International Lutheran Council Archives - International Lutheran Council

ILC prepares for 2026 World Seminaries Conference

by Mathew Block | Mar 12, 2026

SOUTH AFRICA – The International Lutheran Council (ILC) will hold its 2026 World Seminaries Conference in Pretoria, South Africa, from June 23-26.

The theme for this year’s conference is “Being Human, Being Christian: Theological Anthropology in Church and Seminary.” In an era of transhumanism, gender ideology, and post-modern anthropology, this conference will equip seminary leaders and faculty to faithfully teach a biblical and confessional Lutheran understanding of what it means to be human.

The International Lutheran Council is a global association of confessional Lutheran church bodies dedicated to the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, grounded in the authority of Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions.

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LLDP studies contemporary issues in ethics and biblical hermeneutics

by Mathew Block | Mar 5, 2026

LLDP participants with instructor Rev. Dr. Charles Gieschen (Provost at Concordia Theological Seminary). From left: Rev. Dr. Naomichi Masaki, LLDP Director; Rev. Felipe Ehican, Vice President of the Lutheran Church in the Philippines (LCP); Rev. Fredirick Flores, Secretary of North Luzon Highland District, LCP; Rev. Daniel Akoh, President/Bishop Elect of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ghana (ELCG); Rev. Dr. Charles Gieschen; Rev. Dr. John Lanbon, National Director of Young Adult Fellowship, ELCG; Rev. Charles Bameka, National Presiding Bishop of Lutheran Church of Uganda (LCU); and Rev Dr. Heinz Hiestermann, Rector of Lutheran Theological Seminary in Tshwane, South Africa, Free Evangelical Lutheran Synod in South Africa (FELSISA).

USA – From November 10-21, 2025, church leaders from four Lutheran church bodies in Africa and Asia travelled to the United States for another session of the Lutheran Leadership Development Program (LLDP). During this session, participants engaged two of the most important topics in the church today: issues in theological ethics, and biblical doctrine and hermeneutics.

*Rev. Peter Brock teaches on Issues in Theological Ethics.*

The course on Issues in Theological Ethics helps participants form a disciplined and accurate analysis of key ethical problems confronting the church on issues like personhood, sexuality, marriage, technological advance, the beginning and end of human life, and vocation. Rev. Peter Brock, senior pastor of St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran (Bingen, Indiana) and First Vice President of the LCMS’s Indiana District—and also a theological capacity builder for the ILC—taught this vital subject. Rev. Brock discussed a variety of misconceptions contained in contemporary pluralistic approaches to ethics, modeling instead a Lutheran approach grounded in the doctrine of justification and trinitarian theology. Rev. Brock engaged in contemporary issues through key Lutheran themes like the Law/Gospel distinction, the three estates, and the two kingdoms. While teaching as a theologian and church leader, he also brought to bear his experience as a parish pastor who deals with these issues day in and day out.

“I learned many new things!” said Rev. Dr. Heinz Hiestermann, Rector of Lutheran Theological Seminary (Tshwane, South Africa), speaking on the course. “Many issues we discussed in class are not talked about in my church. We need to talk about these issues, and now I have the knowledge to do this. I believe I learned a lot that will benefit the church.” Dr. Hiestermann is a trained New Testament scholar, but attending LLDP sessions has inspired him to incorporate what he is learning in the program into the education offered at his own seminary; the seminary is beginning to offer, for example, courses on ecclesial leadership and pastoral administration.

The second course—Lutheran Hermeneutics—was taught by Rev. Dr. Charles Gieschen, Provost and Professor of the New Testament at Concordia Theological Seminary (Fort Wayne). This was his third time teaching the course for the LLDP. Dr. Gieschen taught the basics of hermeneutics in light of the confessional Lutheran approach to the Scriptures. His chief point was the Christocentricity of Scripture. His lectures covered essential points of the broad history of biblical interpretation from early, patristic, medieval, Reformation, post-Reformation, and modern periods, complemented by many readings, and helped participants evaluate the historical-critical method and reader-oriented trends in biblical interpretation. Much appreciated was his concrete demonstration of sound hermeneutics in response to challenges participants face in their own contexts such as the various claims of neo-charismatic and Pentecostal movements, millennialism, proponents of women’s ordination, and more.

