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Democratic Republic of Congo

ILC encourages prayer for DR Congo

by | Feb 4, 2025

DR CONGO – The International Lutheran Council is encouraging prayer for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) following hostilities in the eastern part of the country which have left at least 900 people dead, and more than 2,900 wounded.

“We encourage Christians around the world to remember the people of the eastern DRC in prayer,” said Rev. Dr. Detlev Schulz, General Secretary of the International Lutheran Council. “The death and destruction in the area is horrific. We pray for an end to the hostilities; the protection of the endangered; the well-being of the displaced; and the comfort of all who mourn. Lord, have mercy.”

M23 rebels, with support from Rwanda, launched a new assault in eastern DRC in early 2025. Over the past weeks, rebels have seized control over a large area, culminating at the end of January with the seizure of Goma, the capital city of North Kivu Province. Numerous civilians have been killed in the conflict, and there are reports of horrific atrocities against civilians, including women and children.

Even before the latest assaults, more than 700,000 displaced people lived near Goma, having fled earlier clashes between rebels and DRC troops in the east.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in East Congo (CELCE) has a significant number of members in the affected area. CELCE Bishop Herman Kashaba calls the situation “not only dramatic but apocalyptic,” and has invited the prayers of Christians around the world for the region.

The ILC also has contacts with Lutheran church bodies in other regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo. “We pray for our Lutheran brothers and sisters throughout the DRC, and for all who are suffering in in this terrible situation,” said ILC General Secretary Schulz. “May Christ be present among His people with His mercy even in the midst of war.”

The International Lutheran Council is a global association of Lutheran church bodies and groups, dedicated to proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ on the basis of a shared commitment to the authority of Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions.

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ILC welcomes Congolese church as observer member

by | Dec 12, 2022

EECLCO Bishop Ilunga Kendi Evariste.

WORLD – The International Lutheran Council (ILC) has welcomed the Church of the Faithful Confessing Lutherans in Congo (Église de Fidèles Confessants Lutheriens au Congo – EFCLCO) as a new observer member of the ILC. The action came during a November 2022 meeting of the ILC’s Board of Directors.

“It’s a pleasure to welcome the Church of the Faithful Confessing Lutherans in Congo as an observer member,” said ILC Chairman Juhana Pohjola. “May God bless this new relationship between the EFCLCO and the ILC, and give us opportunities to strengthen each other’s witness to the world of the good news of Jesus Christ.”

The EFCLCO is a young Lutheran church body in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It was founded in 2015 through the efforts of Bishop Ilunga Kendi Evariste, a graduate of the Matongo Lutheran Theological Seminary operated by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kenya. The church body brought together small pockets of confessional Lutherans in the country to form a synod and has since founded several congregations. Today the EFCLCO has seven congregations, five pastors, and 661 members. The church is headed by Bishop Kendi.

“We have wanted to be a confessional Lutheran church body since our childhood,” noted Bishop Kendi, but “we have realized that this cannot be possible without proper teaching and care from others who have walked the same path.”

“Nowadays we are conscious that many associations bearing the label “Lutheran” are not essentially Lutheran,” he continued. For that reason, he said, his church is careful to build relationships only with faithful Lutherans who do not “promote teachings contrary to the Word of God” but who can instead “repeat with us that Christ is sufficient for us.”

During its November 2022 meetings, the ILC’s Board of Directors also formally welcomed back into membership the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Haiti (Église Évangélique Luthérienne d’Haiti – ELCH), whose membership had lapsed. As with all church bodies accepted into membership between ILC World Conferences, the ELCH will hold observer membership.

The International Lutheran Council is a global association of confessional Lutheran churches which proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ on the basis of an unconditional commitment to the Holy Scriptures as expounded in the Lutheran Confessions.

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