View source for Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

{{Short description|Largest Lutheran denomination in the United States}}
{{Redirect|ELCA|3=ELCA (disambiguation)}}
{{Use American English|date = September 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date = September 2019}}
{{Infobox Christian denomination
| name               = Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
| image              = The_Logo_of_the_Evangelical_Lutheran_Church_in_America.png
| main_classification = [[Protestantism|Protestant]]
| orientation        = [[Lutheranism|Lutheran]]
| theology           = [[Mainline Protestant|Mainline Lutheran]]
| scripture          = [[Protestant Bible]]{{efn|No particular version is prescribed, but the [[New Revised Standard Version]] is used by most congregations{{citation needed|date=October 2025}}}}
| polity             = Modified [[episcopal polity]] with some powers reserved to the congregation as in [[Congregationalist polity|congregationalism]]
| leader_title       = Presiding Bishop
| leader_name        = [[Yehiel Curry]]
| fellowships_type   = [[Full communion]]
| fellowships        = {{plainlist}}
* [[United Church of Christ|UCC]] (since [[A Formula of Agreement|1997]])
* [[Presbyterian Church (USA)|PCUSA]] (since [[A Formula of Agreement|1997]])
* [[Reformed Church in America|RCA]] (since [[A Formula of Agreement|1997]])
* [[Episcopal Church (United States)|TEC]] (since [[Called to Common Mission|1999]])
* [[Moravian Church in North America|Moravians]] (since 1999)
* [[United Methodist Church|UMC]] (since 2009)
* [[Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada|ELCC]] (since [[Churches Beyond Borders|2018]])
* [[Anglican Church of Canada|ACC]] (since [[Churches Beyond Borders|2018]])<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.elca.org/faith/ecumenical-and-inter-religious-relations/full-communion|title=Full Communion Partners}}</ref>
{{endplainlist}}
| headquarters       = Lutheran Center, 8765 W Higgins Rd, [[Chicago]], Illinois, U.S.
| founded_date       = Constituting Convention on April 30, 1987, in [[Columbus, Ohio]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www2.elca.org/communication/timeline/1987.html |title=ELCA Constituting Convention |access-date=February 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091102232607/http://www2.elca.org/communication/timeline/1987.html |archive-date=November 2, 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref> operations began January 1, 1988<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www2.elca.org/communication/timeline/19.html#1987 |title=ELCA Family History 1900s |access-date=February 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100420025048/http://www2.elca.org/communication/timeline/19.html#1987 |archive-date=April 20, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| founded_place      = 
| separated_from     = 
| parent             = 
| merger             = {{unbulleted list | [[Lutheran Church in America]] | [[American Lutheran Church]] | [[Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches]]}}
| separations        = {{unbulleted list | [[Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ]] (2001) | [[North American Lutheran Church]] (2010)}}
| associations       = {{unbulleted list | [[Lutheran World Federation]] | [[Christian Churches Together]] | [[Churches Uniting in Christ]] | [[National Council of Churches]] | [[World Council of Churches]] | [[Churches Beyond Borders]]}}
| area               = [[United States]] and [[Caribbean]]
| congregations      = 8,386 (2024)<ref name="elca2024stats"/>
| members            = 2,677,239 baptized members (2024)<ref name="elca2024stats"/>
| missionaries       = About 150 fully supported, including nine [[Evangelism|evangelists]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/march/26.57.html?start=2|title='It's Not About the Past'|author=David Neff|work=ChristianityToday.com|access-date=May 12, 2010|archive-date=October 14, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014173222/http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/march/26.57.html?start=2|url-status=live}}</ref>
| footnotes          = 
| website            = {{URL|www.elca.org}}
}}
The '''Evangelical Lutheran Church in America''' ('''ELCA''') is a [[mainline Protestant]] church headquartered in [[Chicago, Illinois]], in the [[United States]]. The ELCA was officially formed on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three [[Lutheran]] church bodies. As of December 31, 2024, it has approximately 2.68 million baptized members in 8,386 congregations.<ref name="elca2024stats">{{Cite web |date=June 12, 2025 |title=Summary of Congregational Statistics as of 12/31/2024 |url=https://elcamediaresources.blob.core.windows.net/cdn/wp-content/uploads/summary-of-congregational-statistics-as-of-12-31-24.pdf |access-date=July 23, 2025 |website=Evangelical Lutheran Church in America |page=261}}</ref>

In 2025, [[Pew Research]] estimated that 1.4 percent<ref>{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Gregory A. |last2=Cooperman |first2=Alan |last3=Alper |first3=Becka A. |last4=Mohamed |first4=Besheer |last5=Rotolo |first5=Michael |last6=Tevington |first6=Patricia |last7=Nortey |first7=Justin |last8=Kallo |first8=Asta |last9=Diamant |first9=Jeff |last10=Fahmy |first10=Dalia |date=2025-02-26 |title=Decline of Christianity in the U.S. Has Slowed, May Have Leveled Off |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2025/02/26/decline-of-christianity-in-the-us-has-slowed-may-have-leveled-off/#:~:text=Trends%20within%20Christianity,slightly%20from%207%25%20in%202007. |access-date=2025-03-10 |website=Pew Research Center |language=en-US}}</ref> of the U.S. adult population self-identifies with the ELCA; more broadly, 2% of US adults, or 5.2 million people, identified with the ELCA and mainline Lutheranism.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Religious Landscape Study |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religious-landscape-study/ |access-date=2025-03-10 |website=Pew Research Center |language=en-US}}</ref> It is the seventh-largest Christian denomination by reported membership<ref name="ncc">{{cite web |title=National Council of Churches USA |url=http://www.ncccusa.org/news/120209yearbook2012.html |website=ncccusa.org |access-date=23 March 2019 |date=20 March 2012 |archive-date=August 30, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130830055026/http://www.ncccusa.org/news/120209yearbook2012.html |url-status=live }}. As of 2012, churches with more members were the Catholic Church, Southern Baptist Convention, United Methodist Church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Church of God in Christ, and the National Baptist Convention, USA.</ref> and the largest [[Lutheran]] denomination in the [[United States]].<ref>{{Cite web| url = http://www.elca.org/communication/quick.html | publisher = ELCA | title = Quick Facts | access-date = December 13, 2007 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071026063729/http://www.elca.org/communication/quick.html | archive-date = October 26, 2007 }}.</ref> The next two largest Lutheran denominations are the [[Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod]] (LCMS) (with over 1.7 million baptized members<ref>{{Cite web |title=2023 Annual Report |url=https://files.lcms.org/file/preview/annual-report-2023?_gl=1*1os89ww*_ga*MTEyNzU1MDcuMTcyNDYxNDI4Mw..*_ga_Z0184DBP2L*MTcyNDYxNDI4Mi4xLjAuMTcyNDYxNDI4Mi4wLjAuMA.. |access-date=August 25, 2024 |website=Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod}}</ref>) and the [[Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod]] (WELS) (with approximately 340,000 members).<ref name="WELS ANNUAL REPORT 2022">{{cite web|url=http://wels.net/annualreport/|title=WELS ANNUAL REPORT 2022|access-date=20 May 2022|archive-date=July 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160721163552/http://wels.net/annualreport/|url-status=live}}</ref> There are also many [[Template:Lutheranism in the United States|smaller Lutheran church bodies]] in the [[Religion in the United States|United States]], some formed by dissidents to the major 1988 merger. Its members are largely descendants of [[Scandinavians]] and [[Germans]] who emigrated from countries where Lutheranism was the [[state religion]].

The ELCA belongs to the [[World Council of Churches]], the [[National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA]], and the [[Lutheran World Federation]]. It is in [[full communion]] with the [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopal Church]], [[Moravian Church in North America|Moravian Church]], [[Presbyterian Church (USA)]], [[Reformed Church in America]], [[United Church of Christ]], and the [[United Methodist Church]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.elca.org/Faith/Ecumenical-and-Inter-Religious-Relations/Full-Communion|title=Full Communion Partners|website=ELCA.org|access-date=2016-05-01|archive-date=November 16, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171116193008/http://www.elca.org/Faith/Ecumenical-and-Inter-Religious-Relations/Full-Communion|url-status=live}}</ref>

==History==
{{Lutheranism in the United States|expanded=mainline}}
Various Lutheran church bodies in the United States formed resulting from immigration waves from various countries. For instance, members of the Lutheran Church in America (LCA) (centered in [[New York City]], [[New York (state)|New York]], and [[Philadelphia]], [[Pennsylvania]]) were largely descendants of immigrants in the colonial and mid-19th century period. The American Lutheran Church (ALC), with headquarters in [[Minneapolis]], Minnesota, was influenced by descendants of the waves of Scandinavian and German immigration to the Midwest in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In their countries of origin, especially in Scandinavia and northern Germany, the Lutheran churches were the [[state church]]es. 