*Rev. Dr. Charles Gieschen teaches Lutheran Hermeneutics.*

Participants were thankful for this course because they knew that many people in their parishes and even some pastors are often ill-equipped on the fundamentals of a confessional Lutheran approach to Scripture and sound biblical hermeneutics. “The proper way of reading the entire Scripture with Christocentricity that Dr. Gieschen taught has made the scales fall from my eyes,” said one participant. And another: “That Dr. Gieschen took a lot of time to answer the questions of the students helped us apply the Bible better in our context.”

The International Lutheran Council (ILC) works with its partners The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), Concordia Publishing House (CPH), and Concordia Theological Seminary (Fort Wayne, Indiana) to administer the LLDP under program director, Rev. Dr. Naomichi Masaki. “Participants studied day and night to read, attend lectures, and write for these two very demanding courses,” Dr. Masaki observed. “This program calls for serious study of theological topics and practical issues that are designed to assist participants in their ecclesial leadership in their context.” He went on to praise the participants for their hard work.

Of the instructors, Dr. Masaki said: “Once again, my colleague Dr. Gieschen exceeded my expectations through one-of-a-kind instruction and with deep respect and care for the participants. He knows how important the subject matter of proper biblical interpretation remains in world Lutheranism.” And again: “How often have I observed the way Pastor Brock teaches the subject of theological ethics in Tanzania in an incredibly masterful manner! He is not only a first-class scholar but also a competent instructor. It was my special joy to acknowledge that he is now a part of our LLDP teaching faculty!”

LLDP participants, Dr. Masaki, Rev. Brock, Mrs. Alison Blodget (ILC Treasurer and Office Manager) meet with CPH President/CEO Jonathan Schultz (left) along with CPH Vice President of Publishing Rev. Dr. Jacob Corzine (second from right).

During the November session, LLDP participants enjoyed participating in campus life at Concordia Theological Seminary, including the institution’s annual Good Shepherd Institute, as well as the in-home hospitality of several seminary and ILC families. A distinct joy was when LLDP members were reunited for a visit with Concordia Publishing House’s President/CEO Jonathan Schultz and Vice President of Publishing Rev. Dr. Jacob Corzine. LLDP members expressed their thanks to CPH for the gifts of many essential resources this year to the seminary libraries and individual pastors of LLDP member churches.

The next session of the LLDP is taking place in Wittenberg, Germany, from February-March 2026, with a particular focus on the history of the Lutheran Church and the theology of the Lutheran Confessions. You are invited to support the work of the LLDP by making a donation online. You can also mail a donation by cheque to:

International Lutheran Council
P.O. Box 10149
Fort Wayne, Indiana 46850 USA

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The ILC’s 2025 World Conference in Brief

by Mathew Block | Sep 29, 2025

*Participants in the ILC’s 2025 World Conference.*

ILC General Secretary Klaus Detlev Schulz and the new board of directors: LCC President Timothy Teuscher (North America), SLM President Omar Garza Martínez (Secretary), IELP President Alceu Alton Figur (Latin America), ELMDF Bishop Juhana Pohjola (Chairman), LCU Bishop Charles Bameka (Africa), and LM-A President Matt Anker. Archbishop Rinalds Grants was unable to attend in person.

PHILIPPINES – The International Lutheran Council (ILC) held its 28^th (13^th) triennial World Conference took place September 14-19, 2025, in Panglao, Bohol, Philippines. In total, more than 130 people representing more than 60 different church bodies and 55 nations participated in the event.

During the conference, Bishop Juhana Pohjola of the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of Finland (ELMDF) was reelected as chairman of the ILC. Bishop Pohjola was first elected to the position in 2022 during the ILC’s World Conference in Kenya. Elected or reelected to serve alongside Chairman Pohjola were:

Africa – Bishop Charles Bameka (Lutheran Church of Uganda)
Asia – President Matt Anker (Lutheran Mission – Australia)
Europe – Archbishop Rinalds Grants (Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia)
Latin America – President Alceu Alton Figur (Evangelical Lutheran Church of Paraguay)
North America – President Timothy Teuscher (Lutheran Church–Canada)
Secretary: President Omar Garza (Lutheran Synod of Mexico)

Representatives of church bodies received as full members during the ILC’s 2025 World Conference. Pictured are ILC Chairman Juhana Pohjola, FLM Bishop Denis Rakotozafy, CLCMS President Davis Robert Wowa, LM-A President Matt Anker, ELCK Bishop Alexander Burtsev, ILK/ELCB representative Rev. Mikko Tiira, and ILC General Secretary Klaus Detlev Schulz.

