Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

denominations are

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

church bodies that identify, to a greater or lesser extent, with the

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

Martin Luther Martin Luther ( ; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, Theology, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. Luther was the seminal figure of the Reformation, Pr ...

and with the writings contained in the

Book of Concord ''The Book of Concord'' (1580) or ''Concordia'' (often referred to as the ''Lutheran Confessions'') is the historic doctrinal standard recognized as authoritative by many Lutheran church bodies since the 16th century. It consists of ten creeda ...

. Most Lutheran denominations are affiliated with one or more regional, national, or international associations, the largest of which—the

Lutheran World Federation The Lutheran World Federation (LWF; ) is a global Communion (religion), communion of national and regional Lutheran denominations headquartered in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland. The federation was founded in the Swedish city of L ...

—has over 74 million members worldwide. There are also two smaller and more conservative international associations—the International Lutheran Council, with 7.15 million members, and the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference, with approximately 500,000 members. Finally, the Global Confessional and Missional Lutheran Forum (Global Forum) is a global gathering of Confessional Lutheran bodies who wish to emphasize missional discipleship as the focal point of ministry in the world. This list is grouped by affiliation with the four major international Lutheran associations mentioned above. This list does not include groups that have been merged into other groups (e.g.

Hauge Synod The Hauge Synod (formally Hauge's Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Synod in America) was the name of a Norwegian Lutheran church body in the United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century. Background The Hauge Synod (Norwegian: ) wa ...

) nor groups that have become defunct (e.g. Eielsen Synod). Some of the denominations belong to more than one of the four associations.

Lutheran World Federation

The

(LWF) is the largest association of national and regional Lutheran church bodies in the world. Founded in 1947 by 47 church bodies from 26 countries, the LWF has grown to include 145 church bodies in 98 countries.

International Lutheran Council

Founded in 1993, the International Lutheran Council (ILC) is the second largest international association of Lutheran churches after the LWF, representing 7.15 million Lutherans in 54 church bodies as of 2018. Unlike the members of the LWF, not all members of the ILC are in altar and pulpit fellowship with one another.

Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference

The Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference (CELC) is the third major international association of Lutheran church bodies, representing approximately 500,000 Lutherans in 32 church bodies.

Global Confessional and Missional Lutheran Forum

The Global Confessional and Missional Lutheran Forum (Global Forum) is the fourth major international association of Lutheran church bodies and organizations, representing Lutherans in church bodies across 15 nations.

Unaffiliated Lutheran denominations

The following denominations are not members of the LWF, ILC, CELC or Global Forum, though several of them work with or are in fellowship with individual members of those associations. In addition, a number of these denominations have fellowship agreements with one another, without being part of any larger association. Note that several of these denominations have congregations in multiple countries. In such cases, the denomination is listed under the country in which its headquarters is located.

Notes

References

{{Reflist302. https://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=AwrijnLk7MlmyPEBK1JXNyoA;_ylu=Y29sbwNiZjEEcG9zAzIEdnRpZAMEc2VjA3Ny/RV=2/RE=1725719013/RO=10/RU=https%3a%2f%2fwww.lutheran.rs%2fsr/RK=2/RS=lOU_N0GfFHD7z2rmIHyPtTdsJEY- Evangelistička Crkva u Srbiji. Retrieved August 24, 2024. * Denominations