As Lutherans emigrated to America, they initially saw themselves as part of these churches, though they lacked the same organization and formal status in the New World. Over time Lutherans formed church organizations in America. The Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC), which withdrew from the LCMS in 1975, comprised many congregations throughout the lower Midwest. Over time, church associations' national or ethnic identification lessened as descendants assimilated into general American society. Members across organizations began to have more in common as areas of the country urbanized and more people made their livings in suburbs and cities, rather than in rural farming areas. The ALC and LCA were already the result of earlier mergers among associated congregations once related to ethnic immigrant groups.<ref name="almen"/>

In 1970, a survey by Strommen et al. found that 79% of Lutheran Church in America clergy, 62% of American Lutheran Church clergy, and 58% of Lutheran Church Missouri Synod clergy agreed that "a merger of all Lutheran groups in the United States into one organization is desirable".<ref>For laity, the figures were 70% LCA, 70% ALC, and 62% LCMS. Including clergy and laity, 4,745 Lutheran adults between the ages of 15 and 65 were surveyed. See Merton P. Strommen et al., ''A Study of Generations'' (Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing, 1972), p. 283.</ref> A group of congregations left the LCMS after 1975 as it became dominated by theological and social conservatives; they formed the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC).<ref name="almen"/>

After several years of discussion, the LCA, ALC, and AELC formally agreed in 1982 to unite. Implementing this agreement took longer: the new Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA) was effective on January 1, 1988, creating the largest Lutheran church body in the U.S. The ALC and LCA had been formed by previous mergers.<ref name="almen">Lowell Almen, ''One Great Cloud of Witnesses'', (Minneapolis:Augsburg Fortress, 1997) pp.9-12 for a brief recounting of the formation of the ELCA</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Roots of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America|url=http://www.elca.org/communication/roots.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070403112446/http://www.elca.org/communication/roots.html|archive-date=April 3, 2007|website=Evangelical Lutheran Church in America}}</ref>

===American Lutheran Church===
{{Main|American Lutheran Church}}
In 1960, the [[American Lutheran Church]] formed as a merger of the earlier [[American Lutheran Church (1930)|ALC]] of 1930, largely members of German heritage; the [[United Evangelical Lutheran Church]] (UELC), with members of [[Denmark|Danish]] background; and the [[Evangelical Lutheran Church (United States)|Evangelical Lutheran Church]] (ELC), made up of members of [[Norway|Norwegian]] background. The [[Lutheran Free Church]] (LFC) joined three years later in 1963.

The ALC brought approximately 2.25 million members into the new ELCA. It was the most theologically conservative of the forming bodies, having a heritage of [[Old Lutherans|Old Lutheran]] theology.<ref name="The Lutherans in North America">Nelson, E. Clifford. [https://books.google.com/books?id=q3xyPFA_8O0C&pg=PA509 ''The Lutherans in North America''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231109201758/https://books.google.com/books?id=q3xyPFA_8O0C&pg=PA509#v=onepage&q&f=false |date=November 9, 2023 }}. Revised ed. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1980. p. 509</ref> It had been in fellowship for a decade with the [[Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod]] and officially held to [[biblical inerrancy]] in its constitution. It seldom enforced that stance by means of heresy trials or other doctrinal discipline. Its geographic center was in the [[Upper Midwest]], especially [[Minnesota]]. Its headquarters and publisher ([[Augsburg Publishing House]]) were based on South Fifth Street in [[Minneapolis]] and one of its several seminaries was in neighboring [[St. Paul, Minnesota|St. Paul]]. Its denominational magazine was ''The Lutheran Standard'', published in Minneapolis. Some ALC congregations chose not to join the 1988 merger and instead formed the [[American Association of Lutheran Churches]].

===Lutheran Church in America===
{{Main|Lutheran Church in America}}
[[File:Evangelical Lutheran on East Church Street - panoramio.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Evangelical Lutheran Church (Frederick, Maryland)|Evangelical Lutheran Church]] in [[Frederick, Maryland]] (1752)]]
The [[Lutheran Church in America]] (LCA) was created in 1962 by a merger among the [[United Lutheran Church in America]], created in 1918 by an earlier merger of three German Lutheran synods in the eastern U.S.; [[Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church]], of Swedish ethnicity with some dating to the colonial era; the [[Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church of America]]; and [[American Evangelical Lutheran Church]], made up of ethnic Danish families.

The LCA was the slightly larger partner and brought approximately 2.85 million members into the ELCA. Its administrative offices were in the Church House, a former townhouse mansion on Madison Avenue in [[New York City]]. Its publishing house, [[Fortress Press]], was on Queen Lane in northwest [[Philadelphia]], and produced the church magazine, ''The Lutheran''. Its demographic focus was on the [[East Coast of the United States|East Coast]], centered on [[Pennsylvania]]. It also had large numbers in the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]] and some presence in the [[South Atlantic States]]. There are notable exceptions, but LCA churches tend to emphasize liturgical expression more than the ALC-background churches. Its theological orientation ranged from moderately liberal to [[neo-orthodox]], with tendencies toward conservative [[Pietism]] in some rural and small-town congregations. Its theology originated in [[Neo-Lutheranism]].<ref name="The Lutherans in North America"/>

===Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches===
{{Main|Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches}}
In 1976, the [[Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches]] (AELC) was formed by 250 congregations that had left the [[Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod]] (LCMS) in a [[Seminex|schism]] precipitated by disputes over [[biblical inerrancy]] and [[ecumenism]]. These were part of the overall [[fundamentalist–modernist controversy]] that had been roiling American [[Protestant]] churches for several decades. In 1969 the LCMS had elected more conservative leadership under President [[J. A. O. Preus II]], replacing moderate incumbent [[Oliver Harms]]. The new leadership opened an investigation at the synod's [[Concordia Seminary]] in [[St. Louis, Missouri]], about the faculty's commitment to inerrancy in biblical interpretation. It also opposed ecumenism.

As a result, most of the faculty and student body walked out and established a separate institution initially named "Concordia Seminary-in-Exile" (but usually referred to as "[[Seminex]]"). The AELC formed in 1976. It brought approximately 100,000 members into the ELCA. Its ethnic heritage was primarily from German immigrants of the mid-19th century, who came to the U.S. after the revolutions in various principalities. Many were abolitionists and Unionists during the American Civil War. By the 1980s, the AELC theology generally resembled the LCA's.

==Organization==
{{See also|List of ELCA synods}}
[[File:Mark hanson.jpg|thumb|upright|ELCA's then-Presiding Bishop [[Mark Hanson]] speaking at the inauguration of a new [[Augsburg University]] president in 2006]]
The ELCA is headed by a [[presiding bishop]], who is elected by the Churchwide Assembly for a six-year term (it was a four-year term until 1995). To date, five people have been elected to the position of presiding bishop of the ELCA. [[Herbert W. Chilstrom]] served as the first presiding bishop from 1987 to 1995. He was followed by [[H. George Anderson]] (1995–2001), who had previously been the president of [[Luther College (Iowa)|Luther College]]. The third presiding bishop was [[Mark Hanson]], who is the past president of the [[Lutheran World Federation]], headquartered in [[Geneva, Switzerland]]. Hanson began his tenure as bishop of the Church in 2001 and was re-elected in August 2007 for a second term. [[Elizabeth Eaton]] was elected presiding bishop in August 2013 and took office on November 1, 2013. She was reelected for a second term in 2019. In November 2023, Michael Burk was appointed Presiding Bishop Pro Tempore by the ELCA Church Council following a request by Bishop Eaton to take a 4–6 month leave of absence.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.livinglutheran.org/2023/11/elca-church-council-appoints-michael-burk-as-presiding-bishop-pro-tempore/|title=ELCA Church Council appoints Michael Burk as presiding bishop pro tempore|work=Living Lutheran|date=November 15, 2023|access-date=November 28, 2023}}</ref> [[Yehiel Curry]], bishop of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod, was elected presiding bishop in July 2025 and took office on October 1, 2025. He was installed on October 4, 2025 at Central Lutheran Church in Minneapolis.<ref>{{cite web |title=On the 5th ballot, Bishop Yehiel Curry of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod, has just been elected presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Thanks be to God! |url=https://x.com/PasadenaTrinity/status/1950687739093066001 |website=X.com |access-date=30 July 2025}}</ref>

In addition, the body of the Church Council is composed of representatives elected for a stated number of years from the various [[synods]]. These meet regularly with legislative powers in between sessions of the Churchwide Assemblies.

The Conference of Bishops, which meets at least twice a year, is formed of 66 bishops (the 65 elected synodical bishops, together with the presiding bishop), plus the ELCA church secretary. It is consulted by the presiding bishop and the Church Council for advice on matters of doctrine, faith and order, and ecumenical relations. The ELCA website states that "While primarily advisory, the role of the Conference of Bishops is significant within the life of this church."<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.elca.org/About/Leadership/Conference-of-Bishops |title = Conference of Bishops |publisher = ELCA |access-date = 23 August 2018 |archive-date = August 23, 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180823141907/http://www.elca.org/About/Leadership/Conference-of-Bishops |url-status = live }}</ref>

[[File:Map of ELCA regions.svg|thumb|A map of the nine ELCA regions. The Slovak Zion Synod falls under Region 7 and the [[Bahamas]] and the Caribbean under Region 9.]]
The ELCA is divided into [[List of ELCA synods|65 synods]], one of which is non-geographical (the [[Slovak Zion Synod]]) and 64 regional synods in the United States and the Caribbean, each headed by a synodical bishop and council; these synods are in turn grouped into nine regions.<ref>For further information about the ELCA's structure and organization, see [http://www.elca.org/secretary/constitutions/ConstitutionsBylawsandContinuingResolutions2005.pdf 2005 ELCA Constitution] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070317002930/http://www.elca.org//secretary/constitutions/ConstitutionsBylawsandContinuingResolutions2005.pdf |date=2007-03-17 }} (pdf document, retrieved March 27, 2007)</ref> Within the ELCA the term ''synod'' refers to the [[middle judicatory]], which is referred to in some other denominations as "presbyteries", "districts", "conferences" or "dioceses" (the most ancient and traditional term in Christianity). In other Christian churches, the term "synod" is used for a meeting or conference of ministers such as priests or bishops of a diocese, province (region) or nation or, in some Protestant churches, as the term for their annual governing convention. Some Evangelical Lutheran denominations overseas continue to use the ancient church title of "diocese".