The conference also saw six observer member churches received into full membership in the ILC: the Confessional Lutheran Church – Malawi Synod (CLCMS); Lutheran Mission – Australia (LM-A); the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Kazakhstan (ELCK); the Istanbul Lutheran Church (ILK)/Evangelical Lutheran Church of Bulgaria (ELCB); the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Haiti (ELCH); and the Malagasy Lutheran Church (FLM).

Unity in Christ

The theme for the ILC’s 2025 World Conference was “Unity in Christ: Confession and Cooperation in a Fragmented World.” The keynote speaker for the event was Rev. Dr. Thomas M. Winger of St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, who gave a three-part presentation entitled “The Spiritual Temple,” focused on Ephesians 2:11-22.

The conference also featured several sessions with a regional focus, including an Asia Regional Focus on Shamanism and Syncretism; a Latin America Focus on migration; and an African Regional Focus on the charismatic movement. The ILC’s General Secretary, Rev. Dr. Klaus Detlev Schulz, gave a presentation entitled “Affirming Constants in an Everchanging World,” and the conference also heard presentations on history, Bible translation, and Christian publishing.

On the final day of the ILC’s world conference, participants adopted two statements: one on the Nicene Creed and the other on unity in Christ. The first of these—An Affirmation of the Nicene Creed—was adopted in light of this year’s anniversary commemorations of the Council of Nicaea. The second statement adopted—Unity in Christ and His Gospel—reflects on the theme of this year’s ILC World Conference.

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Full news from the ILC’s 2025 World Conference can be found here.

World Conference 2025: ILC issues statements on the Nicene Creed and Unity in Christ

by Mathew Block | Sep 24, 2025

PHILIPPINES – On the final day of its 2025 World Conference, the International Lutheran Council adopted two statements: one on the Nicene Creed and the other on unity in Christ.

The first of these—An Affirmation of the Nicene Creed—was adopted in light of this year’s anniversary commemorations of the Council of Nicaea. “During this 1,700^th anniversary year of the Council of Nicaea, we, the member churches of the International Lutheran Council, reassert our commitment to the teachings of the Nicene Creed,” the statement notes. It goes on to cite the creed’s place as a “binding statement of faith” for Confessional Lutherans today, also acknowledging the creed’s importance “as a touchstone for relations between different Christian traditions.”

The second statement adopted—Unity in Christ and His Gospel—reflects on the theme of this year’s ILC World Conference. In the face of the serious “division and confusion” afflicting nations and even church bodies today, the statement says, “the member churches of the International Lutheran Council reassert the centrality of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.” On the basis of their shared faith, members go on to “encourage each other to seek opportunities for closer unity and cooperation between our churches, recognizing that we share a common mission: proclaiming salvation through Christ alone.”

Other business during the conference’s final day included a series of reports, votes on revisions to the ILC’s bylaws, and other matters.

Closing Service and the Installation of the ILC’s New Board

*Rev. Dr. Klaus Detlev Schulz preaches during the closing service of the ILC’s 2025 World Conference.*

The 2025 World Conference ended with a service of Vespers, at which time the ILC’s newly-elected board of directors was installed into office. Serving as liturgist was Rev. Michael Blodgett. Serving as organist was Ivy Parotina, who also served in that capacity for all the services during this year’s conference.

Rev. Dr. Klaus Detlev Schulz, General Secretary of the ILC, preached for the concluding service, reflecting on John 17:20-23. Why does the Lord pray for our unity in this passage, Dr. Schulz asked. “Because our unity with one another is meant to be a compelling witness to the world,” he said. “Jesus prays that believers will be one with each other and with the Father and Son, so that the world will recognize Jesus’ divine mission and the Father’s love for them.”

The unity which Jesus speaks of here is “a spiritual unity—that is, one established through faith,” Dr. Schulz continued. “As Confessional Lutherans, we believe that such a unity transcends denominational lines, and exists as the one church of Christ—the una sancta. All who believe (the vere credentes) in Christ are united in His body.”

