States.
Presidents/Presiding Bishops
- William Kohn (1976-84).
- Will L. Herzfeld (1984-87).
Note: The designation used for the AELC leader was initially "president," although the title was later changed to "presiding bishop."