Outside of the United States, ELCA also has congregations in the [[Caribbean]] region ([[Bahamas]] which is combined with Florida in one synod; [[Bermuda]], [[Puerto Rico]] and the [[United States Virgin Islands|U.S. Virgin Islands]]); and one congregation in the border city of [[Windsor, Ontario]], a member of the [[Slovak Zion Synod]]. Before 1986, some of the congregations that form the [[Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada]] were part of the ELCA's predecessor churches.

Within the church structure are divisions addressing many programs and ministries. Among these are support for global mission, outdoor ministries, campus ministries, social ministries, and education. They include the [[Lutheran Peace Fellowship]], [[Lutheran Women's Caucus]], [[Lutheran Volunteer Corps]], and the Lutheran Youth Organization [[ELCA Youth Gathering]] (formerly known in predecessor denominations as the [[Luther League]]). They cooperate with an ecumenical inter-Lutheran college/university student organization known as the Lutheran Student Movement-USA founded in 1922 and reorganized in 1969. The denominational publishing house is [[Augsburg Fortress]], and the official denominational magazine is ''[[Living Lutheran]]''. ELCA predecessor bodies established twenty-six [[List of ELCA colleges and universities|colleges and universities, which are now affiliated with the ELCA]] and a large number of associated theological seminaries. Some of these are associated with neighboring universities or theological consortia.

Most local congregations are legally independent non-profit corporations within the state where they are located and own their own property. Governing practice within the congregation ranges from congregational voters' assemblies or annual and special congregational meetings to elder-and-council-led, to congregations where the senior pastor wields great, if informal, power (more common in larger churches).<ref>See the [http://www.elca.org/secretary/constitutions/congregations/index.html Model Constitution for Congregations] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070317002942/http://www.elca.org//secretary/constitutions/congregations/index.html |date=2007-03-17 }} (retrieved March 27, 2007) - especially Chapter 5 "Powers of the Congregation" and Chapter 7 "Property Ownership".</ref>

===Churchwide Assemblies===
The Churchwide Assembly consists of elected lay and ordained voting members. The Churchwide Assembly met biennially in odd-numbered years until 2013. Between meetings of the Churchwide Assembly, the ELCA Church Council governs the denomination, along with the advisory Conference of Bishops.

At the Assembly, elections are held for general officers of the Church such as the presiding bishop, vice president and secretary, budgets are adopted, social statements examined and approved, and various other church business enacted, along with reports made and ecumenical visitors acknowledged. A constitutional amendment was passed in 2011 to change the Assembly to one meeting on a triennial basis after 2013. The Assembly was known as the "General Convention" in the ALC and the "Biennial Convention" in the LCA.

*1987 [[Columbus, Ohio]] (ELCA Constituting Convention)
*1989 [[Chicago|Chicago, Illinois]]
*1991 [[Orlando, Florida]]
*1993 [[Kansas City, Missouri]]
*1995 [[Minneapolis|Minneapolis, Minnesota]]
*1997 [[Philadelphia|Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]]
*1999 [[Denver|Denver, Colorado]]
*2001 [[Indianapolis|Indianapolis, Indiana]]
*2003 [[Milwaukee|Milwaukee, Wisconsin]]
*2005 Orlando, Florida
*2007 Chicago, Illinois
*[[2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly|2009 Minneapolis, Minnesota]]
*2011 Orlando, Florida
*2013 [[Pittsburgh|Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]]
*2016 [[New Orleans|New Orleans, Louisiana]]
*2019 Milwaukee, Wisconsin
*2022 Columbus, Ohio
*2025 [[Phoenix, Arizona]]

==Beliefs==

===Lutheranism===
Lutheranism is associated with the [[theology of Martin Luther]], with its official confessional writings found in the [[Book of Concord]]. The ELCA accepts the unaltered [[Augsburg Confession]] (not the [[Augsburg Confession Variata|variata]]) as a true witness to the [[Good news (Christianity)|Gospel]]. The ELCA is less [[conservatism|conservative]] than the [[Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod]] (LCMS) and the [[Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod]] (WELS), the second and third largest Lutheran bodies in the United States, respectively.<ref>See also http://archive.elca.org/questions/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081011135108/http://archive.elca.org/questions/|date=October 11, 2008}}, {{cite web |title=Essential Questions - Christianity and Lutheranism |url=http://archive.elca.org/communication/brief.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207120421/http://archive.elca.org/communication/brief.html |archive-date=2009-02-07 |access-date=2009-01-28}} and http://archive.elca.org/communication/faith.html {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080907134722/http://archive.elca.org/communication/faith.html|date=September 7, 2008}}</ref> Most ELCA Lutherans are theologically moderate-to-liberal, although there is a sizable conservative minority. Other Lutheran bodies in the U.S. tend to hold more strictly to [[Confessional Lutheranism]].

===Differences within the ELCA===
{{more citations needed|1=section|date=October 2024}}
Constituent congregations of the ELCA hold many differences of opinion, and have had disputes over social and doctrinal issues. In part, this is related to the history of having assimilated three different Lutheran church bodies, each with its own factions and divisions, but also to responses to changing social conditions in the United States. Old intra-group conflicts were inherited and new inter-group ones were created. Differences on issues usually reflect theological disputes between various parties.

The ELCA is a very broad denomination. It contains groups of socially and/or theologically conservative or liberal factions with differing emphases on various topics such as [[liturgical renewal]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.valpo.edu/ils |title=Institute of Liturgical Studies |institution=Valparaiso University |work=Valpo.edu |date=2013-07-18 |access-date=2013-11-30 |archive-date=December 5, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131205120430/http://www.valpo.edu/ils/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>Cimino, Richard. ''Lutherans Today,'' Eerdmans: Grand Rapids, 2003, 81–101.</ref> confessional Lutheranism, charismatic revivalism, moderate to liberal theology, and liberal activism. The socially liberal segment of the ELCA is represented by independent organizations such as [[ReconcilingWorks]], [[Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries]], and the [[Evangelical and Ecumenical Women's Caucus]]. What is now known as the [[Lutheran CORE|Lutheran Coalition For Renewal]] (Lutheran CORE) is made up ELCA congregations as well as socially conservative congregations that left the ELCA after it (the ELCA) decided to accept openly gay clergy for ordination and calling. Adherents of [[Evangelical Catholic]]ism practice [[High Church Lutheranism]] and include the members of the [[Society of the Holy Trinity]]. Those oriented toward Confessional Lutheranism, [[Evangelicalism]], or an admixture of the two include the [[WordAlone]] network. Members of the [[Charismatic Movement]] include congregations and pastors associated with the Alliance of Renewal Churches and some ethnic congregations. Additionally, there has been a recent growth in Franciscan spirituality in the ELCA through the [[Order of Lutheran Franciscans]].

===Scripture===
The ELCA constitution states: "This church accepts the canonical Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as the inspired Word of God and the authoritative source and norm of its proclamation, faith, and life."<ref>For more information on the history and current documents of the ELCA, look at other resources linked to the "About the ELCA" section of the [ELCA] http://www.elca.org {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230731044929/https://www.elca.org/ |date=July 31, 2023 }} Web site. See the series of essays, "With Confidence in God's Future" for more on ELCA's ecumenical outlook. Get it in [Word]http://archive.elca.org/communication/WithConfidence.doc {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080819191647/http://archive.elca.org/communication/WithConfidence.doc |date=August 19, 2008 }}, or [PDF]http://archive.elca.org/communication/WithConfidence.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080819191701/http://archive.elca.org/communication/WithConfidence.pdf |date=August 19, 2008 }} format.</ref>

ELCA clergy tend not to subscribe to a doctrine of [[biblical inerrancy]], but see validity in various [[Higher criticism|scholarly methods]] of analysis to help in understanding the Bible,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.elca.org/What-We-Believe/New-or-Returning-to-Church/Dig-Deeper/The-Bible.aspx|title=the Bible|publisher=Evangelical Lutheran Church of America|access-date=July 6, 2008|archive-date=August 29, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080829173932/http://www.elca.org/What-We-Believe/New-or-Returning-to-Church/Dig-Deeper/The-Bible.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref> a process sometimes called Higher Criticism.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lcms.org/ca/www/cyclopedia/02/display.asp?t1=h&word=HIGHERCRITICISM |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091018192103/http://www.lcms.org/ca/www/cyclopedia/02/display.asp?t1=h&word=HIGHERCRITICISM |archive-date=October 18, 2009|work=Christian Cyclopedia|title=Higher Criticism}}</ref>

===Sacraments===
Like other Lutheran church bodies, the ELCA confesses two [[sacrament]]s: [[Eucharistic theology#Lutheran churches|Communion]] (or the [[Eucharist in Lutheranism|Eucharist]]) and [[Baptism#Lutheranism|Holy Baptism]] (including [[Infant baptism#Lutheran Churches|infant baptism]]). Guidance on sacramental practices in the ELCA is provided in ''The Use of the Means of Grace'', a statement adopted by the 1997 Churchwide Assembly.<ref>{{Cite web|date=August 19, 1997|title=The Use of the Means of Grace - A Statement on the Practice of Word and Sacrament|url=http://www.elca.org/Growing-In-Faith/Worship/Learning-Center/The-Use-of-the-Means-of-Grace.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091015095945/http://www.elca.org/Growing-In-Faith/Worship/Learning-Center/The-Use-of-the-Means-of-Grace.aspx|archive-date=October 15, 2009|website=Evangelical Lutheran Church in America}}</ref>

In addition to the two sacraments, ELCA churches also practice acts which are orders. These include [[Confirmation (Lutheran Church)|confirmation]], [[ordination]], [[anointing of the sick|anointing the sick]], [[Confession in the Lutheran Church|confession and absolution]], and [[marriage]].