This spiritual unity is meant to be “uniform in the faith confessed,” Dr. Schulz explained, on “who Jesus is, what He did, and how we are saved.” But unfortunately, he noted, even on these points Christians sometimes disagree. “That is why Jesus prays for it with his core request ‘that they may all be one.’”

“There is a call to action implied with the understanding that the church on earth is meant to be one united body in Christ, not to exist as single individuals,” Dr. Schulz continued. “We cannot be complacent about it, we cannot say: ‘Oh, Jesus has here a dream, a vision of a unified church. But it will never happen, so let us drop the idea of talking to each other.’ No, work on it. Actively pursue unity through repentance, forgiveness, and striving for understanding and compassion in our relationships. Pursue unity not by compromising the truth of God’s Word, but by holding to it with humility and love. And then live as a witness: Allow the unity within the church to be a powerful testimony of God’s love and presence to a watching world.”

*LCP President Antonio del Rio Reyes installs the International Lutheran Council’s board for the new triennium*.

The ILC’s outgoing Asia Region representative, President Antonio del Rio Reyes of the Lutheran Church in the Philippines, then conducted the installation of the ILC’s new board. The service—and with it, the 2025 World Conference—subsequently concluded with the singing of the hymn “For All the Saints.”

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For more news from the ILC’s 2025 World Conference, click here.

2025 World Conference: Membership Votes and Board Elections

by Mathew Block | Sep 19, 2025

PHILIPPINES – The final day of the International Lutheran Council’s 2025 World Conference saw six observer member churches accepted as full members in the ILC and the election of board members for a new triennium.

The day began with a service of matins led by Rev. Michael Blodgett, with the ILC’s Europe Regional Representative, Chairman George Samiec of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of England (ELCE), preaching a sermon on Luke 8:1-3 and 1 Timothy 6:2-12.

“The New Testament is not a how-to-book for running an organization,” Chairman Samiec noted. “Sure, we hear about financial issues and organizational issues… [but] the Church has never wanted to impose burdens.” Organizational details like constitutions and bylaws vary depending on “your churches, your countries, finances, relationships, and the fine print each of us work under,” he said. What matters is that “the heart, attitude, and desires are right—godliness with contentment,” he continued—and consequently we find St. Paul talking “big picture things” about living relationally “first with Jesus and then with those around you.”

“Our goal is not empire building for ourselves,” Chairman Samiec continued. “If we have food and clothing—today we might say ‘basic necessities’—and Christ, then we can live in His Kingdom and do Kingdom work as we have means, as we are able.” We do not need to be “supermen;” we are called simply to daily patterns and rituals of faithfulness: “[moving] away from what causes us to sin towards absolution, towards Holy Communion,” and [striving] and [confessing] the hope we have in Christ Jesus.” He concluded: “Coming close to Jesus, the God who serves, and realizing that He is the one who comes to us gives us our daily identity… and so we flee from sin and pursue righteousness because Jesus is our loving Lord who has saved us, declared us righteous already—and we want this for our church—and we want this for the world.”

The matins service also featured a special musical performance by members of the ILC’s African region, singing the hymn “Mfurahini, Haleluya” (“Christ has Arisen, Alleluia”) in Swahili.

Acceptance of Full Members and ILC Elections

Following worship, the conference turned to a discussion of ILC business. Among other business, six observer members were received as full voting members: the Confessional Lutheran Church – Malawi Synod (CLCMS); Lutheran Mission – Australia (LM-A); the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Kazakhstan (ELCK); the Istanbul Lutheran Church (ILK)/Evangelical Lutheran Church of Bulgaria (ELCB); the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Haiti (ELCH); and the Malagasy Lutheran Church (FLM).

