Quick Facts on the ELCA
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America resulted from a union of
three North American Lutheran church bodies: The American Lutheran
Church, the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches and the Lutheran
Church in America.
The three churches agreed to unite in 1982. They formed a 70-member
Commission for a New Lutheran Church, which planned the merger. The
plan was approved by church conventions in 1986, and the ELCA constituting
convention was held April 30-May 3, 1987, with the church actually
beginning operations on January 1, 1988.
The ELCA meets in assembly every two years; at its 2001 Churchwide
Assembly it elected its third bishop, The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, who
will be eligible for re-election at the 2007 Churchwide Assembly.
MEMBERS:
- Baptized Members: 5,038,006 (down 61,871 from previous year)
- Communing and Contributing Members: 2,394,585
- Members
of Color or Whose Primary Language is Other Than English: 128,135
(2.6%) Included are African-Americans, 53,564; Latinos,
39,249; Asians
and Pacific Islanders, 22,898; American Indian and Alaska
Native People,
7,273; other, 15,151
- Average Worship Attendance Each Week: 1,537,043 (30.5%).
- Congregations: 10,721
- Synods: 65 in nine geographic regions
LEADERS:
- Clergy: 17,703 (2,760 female; 494 people of color)
- Associates in Ministry: 1,193
(955 female, 238 male; 15 people of color)
- Diaconal Ministers: 72
- Deaconesses: 67
- Missionaries: approx. 300 adult missionaries, of which some 78
self-funded volunteers, serving in over 50 countries
- Campus Pastors and Ministries: 195 campus ministry
sites supported by synod and/or churchwide funds
- Federal Chaplains: Approximately 800 (125 active
duty armed forces, 180 reservists, 390 retired
military, 50
Veterans
Affairs, 44 Civil
Air Patrol, 7 Federal Bureau of Prisons).
- Chaplaincy, Counseling and ClinicaEducation:
Approximately 800 ordained and lay rosteredpeople
serving in 12
specialized ministries
such as
correctional, health care, CPE, substance abuse, police,
etc.
INSTITUTIONS:
- Theological Seminaries and Deaconess Community: 8 seminaries; 1
deaconess community
- Colleges and Universities: 28
- Schools: 20 high schools; 240 elementary schools
- 1,775 early childhood programs
- Social Service Institutions: 280 parent corporations with many
more subsidiaries, providing service in 3,000 communities
- Camps and Retreat Centers: 145, serving 450,000
yearly (summer programs 175,000, retreats
and conferences 275,000)
FINANCES:
- ELCA Churchwide Current Fund Budget:
2002 Revenue $82,923,681
2002 Expense $82,077,501
2003 Expenditure Authorization $83,574,000
2004 Expenditure Authorization $81,505,000
- ELCA World Hunger Fund:
2002 Income $16,012,261
2003 Budget $16,000,000
2004 Budget $16,250,000
- Total 2002 Income of Congregations: $2,493,316,925
- Average Giving Per Confirmed Member:$534.24 (Regular $447.12;
Designated: $87.12)
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