With respect to the eucharist or the Lord's Supper, the ELCA holds to the Lutheran doctrine of the [[sacramental union]], that is, that Christ's body and blood is truly present "in, with and under" the [[Sacramental bread|bread]] and wine.<ref>[http://bookofconcord.org/sd-supper.php#para38 The Solid Declaration of the Formula of Concord, Article 8, The Holy Supper, paragraph 38] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191021072005/http://bookofconcord.org/sd-supper.php#para38 |date=October 21, 2019 }}.</ref> All communicants [[Human mouth|orally]] receive not only bread and wine, but also the same body and blood of Christ that was given for them on the cross.<ref>Cf. unaltered [[Augsburg Confession]], [http://bookofconcord.org/augsburgconfession.php#article10 Article 10: Of the Lord's Supper] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110810073345/http://bookofconcord.org/augsburgconfession.php#article10 |date=August 10, 2011 }}.</ref> Members of other denominations sometimes refer to this as a belief in [[consubstantiation]]. Lutherans, however, [[Sacramental union#Distinction from other doctrines of the Real Presence|reject the philosophical explanation of consubstantiation]], preferring to consider the presence of the Lord's body and blood as mysterious rather than explainable by human philosophy. The Lutheran belief in the holy mystery character of the consecrated bread and wine is more similar to that of [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] and [[Eastern Orthodox]] belief than to the views of other Protestants.

Unlike certain other American Lutheran church bodies, the ELCA practices [[open communion]], permitting all persons baptized in the name of the Trinity with water to receive communion. Some congregations also [[Infant communion|commune baptized infants]], similarly to Eastern Orthodox practice. The ELCA encourages its churches to celebrate the Eucharist at all services, although some churches alternate between non-eucharistic services and those containing the Lord's Supper.

===Social issues===
The ELCA's stances on social issues are outlined in its Social Statements and Messages.<ref>{{cite web |title=Faith and Society |url=http://www.elca.org/Faith/Faith-and-Society |work=Evangelical Lutheran Church in America |access-date=December 19, 2013 |archive-date=November 25, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131125174928/http://www.elca.org/Faith/Faith-and-Society |url-status=live }}</ref> Social Statements, which are usually, but not always, adopted by a two-thirds majority of a Churchwide Assembly, have been adopted on the following topics:
{{div col|colwidth=27em}}
* Abortion (1991)
* Church in Society (1991)
* Death Penalty (1991)
* Economic Life (1999)
* Education (2007)
* Environment (1993)
* Genetics (2011)
* Health and Health Care (2003)
* [[2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly#Social Statement|Human Sexuality (2009)]]
* Peace (1995)
* Race, Ethnicity & Culture (1993)
* Migrant Crisis (2019)
{{div col end}}

====Role of women====
The ELCA [[ordination of women|ordains women as pastors]], a practice that all three of its predecessor churches adopted in the 1970s (The [[American Lutheran Church|ALC]] and [[Lutheran Church in America|LCA]] in 1970, the [[Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches|AELC]] in 1976). Some women have become bishops. The first female bishop, [[April Ulring Larson]], was elected in the [[La Crosse, Wisconsin|La Crosse]] area synod in 1992. In 2018, the ELCA elected its first African-American female bishops: Patricia Davenport in Southeastern [[Pennsylvania]] and Viviane Thomas-Breitfeld in South-Central [[Wisconsin]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/black-women-bishops-are-making-history-for-their-predominantly-white-church_n_5af2fe52e4b0a0d601e8df44|title=Black Women Bishops Are Making History In This Predominantly White Church|last=Kuruvilla|first=Carol|date=2018-05-09|website=HuffPost|language=en|access-date=2019-06-27|archive-date=October 23, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023035024/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/black-women-bishops-are-making-history-for-their-predominantly-white-church_n_5af2fe52e4b0a0d601e8df44|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2013, [[Elizabeth Eaton]] became the first woman to be elected presiding bishop of the ELCA. The most recent ELCA hymnal, ''[[Evangelical Lutheran Worship]]'', includes alternate gender-neutral invocations and benedictions in all settings. All of the psalms and many of the hymns and parts of the liturgy have been altered to remove masculine pronouns referring to God.<ref>ELCA/ELCiC Celebrate New Hymnal. ''The Lutheran Hedgehog 1''(5). Sept.-October 2006. p 6.</ref> In 2000, the Cooperative Clergy Study Project surveyed 681 ELCA pastors and found that 95 percent of ELCA clergy thought that all clergy positions should be open to women, while 2 percent disagreed.<ref name="thearda.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.thearda.com/Archive/Files/Descriptions/COOPCLER.asp|title=Summary - The Cooperative Clergy Study Project - Data Archive - The Association of Religion Data Archives|access-date=February 13, 2014|archive-date=October 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191025041843/http://www.thearda.com/Archive/Files/Descriptions/COOPCLER.asp|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[File:Augustana Lutheran Church - sign.JPG|thumb|upright|Augustana Lutheran Church in [[Washington, D.C.]], is a "[[Reconciling in Christ]]" congregation, meaning they welcome all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.]]

====Ordination of LGBT clergy and blessings of same-sex marriages====
{{Main|2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly}}

On August 21, 2009, the ELCA's Churchwide Assembly in Minneapolis voted to allow congregations to call and [[Ordination of LGBT Christian clergy|ordain gays and lesbians]] in committed monogamous relationships to serve as clergy.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Sexuality - Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust|url=http://www.elca.org/What-We-Believe/Social-Issues/Social-Statements/JTF-Human-Sexuality.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091105063915/http://www.elca.org/What-We-Believe/Social-Issues/Social-Statements/JTF-Human-Sexuality.aspx|archive-date=November 5, 2009|website=Evangelical Lutheran Church in America}}</ref> By a vote of 559 to 451, delegates approved a resolution declaring that the church would find a way for people in "publicly accountable, lifelong, monogamous [[same-gender relationship]]s" to serve as official ministers. Congregations that do not wish to call these persons to ordained ministry are not required by these policy changes to do so.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/22/us/22lutherans.html?hpw | work=[[The New York Times]] | title=Lutheran Group Eases Limits on Gay Clergy | first1=Michael | last1=Luo | first2=Christina | last2=Capecchi | date=August 22, 2009 | access-date=April 1, 2010 | archive-date=May 15, 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130515155614/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/22/us/22lutherans.html?hpw | url-status=live }}</ref>

In reaction, [[Lutheran CORE]], which opposed the decision, stated that it would "initiate a process that we hope will lead to a reconfiguration of North American Lutheranism."<ref>{{Cite web|last=Spring|first=Paull E.|date=September 4, 2009|title=Update on Lutheran CORE's Convocation|url=http://www.lutherancore.org/papers/spring_pre_convoc_ltr.shtml|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727050528/http://www.lutherancore.org/papers/spring_pre_convoc_ltr.shtml|archive-date=July 27, 2011}}</ref> In February 2010, Lutheran CORE announced that it would secede from the ELCA and form a new denomination to be named the [[North American Lutheran Church]] (NALC).<ref>{{Cite web|date=February 18, 2010|title=A Vision and Plan for The North American Lutheran Church and Lutheran CORE, a community of confessing Lutherans|url=http://www.lutherancore.org/papers/new_vision.shtml|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100304071324/http://www.lutherancore.org/papers/new_vision.shtml|archive-date=March 4, 2010|website=Lutheran CORE}}</ref> {{As of|2008}}, 37 percent of ELCA pastors were found to support [[same-sex marriage]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Jones |first1=Robert P. |last2=Cox |first2=Daniel |title=Mainline Protestant Clergy Views on Theology and Gay and Lesbian Issues: Findings from the 2008 Clergy Voices Survey |url=http://www.publicreligion.org/objects/uploads/fck/file/CVS%20Theology%20and%20LGBT.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100821140414/http://www.publicreligion.org/objects/uploads/fck/file/CVS%20Theology%20and%20LGBT.pdf |archive-date=2010-08-21 |access-date=2009-09-26 |page=7}}</ref>

The ELCA, in removing sexual orientation as a bar for candidacy in the professional ministry, joined most of its Lutheran sister churches in Europe, including in Germany, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, and Austria.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Streit um homosexuelle Pfarrer|url=http://www.nordelbien.de/nachrichten/newsne.1/one.news/index.html?entry=page.newsne.201101.32|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719065955/http://www.nordelbien.de/nachrichten/newsne.1/one.news/index.html?entry=page.newsne.201101.32|archive-date=July 19, 2011}}</ref> The ELCA is also among a growing number of Christian churches in the United States to make this move, which include the [[United Church of Christ]], the  [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopal Church]], the [[Presbyterian Church (USA)]], and the [[United Methodist Church]]. 