The ILC also held elections for members of the board of directors for the new triennium. Bishop Juhana Pohola of the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of Finland (ELMDF) was reelected to another term as ILC Chairman. Other elections and reelection include:

Africa – Bishop Charles Bameka (Lutheran Church of Uganda)
Asia – President Matt Anker (Lutheran Mission – Australia)
Europe – Archbishop Rinalds Grants (Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia)
Latin America – President Alceu Alton Figur (Evangelical Lutheran Church of Paraguay)
North America – President Timothy Teuscher (Lutheran Church–Canada)
Secretary: President Omar Garza Martinez (Lutheran Synod of Mexico)

ILC Chairman Pohjola took the opportunity to thank ELCE Chairman George Samiec (Europe) and LCP President Antonio Del Rio Reyes (Asia) for their faithful service to the board. Neither stood for reelection at this year’s conference. Chairman Pohjola also acknowledged the service of other board members who completed their service on the board during the past triennium or in the lead up to this year’s conference, including LCU Bishop John Donkoh, LCK Archbishop Joseph Omolo, and LCC Past President Robert Bugbee. He further noted with thanks the blessing of ELKB President Gisjbertus van Hattem, whose service with the ILC lasted until his death in 2024.

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For more news from the ILC’s 2025 World Conference, click here.

2025 World Conference: ILC Regional Representatives Panel

by Mathew Block | Sep 19, 2025

*ELCE Chairman George Samiec, LCP President Antonio del Rio Reyes, LCU Bishop Charles Bameka, IELP President Aceu Alton Figur, and LCC President Timothy Teuscher.*

PHILIPPINES – On Wednesday afternoon, the regional representatives on the International Lutheran Council’s (ILC) board of directors held a question-and-answer panel during the 2025 World Conference.

The ILC’s Europe Representative, Chairman George Samiec of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of England (ELCE), chaired the discussion, in which he was joined by Asia representative, President Antonio del Rio Reyes (Lutheran Church in the Philippines); Latin America representative, President Alceu Alton Figur (Evangelical Lutheran Church in Paraguay); and North America representative President Timothy Teuscher (Lutheran Church–Canada). Bishop Charles Bameka (Lutheran Church of Uganda), Secretary of the ILC board, participated in place of the Africa Representative.

The panelists answered a number of questions, including questions about ILC member churches holding membership in other international organizations; what communication is like between churches in each region; regional challenges; and the joys each region experiences.

The day concluded with regional meetings.

Thursday Events

*LCP President Antonio del Rio Reyes preaching.*

The conference continued on Thursday, beginning with a service of matins led by LCP Vice President Felipe Ehican. LCP President Antonio del Rio Reyes was the preacher, speaking on Luke 7:36-50.

The story under discussion, President Reyes said, involves two sinners: a woman who knew she was a sinner, and a Pharisee who did not. “The woman’s sin was a public scandal,” he noted, “while Simon’s was hidden beneath a layer of self-righteousness. But in God’s eyes, both had a massive debt.”

“We are all tempted to be like Simon, comparing ourselves to others, thinking we are good enough and judging others as ‘worse’ than us,” President Reyes continued. “But the truth is, we are all sinners. We are all like the woman—with a debt we can never repay. But the good news is that Jesus has already paid it…. He came to declare to you, just as He did to the woman, ‘Your sins are forgiven.’”

This “forgiveness of God in Christ” serves as a “powerful unifying force,” President Reyes concluded, and it, “with the help of the Holy Spirit, moves and compels us to be united—to proclaim this forgiveness and to cooperate with one another as we live out our redeemed Christian life in this fragmented world.”

*The famous Chocolate Hills—currently green—in Bohol.*

The rest of Thursday saw participants get a chance to stretch their legs and learn more about Bohol’s history, culture, and natural beauty, including by: visiting historic churches in the region; enjoying live music and traditional dances during lunch; a visit to a tarsier conservation site; and an excursion to the famous Chocolate Hills of Bohol.

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For more news from the ILC’s 2025 World Conference, click here.

2025 World Conference: Affirming Constants in an Everchanging World

by Mathew Block | Sep 19, 2025

*LCU Bishop Charles Bameka preaches during the conference.*

PHILIPPINES – The International Lutheran Council’s (ILC) World Conference continued on Wednesday, beginning with a service of Matins. The Lutheran Church in the Philippines’ (LCP) Vice President Felipe Ehican served as liturgist, and the ILC’s Secretary, Bishop Charles Bameka of the Lutheran Church of Uganda (LCU), serving as preacher.

Bishop Bameka said that our world is increasingly confused and fragmented—including, sadly, within some historic Christian denominations. “So what is the role” of God’s faithful people, the Church, “in this confusion and chaos?” he asked. The answer is found in 1 Timothy 3:15. “We are called upon to be the ‘Pillar and Foundation of Truth,’” he explained, “proclaiming Christ to the fragmented world around us.”

That message is not welcomed by the outside world, he noted, but that only points to our need for God’s mercy in living out the calling He has given us. “The only way the Church can move forward as a ‘Pillar and Foundation of Truth’… is by calling out to the Almighty God to do what only God can do in and through us by His Holy Spirit: proclaim and teach the Word as we preach the resurrected Christ… to the sin-sick fragmented world we live in today.”

*Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking delegates sing during Matins.*

Wednesday’s service of matins also featured a special performance by Spanish and Portuguese-speaking delegates to the conference, with the group singing the hymn “Da Igreja o fundamento” (“The Church’s One Foundation”). The musical arrangement for the rendition was newly prepared for this conference by Rev. Dr. Raul Blum of Brazil’s Seminário Concórdia. The group sang three verses in Spanish and two in Portuguese.

Affirming Constants in an Everchanging World

*ILC General Secretary Klaus Detlev Schulz presents at the 2025 World Conference.*

Following matins, the convention heard an address from the ILC’s General Secretary, Rev. Dr. Klaus Detlev Schulz. Dr. Schulz began by noting that the Church has two directional focuses—one looking first towards its grounding in Christ and one also looking outward as it represents Christ to others. “The church cannot divorce her second activity from the first,” Dr. Schulz said. “That means that while they saw themselves as blessed possessors of the saving faith in Christ, they also embraced an outward expansion in the form of this faith being proclaimed and confessed to others. To have faith without its confession, or a church without a mission, is like a dove flying with one wing only, not able to get off the ground.”

And yet, Dr. Schulz, continued, there have been diverging views of missions in world Christianity since the 20^th century. Since the 1970s, he noted, a number of theological institutions have seen the replacement of missiology with “intercultural theology, claiming theologies around the world exist parallel to each other, without being one singular, uniting theology.”

While “it is true that theology is never done in a vacuum,” Dr. Schulz said, “the crucial question becomes what theological system is available to us by which we can affirm the eternal Word and its constants in a changing world around us.” He drew participants’ attention to a 1952 work of George Vicedom on missiology. Vicedom “bemoans a drift away from the central article to a more inclusivistic inner-worldly understanding of salvation and a pursuit of missions that no longer sees the need for the church’s proclamation as central in God’s mission to people outside of Christ,” Dr. Schulz explained.

That drift is what resulted in the anemic understanding of missiology which prevailed in the 1970s. But what is the state of missiology today? Dr. Schulz examined two recent international statements: 2011’s Cape Town Commitment (CTC), a product of the Lausanne Movement, and 2012’s Together Towards Life (TTL) from the World Council of Churches. In TTL, “the radical missiology of the 1970s… has been tempered and the church’s role in mission has been reaffirmed,” Dr. Schulz said. But the statement still represents “a shift away from Christology and the redemptive nature of mission by the Holy Spirit through the church to an inclusion of all creation.” He continued: “There is thus a hesitation in TTL to admit an exclusive understanding of salvation in Jesus Christ, making concessions to people of other religions.” CTC, meanwhile, certainly “affirms the Christocentric approach with the church as the instrument.”

“As confessing Lutherans, we need to be reminded of the current discussions on missions and missiology,” Dr. Schulz continued. “For missions is, as Vicedom states, ‘the seismograph in the life of the church, where catastrophes that threaten the church are most apparent.’”

“As Confessional Lutherans, we know that we do not exist in a vacuum but in specific contexts with specific issues and challenges,” Dr. Schulz concluded. “At the same time, we are also aware of what joins us together regardless of situation and location. It is the mission of the proclamation of the Gospel that justifies the sinner extending forgiveness through Word and Sacraments.”

To accompany Dr. Schulz’ presentation, convention participants each received a copy of Vicedom’s Justification as the Formative Power of Mission, translated by Dr. Schulz, as a gift from Concordia Publishing House.