In contrast, the board of one of the ELCA's partner churches, the [[Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus|Evangelical Mekane Yesus Fellowship in North America]], voted in October 2009 to declare disunity with the ELCA. A press release stated that the board was no longer "in good conscience" "able to commune and partner with ELCA Church that has willfully disobeyed the word of God and regrettably departed from the clear instructions of the Holy Scriptures" that "marriage is only between a man and a woman". This was followed by the general synod of the [[Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus]] also breaking links with the ELCA.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Weber |first=Katherine |date=February 8, 2013 |title=Ethiopian Church Severs Ties With Lutherans Over Homosexuality |url=https://www.christianpost.com/news/ethiopian-church-severs-ties-with-lutherans-over-homosexuality.html |access-date=2021-06-09 |website=The Christian Post |archive-date=June 9, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210609185811/https://www.christianpost.com/news/ethiopian-church-severs-ties-with-lutherans-over-homosexuality.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In April 2010, the Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America adopted revisions to ministry policy documents to bring them in line with the August 2009 vote, as well as adding sections on integrity, substance abuse and addiction. The release noted that the revised ministry policies would be posted on the church's website by the end of April 2010.<ref name="release_april_2010">{{Cite press release|title=ELCA Council Adopts Significant Revisions to Ministry Policies|publisher=Evangelical Lutheran Church in America|date=2010-04-11|url=http://www.elca.org/Who-We-Are/Our-Three-Expressions/Churchwide-Organization/Communication-Services/News/Releases.aspx?a=4499|access-date=2010-04-30|archive-date=April 29, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100429155259/http://www.elca.org/Who-We-Are/Our-Three-Expressions/Churchwide-Organization/Communication-Services/News/Releases.aspx?a=4499|url-status=live}}</ref>

Since August 2009, according to the office of the ELCA secretary, over 600 congregations have left the ELCA through January 2011. Income declined, with revenue of $66.7 million in 2010, down from $76.5 million in 2009.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Financial Reports |url=https://www.elca.org/Resources/Financial#ChurchwideF |access-date=2021-09-02 |website=Evangelical Lutheran Church in America |archive-date=September 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210902134511/https://www.elca.org/Resources/Financial#ChurchwideF |url-status=live }}</ref>

On May 31, 2013, [[Guy Erwin]] became the first openly gay man to be chosen bishop in the ELCA when he was elected to a six-year term as bishop of the Southwest California Synod.<ref name="Erwin">{{cite news|url=http://hamptonroads.com/2013/06/lutheran-assembly-elects-first-openly-gay-bishop|title=Lutheran assembly elects first openly gay bishop|date=June 1, 2013|access-date=June 3, 2013|newspaper=[[The Virginian-Pilot]]|archive-date=June 14, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614094457/http://hamptonroads.com/2013/06/lutheran-assembly-elects-first-openly-gay-bishop|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2015, the denomination ordained, officially, the first transgender pastor.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.advocate.com/politics/religion/2015/07/06/meet-first-trans-pastor-officially-ordained-evangelical-lutheran-church|title=Meet the First Trans Pastor Officially Ordained by the Evangelical Lutheran Church|date=2015-07-06|access-date=2016-08-21|archive-date=August 13, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160813193229/http://www.advocate.com/politics/religion/2015/07/06/meet-first-trans-pastor-officially-ordained-evangelical-lutheran-church|url-status=live}}</ref>

Also in 2015, after the Supreme Court legalized [[Obergefell v. Hodges|same-sex marriage]] nationally in the US, the office of the presiding bishop released a letter informing members that each congregation is free to marry gay and lesbian couples or to choose not to do so.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.elca.org/News-and-Events/7759|title=ELCA presiding bishop offers letter on Supreme Court marriage ruling|website=elca.org|access-date=2016-08-21|archive-date=August 17, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160817105144/http://www.elca.org/News-and-Events/7759?|url-status=live}}</ref>

Since 2009 [[Blessing of same-sex unions in Christian churches|blessings of same-sex marriages]] are allowed in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/same-sex-unions-accepted-by-evangelical-lutherans/nQM5R/|title=Same-sex unions accepted by Evangelican Lutherans|access-date=June 16, 2015|archive-date=June 30, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150630194931/http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/same-sex-unions-accepted-by-evangelical-lutherans/nQM5R/|url-status=dead|author-first1=Christopher|author-last1=Quinn|work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|date=21 August 2009}}</ref>

====Creation and evolution====
The ELCA has not adopted an official position on [[creationism|creation]] or [[evolution]], but there is general agreement on interpreting the Bible within its historical contexts and applying critical methods of research. In 2000, the Cooperative Clergy Study Project surveyed 681 ELCA pastors and found that 26 percent of ELCA clergy thought [[Creationism#Christianity|Scientific Creationism]] should be taught alongside evolution in biology classes, while 57 percent disagreed.<ref name="thearda.com"/>

====Reproductive cloning====
The ELCA has not yet taken an official position regarding reproductive cloning. However, Task Force on Genetics of the church's "Church in Society" initiative is studying the theological and ethical issues that the world is likely to face in coming years as a result of Genetic Science. The task force has issued a draft report<ref>Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Draft Social Statement on Genetics to be considered by the 2011 ELCA Churchwide Assembly, March 2010, http://www.elca.org/What-We-Believe/Social-Issues/Social-Statements-in-Process/Genetics/Draft-Social-Statement.aspx {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100321210422/http://www.elca.org/What-We-Believe/Social-Issues/Social-Statements-in-Process/Genetics/Draft-Social-Statement.aspx |date=March 21, 2010 }}</ref> for comment and discussion. The draft statement covers a wide range of topics, from [[genetic testing]] to [[Genetically modified organism|GMOs]]. A section in this report which has been described by an independent reviewer as "a remarkably nuanced analysis and statement regarding a very complex scientific, social, and religious issue."<ref name="Eigen">Lewis D. Eigen, "Rights & Protections of Coming Human Clones: A Remarkable Lutheran View", Scriptamus, March 19, 2010, http://scriptamus.wordpress.com/2010/03/19/rights-protections-of-coming-human-clones-a-remarkable-lutheran-view/#more-475 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100623131951/http://scriptamus.wordpress.com/2010/03/19/rights-protections-of-coming-human-clones-a-remarkable-lutheran-view/#more-475 |date=June 23, 2010 }}</ref> The task force recommends opposition to reproductive cloning, as almost all religious groups currently do. However, the main theological reasoning is unique. Lewis D. Eigen explains:<ref name="Eigen"/>

<blockquote>
The argument they articulate is not the common but weak argument that it would be "offensive to God," "against the will of God" or "man encroaching into God's domain", but they observe that the clone would be denied the dignity of possessing a unique human genotype. This is an extremely interesting argument—that each and every human being has the right to his or her own uniqueness—particularly a unique genotype.</blockquote>

The draft statement further asserts that any clones that might be created should have full acceptance as human beings and access to rites of the church.

====Abortion====
The issue of [[Abortion debate|abortion]] is a matter of contention within the ELCA. In a Social Statement adopted in 1991,<ref>{{Cite web|date=September 4, 1991|title=Abortion|url=http://www.elca.org/What-We-Believe/Social-Issues/Social-Statements/Abortion.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327042724/http://www.elca.org/What-We-Believe/Social-Issues/Social-Statements/Abortion.aspx|archive-date=March 27, 2009|website=Evangelical Lutheran Church in America}}</ref> the church set out its position on the matter as follows. The ELCA describes itself as "a community supportive of life", and encourages women to [[Crisis pregnancy center|explore alternatives]] to abortion such as [[adoption]]. However, the Social Statement asserts that there are certain circumstances under which a decision to end a [[pregnancy]] can be "morally responsible". These include cases where the pregnancy "presents a clear threat to the physical life of the woman", situations where "the pregnancy occurs when both parties do not participate willingly in sexual intercourse", and "circumstances of extreme fetal [[Disability|abnormality]], which will result in severe suffering and very early death of an infant." Regardless of the reason, the ELCA opposes abortion when "a fetus is [[Viability (fetal)|developed enough to live outside a uterus]] with the aid of [[Neonatal intensive-care unit|reasonable and necessary technology]]." The ELCA opposes "laws that deny access to safe and affordable services for morally justifiable abortions", and "laws that are primarily intended to harass those contemplating or deciding for an abortion." The statement emphasizes the prevention of circumstances leading to abortion, specifically encouraging "appropriate forms of [[Sex education in the United States|sex education]] in schools, community [[Christian views on birth control#Lutheranism|pregnancy prevention]] programs, and [[parenting]] preparation classes." In 2000, the Cooperative Clergy Study Project found that one fifth of ELCA clergy favored banning abortion with a constitutional amendment.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=4QI_eBpD7twC&pg=PA53 Pulpit and Politics: Clergy in American Politics at the Advent of the Millennium] edited by Corwin E. Smidt</ref> [[Lutheran CORE]], which represents theologically conservative members of ELCA, together with the [[North American Lutheran Church]], through their Joint Commission an Theology and Doctrine, approved an official [[anti-abortion]] stance in the document "The Lord Is with You" – A Word of Counsel to the Church – The Sanctity of Nascent Life", on December 14, 2012.<ref>[http://thenalc.org/documents/Word-of-Counsel-on-Sanctity-of-Nascent-Life.pdf "The Lord Is with You" – A Word of Counsel to the Church on the Sanctity of Nascent Life", Joint Commission on Theology and Doctrine of the North American Lutheran Church and Lutheran CORE, December 14, 2012]{{Dead link|date=March 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

====Euthanasia====
The ELCA official statement on "End of Life Decisions", adopted on November 9, 1992, disapproves euthanasia: "We oppose the legalization of [[physician assisted suicide|physician-assisted death]], which would allow the private killing of one person by another. Public control and regulation of such actions would be extremely difficult, if not impossible. The potential for abuse, especially of people who are most vulnerable, would be substantially increased."<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 9, 1992 |title=End of Life Decisions |url=http://www.elca.org/Faith/Faith%20and%20Society/Social%20Messages/End%20of%20Life%20Decisions |access-date=2021-06-09 |website=Evangelical Lutheran Church in America |archive-date=June 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210614001624/https://www.elca.org/Faith/Faith%20and%20Society/Social%20Messages/End%20of%20Life%20Decisions |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Ministry==
[[File:Richard and Bonnie Jensen.jpg|thumb|ELCA ministers [[Richard A. Jensen|Richard]] and [[Bonnie L. Jensen|Bonnie Jensen]], significant figures in the founding of the ELCA]]
As a Lutheran church body, the ELCA professes belief in the "[[priesthood of all believers]]" as reflected in Martin Luther's ''[[To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation]]'', that all baptized persons have equal access to God and are all called to use their gifts to serve the body of Christ. Some people are called to "rostered ministry", or vocations of church leadership and service. After formation, theological training, and approval by local synods these people are "set aside, but not above" through ordination.<ref>Information on the Division's work and the various types of rostered ministry can be found at the [http://www.elca.org/ministry/ Division's webpage] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050207161500/http://www.elca.org/ministry/ |date=February 7, 2005 }}.</ref>

An extensive "Study of Ministry" was embarked upon immediately after the 1988 merger as it became apparent that there were still discordant viewpoints and influences, especially by the pressure for a renewal of the office of deacon and its different manifestations to a more ancient and traditional view predating the Reformation into the earliest days of Christianity. The church makes a clear distinction between the deacon's "Ministry of Word and Service", and the Pastor's "Ministry of Word and Sacrament".

In the ELCA, [[ordination]] refers to the setting apart of pastors in the ministry of word and sacrament and deacons in the ministry of word and service (before 2019, consecration was the term for setting apart deacons). The similar rite for setting apart a bishop is called installation. These rites (for bishops, pastors, and deacons) are formal liturgies, with prayer and the laying-on of hands by the bishop, or by the presiding bishop in the case of the installation of a new bishop. Since 2000, the ELCA has required all installations of new bishops to include the laying-on of hands by not fewer than three bishops who are known to be within the historic line of [[apostolic succession]].

===Deacons===
Deacons are called to a "Ministry of Word and Service".<ref name=MWS>{{cite web |url = http://download.elca.org/ELCA%20Resource%20Repository/Consecration_Ministry_Word_Service.pdf |title = Consecration to the Ministry of Word and Service |publisher = ELCA |access-date = 23 August 2018 |archive-date = July 22, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170722101224/http://download.elca.org/ELCA%20Resource%20Repository/Consecration_Ministry_Word_Service.pdf |url-status = live }}</ref> The former lay rosters of deaconess, diaconal minister, and associate in ministry were all merged onto one roster, called Deacons, beginning in January 2017.

Deacons serve in many roles in and beyond congregations. At their ordination they may be presented with a towel and basin (in reference to Jesus washing the feet of his disciples) as a sign of their servant ministry, but the rite of ordination (published in January 2017) also allows for other symbols to be presented, reflecting the broad range of diaconal service. The rite states: "Other symbols of the ministry of word and service may be given, which may reflect a particular focus of the deacon's call and vocation, such as a vessel containing oil, a Bible, or the book of worship."<ref name=MWS/>

===Pastors===
Pastors are called to the "Ministry of Word and Sacrament" and considered a "steward of the mysteries" of the Church (the [[means of grace]]). Pastors primarily serve congregations, but some serve in specialized ministries including those of hospital [[chaplain]] and military chaplain.

Pastors are ordinarily trained at one of seven [[List of ELCA seminaries|ELCA seminaries]] located throughout the United States, although there are alternative paths for ordination to serve particular communities in which it is difficult to provide trained ministers or to allow rostering of clergy transferred from other denominations. Pastors generally hold a Bachelor of Arts degree or its equivalent, as well as a four-year [[master of divinity]] degree. They are required to learn biblical [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] and [[Greek language|Greek]], and spend at least a summer doing clinical pastoral education—an intensive program that gives them time to reflect on their pastoral craft, usually in a hospital setting. They are required to complete a one-year internship of full-time service in pastoral ministry.

===Bishops===
A [[bishop]] is a pastor called to serve (usually for a six-year term, which may be renewed) as the overseeing minister of a [[synod]], or called to serve as the [[presiding bishop]] of the ELCA.

The [[Called to Common Mission]] agreement with the [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopal Church]] in 2000 means that bishops are now installed according to Apostolic Succession. The fixed term of service as head of a synod has not changed, and there was no requirement in 2000 for existing ELCA bishops to be re-installed within the historic episcopate; instead, the apostolic succession was received as a sign of historic continuity, without denying the traditional Lutheran belief that the Church is truly present where the sacraments of baptism and holy communion are administered, regardless of the historic nature (or otherwise) of the ministry. Before 2000 a pastor had served in the office of bishop and then returned to being known simply as a pastor when service as a bishop had ended. Following the 2000 agreement a former bishop may still return to the work of a local pastor, but is often referred as bishop emeritus, even if not exercising that ministry.

==Worship==
Published in 2006, ''[[Evangelical Lutheran Worship]]'' is the main [[hymnal]] used in congregations. Some congregations, however, continue to use the older ''[[Lutheran Book of Worship]]'' published by the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship in 1978, and some even continue to use the older ''[[Service Book and Hymnal]]'' (SBH) of 1958 or its antecedent precedent-setting ''[[Divine Service (Lutheran)|Common Service]]'' of 1888 which laid out a traditional American Lutheran liturgy and later was included in subsequent worship books and hymnals of various churches especially ''[[Divine Service (Lutheran)|The Common Service Book]]'' of 1917, adopted by the old [[United Lutheran Church in America]], a predecessor of the LCA to 1962, and ''The Lutheran Hymnal'' (TLH-1941) of the LCMS. Many congregations also make use of supplementary resources recently published as well besides those authorized for the ''LBW'' by Augsburg-Fortress, Publishers. Many ELCA congregations are classically [[liturgical]] churches. Their liturgy is rooted in the Western liturgical tradition, though recent international Lutheran-Orthodox dialog sessions have had some minimal influence on Lutheran liturgy. Because of its use of the [[Book of Concord]] of 1580, with the Confessions, documents and beliefs of the Reformers, including the [[Augsburg Confession]] of 1530, [[Luther's Small Catechism]] of 1529 and the [[Luther's Large Catechism|Large Catechism]] and its retention of many pre-Reformation traditions, such as [[vestment]]s, [[feast days]] and the celebration of the [[Liturgical year|Church Year]], the [[Sign of the cross#Lutheranism|sign of the cross]], and the usage of a church-wide [[Agenda (liturgy)|liturgy]], there are many aspects of the typical ELCA church that are very catholic and traditional in nature. Many Evangelical Lutheran churches use traditional vestments ([[cassock]], [[surplice]], [[stole (vestment)|stole]] for services of the Word or non-Eucharistic liturgies or [[alb]], [[cincture]], [[stole (vestment)|stole]], [[chasuble]] (pastor) or [[dalmatic]] (deacon), [[cope]] (processions) for Eucharists (Mass, Holy Communion), etc.). On special rare occasions even a bishop's cross/[[crozier]] and [[mitre]] (bishop's headpiece) have been used to designate the ancient robes and traditions of the Church originating in [[Holy Roman Empire|Roman]] times of which [[Martin Luther|Luther]] and his fellow Reformers like [[Philip Melanchthon]] considered as "adiaphora" or of permissive use. Since the [[Second Vatican Council]] of the 1960s, most major parts of the ELCA's popular liturgies are worded exactly like the English language Mass of 1970 of the [[Roman Catholic Church]]. Many ELCA congregations use informal styles of worship or a blend of traditional and contemporary liturgical forms.

Springing from its revered heritage in the [[Lutheran chorale]], the musical life of ELCA congregations is just as diverse as its worship. [[Johann Sebastian Bach]], the most famous Lutheran composer and African songs are part of the heritage and breadth of Evangelical Lutheran church music. The musical portion of the Lutheran liturgy includes [[metrical psalter]], metrical responses and hymns. ''Evangelical Lutheran Worship'' has ten settings of Holy Communion, for example. They range from plainsong chant, to Gospel, to Latin-style music. Congregations worship in many languages, many of which are represented in ''Evangelical Lutheran Worship''. Other books used in ELCA churches include the ''[[Lutheran Book of Worship]]'' (1978), and its supplements: ''With One Voice'', ''This Far by Faith'', and for Latino/Hispanic congregations: ''Libro de Liturgia y Cántico''.

==Ecumenical relations==
The ELCA is a member of the [[National Council of Churches]], the [[World Council of Churches]], and [[Christian Churches Together]] and is a "partner in mission and dialog" with the [[Churches Uniting in Christ]] (formerly the Consultation on Church Union) formed in 1960.

===Full communion===
The Church maintains [[full communion]] relationships with other member churches of the [[Lutheran World Federation]] (which is a communion of 140 autonomous national/regional Lutheran church bodies in 78 countries around the world, representing nearly 66 million Christians) which was reorganized in 1948 from the earlier Lutheran World Convention of 1923. The ELCA has additionally full communion with the [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopal Church]], in which several congregations are jointly affiliated and hold mixed services. Also the ELCA has since established official full communion relationships with other Christian denominations such as the [[Moravian Church in America]] (with the exception of the Alaska Province), the [[Presbyterian Church USA|Presbyterian Church (USA)]], the [[Reformed Church in America]], the [[United Church of Christ]], the [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopal Church]], and The [[United Methodist Church]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.elca.org/Faith/Ecumenical-and-Inter-Religious-Relations/Full-Communion/History#episcopal|title=Full Communion Partners: History|publisher=Evangelical Lutheran Church in America|access-date=25 October 2021|archive-date=October 25, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211025160655/https://www.elca.org/Faith/Ecumenical-and-Inter-Religious-Relations/Full-Communion/History#episcopal|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2013, the [[Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus]] severed ties, including communion and pulpit fellowship, with the ELCA over the issue of practices and teachings connected with homosexuality.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.christianpost.com/news/ethiopian-church-severs-ties-with-lutherans-over-homosexuality-89745/|title=Ethiopian Church Severs Ties With Lutherans Over Homosexuality|date=February 8, 2013|access-date=2016-08-19|archive-date=March 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304195048/http://www.christianpost.com/news/ethiopian-church-severs-ties-with-lutherans-over-homosexuality-89745/|url-status=live|author-first1=Katherine|author-last1=Weber|website=The Christian Post}}</ref>

===Roman Catholic Church===
On October 31, 1999, in [[Augsburg]], Germany, the Lutheran World Federation – of which the ELCA is a member – signed the ''[[Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification]]'' with the Roman Catholic Church. The statement is an attempt to reconcile a historical theological divide between the two communions. The ''Declaration'' also states that the mutual condemnations between 16th century Lutherans and the Roman Catholic Church no longer apply to those that have signed onto the document. This was part of a series of "Lutheran-Roman Catholic Dialogues" have been taking place on an official basis every few years with statements and booklets on various theological topics published since 1966.

===Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod===
{{More citations needed section|date=April 2015}}
The differences between the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the [[Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod]] (LCMS) arise from theological, historical, and cultural factors. The LCMS was briefly in fellowship with the former American Lutheran Church, one of the ELCA predecessor bodies from 1969 to the early 1980s. Although the denominations have limited cooperation through [[Lutheran World Relief]] and some university/college student ministries and military chaplaincy, they are not officially in communion with each other.

When the first Lutheran immigrants came to North America, they started church bodies that reflected, to some degree, the churches they left behind in Europe. Many maintained until the early 20th century their immigrant languages. They sought pastors from the "old country" until patterns for the education of clergy could be developed in North America. Eventually, [[seminaries]] and church colleges were established in many places to prepare pastors to serve congregations.

The earliest predecessor synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America was constituted on August 25, 1748, in Philadelphia under the influence of [[Henry Muhlenberg]], known as the "Patriarch of American Lutheranism". It was known as the [[Ministerium of Pennsylvania|Ministerium of Pennsylvania and Adjacent States]]. The earliest nationwide "synod" or "union of synods" was established in 1820 as the [[General Synod (Lutheran)|General Synod]], followed later by the [[General Council (Lutheran)|General Council]]. The ELCA was created in 1988 by the merging of the 2.85-million-member Lutheran Church in America (1962), 2.25-million-member The American Lutheran Church (1960), and the 100,000-member Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (1978). Previously, the ALC and LCA in the early 1960s came into being as a result of two mergers of eight smaller ethnically based Lutheran bodies composed of German, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Swedish, Slovak, Dutch, and others organized over 150 years. Some of these smaller ethnically based bodies previously had ecumenical arrangements involving the Missouri Synod.

The LCMS was established in 1847 by German immigrants fleeing the forced [[Prussian Union (Evangelical Christian Church)|Prussian Union]] between Lutherans and Reformed church members in European Germany, who later settled in [[Perry County, Missouri]]. It grew through immigration, offspring, and church mergers while participating in some, but not all of the dialogues, controversies, and compromises which affected the various predecessors of the ELCA during the 19th and 20th centuries. In the mid-1970s the [[Seminex]] controversy at their Concordia Seminary in St. Louis over use of historical-critical biblical study led to the formation of the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches, later one of the predecessor bodies of the ELCA. The LCMS is the second largest Lutheran church body in North America with 1.8 million baptized members.

The ELCA tends to be more involved in ecumenical endeavors than the LCMS, which prohibits its clergy from worshiping in ecumenical gatherings. The ELCA is a member of the [[Lutheran World Federation]], [[World Council of Churches]] and the [[National Council of Churches|National Council of Churches of Christ, USA]]. The LCMS rejects these as being [[indifferentism|unionist]].

Both the LCMS and the ELCA have policies relating to clergy sexual misconduct. Perry C. Francis, a former ELCA pastor turned professor, along with psychology professor Tracy D. Baldo, published the results of their 1994 study of clergy sexual misconduct in the journal ''Pastoral Psychology''. Out of 270 ELCA and 117 LCMS clergy surveyed, 13.7 percent of ELCA clergy and 4.3 percent of LCMS clergy admitted to sexual misconduct with another person since they began their ministry.<ref>Francis, Perry C. Baldo, Tracy D. (1998) Narcissistic Measures of Lutheran Clergy Who Self-Reported Committing Sexual Misconduct ''Pastoral Psychology 47'' Issue 2 [https://dx.doi.org/10.1023/A%3A1022920528072 pp. 81-96] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231109201727/https://link.springer.com/article/10.1023/A:1022920528072 |date=November 9, 2023 }}</ref>

'''Comparison to LCMS in ELCA's point of view''' according to the 1999 book ''Honoring Our Neighbor's Faith''<ref>p. 86 ''Honoring Our Neighbor's Faith'', Robert Buckley Farlee (ed.), Chicago: Augsburg Fortress, 1999. {{ISBN|0-8066-3846-X}}</ref> These conclusions are not agreed upon by the WELS or LCMS.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Number
!LCMS
!ELCA
|-
|1
|Believe in [[Trinity|triune God]]
|Same
|-
|2
|Accept Lutheran Confessions as [[Book of Concord#Contemporary subscription|true teachings of biblical faith]]
|Same
|-
|3
|Believe that God comes to us through the [[Lutheranism#Bible|Word]] and the [[Lutheranism#Sacraments|sacraments]]
|Same
|-
|4
|Teach [[Sola fide#Lutheranism|justification by grace through faith]]
|Same
|-
|5
|Believe that the Bible should [[Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod#Differences from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America|not be subject to higher critical methods]]
|Many within the ELCA believe that the Bible can speak effectively through the use of higher critical study.
|-
|6
|Believe that the Bible restricts women from certain church positions including [[Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod#Ordination|ordained ministry]]
|Believes the Bible permits, even encourages, full participation by women in ordained ministry
|-
|7
|[[Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod#Practices|High degree of doctrinal agreement]] necessary before fellowship is possible
|Agreement on a more basic level is sufficient for [[Lutheranism#Church fellowship|fellowship]].
|}

==Demographics==
=== Members ===
The table below presents demographic data for two different years of the [[Pew Research Center]] U.S. Religious Landscape Survey, 2007 and 2014.<ref name="PRC" /> It is divided into several demographic categories like age, gender, marital status, etc. The categories have percentages out of 100 for 2007 and 2014, along with a column indicating the percent change (±).

{|class="wikitable"
|-  style="text-align:center"
! colspan="2"| Demographic<ref name="PRC">{{cite web | title=Religious Landscape Study | website=Pew Research Center&#039;s Religion & Public Life Project | date=2022-06-13 | url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/religious-landscape-study/religious-denomination/evangelical-lutheran-church-in-america-elca/#beliefs-and-practices | access-date=2024-01-21}}</ref> !!2007<br><small>(%)</small>!!2014<br><small>(%)</small>!!±<br><small>(%)</small>
|-
| rowspan="4"| Age || 18–29 || 8 || 12||{{fluc|4|neutral}}
|-
| 30–49|| 36 || 27 || {{fluc|-9|neutral}}
|-
| 50–64|| 29 || 30 ||{{fluc|1|neutral}}
|-
| 65+|| 27 || 31 || {{fluc|4|neutral}}
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[Gender]] || Male || 44 || 44 || {{fluc|0|neutral}}
|-
| Female || 56 || 56 || {{fluc|0|neutral}}
|-
| rowspan="5"| [[Marital status]] || Never married || 11 || 16 || {{fluc|5|neutral}}
|-
| [[Marriage|Married]] || 63 || 62 || {{fluc|-1|neutral}}
|-
| [[Cohabitation]] || 3 || 4 || {{fluc|1|neutral}}
|-
| [[Divorce]]d or [[Legal separation|separated]]|| 10 || 9 || {{fluc|-1|neutral}}
|-
| [[Widow]]ed|| 13 || 9 || {{fluc|-4|neutral}}
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[Parent]] of a child under 18 || Yes || 30 || 24 || {{fluc|-6|neutral}}
|-
| No || 70 || 76 || {{fluc|6|neutral}}
|-
| rowspan="5"| Race and<br>ethnicity|| [[Non-Hispanic whites|White]] alone || 97 || 96 || {{fluc|-1|neutral}}
|-
| [[African Americans|Black]] alone || 1 || 2 || {{fluc|1|neutral}}
|-
| [[Asian Americans|Asian]] alone || 1 || 1 || {{fluc|0|neutral}}
|-
| Other race alone || 1 || 1 || {{fluc|0|neutral}}
|-
| [[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic and Latino]] || 1 || 1 || {{fluc|0|neutral}} 
|-
| rowspan="3"| Immigrant status || [[Immigration to the United States|Immigrant]] || 3 || 4 || {{fluc|1|neutral}}
|-
| [[Second-generation immigrants in the United States|Second gen.]] || 6|| 8|| {{fluc|2|neutral}}
|-
| [[Immigrant generations|Third gen.]] or higher || 90 || 89 || {{fluc|-1|neutral}}
|-
| rowspan="4"| Region || [[Northeastern United States|Northeast]] || 19 || {{n/a}} || {{n/a}}
|-
| [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]] || 51 || {{n/a}} || {{n/a}}
|-
| [[Southern United States|South]] || 16 || {{n/a}} || {{n/a}}
|-
| [[Western United States|West]] || 14 || {{n/a}} || {{n/a}}
|-
| rowspan="5"| Highest<br>[[Educational attainment|educational<br>attainment]] || Less than high school || 6 || rowspan="2"|31 || rowspan="2"|{{fluc|-13|neutral}}
|-
| [[High school]] || 38
|-
| Some college || 26 || 33 || {{fluc|7|neutral}}
|-
| [[Bachelor's degree]] || 19 || 21 || {{fluc|2|neutral}}
|-
| [[Postgraduate education|Post-graduate]] || 11 || 15 || {{fluc|4|neutral}}
|-
| rowspan="5"| [[Household income in the United States|Household income]]|| Less than $30,000 || 24 || 19 || {{fluc|-5|neutral}}
|-
| $30,000–49,999 || 24 || 22 || {{fluc|-2|neutral}}
|-
| $50,000–74,999 || 35 || 32 || {{fluc|-3|neutral}}
|-
| $100,000 or more || 17 || 26 || {{fluc|9|neutral}}
|}

===Beliefs, practices, and views===
The following table compares beliefs, practices, or views of members of ELCA across two years, 2007 and 2014.<ref name="PRC" />
Each row represents a specific belief, practice, or view. Columns show the percentages for each year and the change between them. Each entry is broken down into different responses. For example, in the "Do you believe in God or a universal spirit?" row, responses are categorized as "Yes, absolutely certain", "Yes, fairly certain", etc. The percentage of respondents who chose each response for each year is displayed, along with the change in percent from 2007 to 2014.

{|class="wikitable"
|-  style="text-align:center; background:#d8edff;"
! colspan="2"| Belief, practice, or view<ref name="PRC" /> !!2007<br><small>(%)</small>!!2014<br><small>(%)</small>!!±<br><small>(%)</small>
|-
| rowspan="5"| Do you believe in God or a universal spirit?  || Yes, absolutely certain|| 77 || 67 || {{fluc|-10|neutral}}
|-
| Yes, fairly certain|| 19 || 28 || {{fluc|9|neutral}}
|-
| Yes, not too or at all certain|| 2 || 3 || {{fluc|1|neutral}}
|-
| No, do not believe|| <1 || 1 || {{fluc|0|neutral}}
|-
| Don't know, refused, or other|| 1 || 1 ||{{fluc|0|neutral}}
|-
| rowspan="5"| Importance of religion  || Very important || 62 || 58 || {{fluc|-4|neutral}}
|-
| Somewhat important || 32 || 34 || {{fluc|2|neutral}}
|-
| Not too important || 4 || 7 || {{fluc|3|neutral}}
|-
| Not at all important || 1 || 1 || {{fluc|0|neutral}}
|-
| Don't know || <1 || <1 ||{{fluc|0|neutral}}
|-
| rowspan="4"| Attendance at religious services  || Weekly || 46 || 35 || {{fluc|-11|neutral}}
|-
| Monthly/few times a year || 43 || 50 || {{fluc|7|neutral}}
|-
| Seldom or never || 10 || 14 || {{fluc|4|neutral}}
|-
| Don't know || <1 || <1 ||{{fluc|0|neutral}}
|-
| rowspan="3"| Belief in [[Heaven]]  || Believe || 83 || 85 ||{{fluc|2|neutral}}
|-
|Don't believe || 8 || 8 || {{fluc|0|neutral}}
|-
| Other or not sure || 10 || 7 || {{fluc|-3|neutral}}
|-
| rowspan="3"| Belief in [[Hell]]  || Believe || 62 || 59 ||{{fluc|-3|neutral}}
|-
|Don't believe || 24 || 30 || {{fluc|6|neutral}}
|-
| Other or not sure || 14 || 11 || {{fluc|-3|neutral}}

|-
| rowspan="4"| Interpreting the Bible  || Word of God to be taken literally word for word|| 23 || 20 || {{fluc|-3|neutral}}
|-
| Word of God, but not literally true word for word|| 49 || 44 ||{{fluc|-5|neutral}}
|-
| Not the word of God|| 20 || 29 ||{{fluc|9|neutral}}
|-
| Don't know or other|| 9 || 8 ||{{fluc|-1|neutral}}
|-
| rowspan="3"| [[Abortion in the United States|Abortion]]  || Should be legal in all/most cases|| 61 || 65 || {{fluc|4|neutral}}
|-
| Should be illegal in all/most cases|| 33 || 32 || {{fluc|-1|neutral}}
|-
| Don't know|| 7 || 2 || {{fluc|-5|neutral}}
|-
| rowspan="4"| [[Homosexuality]] || Should be accepted|| 56 || 73 || {{fluc|17|neutral}}
|-
| Should be discouraged:|| 33 || 22 || {{fluc|-11|neutral}}
|-
| Neither/other || 6 || 2 ||{{fluc|-4|neutral}}
|-
| Don't know|| 5 || 2 ||{{fluc|-3|neutral}}
|}

==Statistics==
[[file:Percent of population members of ELCA by state, 2010.svg|thumb|right|250px|Percent ELCA by state, 2010]]
Over 500,000 people have left the ELCA since the church's human sexuality decision in 2009.<ref name="Stats">{{cite magazine|url=https://swampland.time.com/2013/08/18/meet-the-woman-who-will-lead-evangelical-lutherans-religious-but-not-spiritual/|title=Meet the Woman Who Will Lead Evangelical Lutherans: 'Religious but Not Spiritual'|date=August 18, 2013|access-date=August 19, 2013|last=Dias|first=Elizabeth|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|archive-date=August 20, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130820103519/http://swampland.time.com/2013/08/18/meet-the-woman-who-will-lead-evangelical-lutherans-religious-but-not-spiritual/|url-status=live}}</ref> Approximately 700 congregations have voted to withdraw from the ELCA, representing about 7 percent of its 2009 congregational membership. As of December 31, 2024, the ELCA has a baptized membership of 2,677,239 people.<ref name="elca2024stats"/> In 2025, Pew Research estimated that 1 percent of the U.S. adult population, or roughly 2.6 million adherents, identify with the ELCA. Another 1 percent, or 2.6 million adherents, identify with mainline Lutheranism in general.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Religious Landscape Study |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religious-landscape-study/ |access-date=2025-03-10 |website=Pew Research Center |language=en-US}}</ref> A number of members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America are former Roman Catholics.<ref name="Freier2009">{{cite journal |last1=Freier |first1=Luisa Feline |title=How Our Lady of Guadalupe Became Lutheran: Latin American Migration and Religious Change |journal=Migraciones Internacionales |date=2009 |volume=5 |issue=2 |publisher=[[SciELO]] |language=English}}</ref> As of December 31, 2024, the ELCA has 8,386 congregations.<ref name="elca2024stats"/>

==See also==
{{Portal|Christianity|United States}}
* {{section link|Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod|Differences from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America}}
* [[Protestantism in the United States]]
* [[Christianity in the United States]]
* [[List of ELCA synods]]
{{clear}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
* Bodensieck, Julius, ed. ''The encyclopedia of the Lutheran Church'' (3 vol 1965) [https://archive.org/search.php?query=%22lutheran%20church%22%20Bodensieck%2C vol 1 and 3 online free]
* Brauer, James Leonard and Fred L. Precht, eds. ''Lutheran Worship: History and Practice'' (1993)
* Granquist, Mark. ''Lutherans in America: A New History'' (2015)
* Meyer, Carl S. ''Moving Frontiers: Readings in the History of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod'' (1986)
* Roeber, A. G. ''Palatines, Liberty, and Property: German Lutherans in Colonial British America'' (1998)
* Trexler, Edgar R. ''Anatomy of a Merger: People, Dynamics, and Decisions That Shaped the ELCA'' (1992)
* Wengert, Timothy J. and Mark Granquist, eds. ''Dictionary of Luther and the Lutheran Traditions'' (2017)
* Wolf, Edmund Jacob. [https://archive.org/details/thelutheransinam00wolfuoft ''The Lutherans in America; a story of struggle, progress, influence and marvelous growth'']. New York: J.A. Hill. 1889. A history of many of the bodies that merged to form the ELCA.
* ''About the Concordat: 28 Questions about the Agreement between the Episcopal Church and the Evangelical Church of America [i.e. the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America].'' Cincinnati, Ohio: Forward Movement Publications, [1997?]. 43 p. Without ISBN
* ''A Commentary on [the Episcopal Church/Evangelical Lutheran Church in America] Concordat of Agreement'', ed. by James E. Griffes and Daniel Martensen. Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg-Fortress; Cincinnati, Ohio: Forward Movement Publications, 1994. 159 p. {{ISBN|0-8066-2690-9}}
* ''Concordat of Agreement [between the Episcopal Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America]: Supporting Essays'', ed. by Daniel F. Martensen. Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg-Fortress; Cincinnati, Ohio: Forward Movement Publications, 1995. 234 p. {{ISBN|0-8066-2667-4}}

==External links==
*[https://www.elca.org/ Denominational website]
*{{YouTube|u=ELCAVideo}}
*[https://www.thearda.com/us-religion/group-profiles/groups?D=295 Profile on the Association of Religion Data Archives website]

{{Lutheran World Federation Churches}}
{{Mainline Protestantism in the United States}}
{{National Council of Churches members}}
{{World Council of Churches}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evangelical Lutheran Church In America}}
[[Category:Evangelical Lutheran Church in America| ]]
[[Category:Christian organizations established in 1988]]
[[Category:Lutheran denominations in North America]]
[[Category:Members of the World Council of Churches]]
[[Category:Members of the National Council of Churches]]
[[Category:Religious organizations based in Chicago]]
[[Category:Lutheran World Federation members]]
[[Category:1988 establishments in Illinois]]
[[Category:Affirming Christian denominations in the United States]]
[[Category:Christian denominations founded in the United States]]