Missions in Europe

*ELCE Chairman George Samiec; ELCE Chairman-Elect Tapani Simojoki; ELCIR Bishop Ivan Laptev and translator Rev. Evgenii Raskatov*; *and LKNI Bishop Torkild Masvie.*

Dr. Schulz’ presentation was followed by the conference’s final Regional Focus, this time discussing the challenge of church-planting in secular Europe. Europe’s Regional Representative, Chairman George Samiec of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of England (ELCE) served as the moderator, with presentations by Bishop Torkild Masvie of the Lutheran Church in Norway and Iceland (LKNI), Bishop Ivan Laptev of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ingria (ELCIR), and Chairman-Elect Tapani Simojoki of the ELCE.

Bishop Masvie spoke about the work of the LKNI in its West-Nordic context, highlighting the history of the church and its church planting efforts. Their church is small, he said, and “if you’re small, you’re forced to work smart.” For the LKNI, that has meant strategic outreach following this general pattern: A mature pastor identifies a city with a university and issues invitations there to attend worship services. Once a small group is identified–“We usually start with three, four, or five people,” Bishop Masvie noted, although they’ve sometimes started “even with just one”—they begin holding services, something possible thanks to the scalability of liturgical worship. As the congregation becomes settled, the mature pastor moves on to identify another mission site while care of the congregation is handed over to one of the church’s young pastors.

Bishop Masvie noted that what works in their context may not work for others, but that this strategy has had encouraging results for their own church. “We are small but we are growing,” he noted, “with a 20 percent growth in attendance every year.”

Next to speak was Bishop Laptev, who outlined the work pursued by the Ingrian church. He noted that the Reformation sought to bring Christ to people by preaching the Gospel in the language of the people. In the same way, he said, the church’s challenge is to ask today: “What is the language of preaching for our post-Christian society?”

He went on to highlight stories of outreach in the Ingrian church. In one example, he noted that the church had been given the opportunity to use a historic church building no longer in use. In an attempt to speak through “the language of images” to unchurched people in the region, they used that space to set up elaborate biblical exhibits—on creation, on the Passion, and more—which drew great interest in the community, bringing people into the church. While an investment, these same exhibits have also been able to be used in other community with similar results. This has led naturally to offering introductory classes on the faith, with 80 percent of those participating between the ages of 18-35. “The language of images has been very helpful to us in preaching the Gospel,” Bishop Laptev concluded.

*ELCE Chairman Elect Tapani Simojoki presents.*

Chairman Elect Simojoki then discussed challenges related to their missions in the United Kingdom and in Ireland. “Our experience of church planting in recent years is this: essentially, we’ve had this ‘Man of Macedonia’ approach,” he explained. “We go when we are called, either when members move or when outsiders contact us.”

Not that this is easy. He noted that Lutheran outreach in the region faces many challenges: the church is quite small, and its congregations are separated by large geographic spaces. “We have fewer pastors than congregations,” he noted, “and so our personnel resources are thinly spread.” He also noted the challenge of limited funds, and the cost to rent premises for mission sites—as well as the challenges of member commitment. And sometimes they make mistakes. But “one of the most important assets that a church worker, a missionary, a church planter can have is to recognize when we mistakes,” Chairman Elect Simojoki said, “and learn from them.”

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For more news from the ILC’s 2025 World Conference, click here.

2025 World Conference: Unity in the Spiritual Temple

by Mathew Block | Sep 16, 2025

*Participants in the International Lutheran Council’s 2025 World Conference in the Philippines. (Photo: T. Winger)*.

PHILIPPINES – The third day of the International Lutheran Council’s (ILC) 2025 World Conference began with a service of Matins, with Lutheran Church in the Philippines (LCP) Vice President Felipe Ehican serving as liturgist and Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC) President Timothy Teuscher serving as preacher.

*LCP Vice President Ehican looks on as LCC President Teuscher preaches during the 2025 World Conference. (Photo: T. Winger).*

In his sermon, President Teuscher reflected on the “noble task” of the office of the holy ministry (1 Timothy 3:1) in light of the day’s Gospel reading: Luke 7:11-17. In this story of Christ raising the widow of Nain’s dead son to life again, President Teuscher said, “we are given a wonderful picture of what He has done for the entire world of unclean, dying people—what He has done for each and every one of us who by nature are dead in our trespasses and sins.”

“But do you know what?” he continued. “Even here and now Jesus this very thing for people who by nature are dead in their trespasses and sins…. And how does He do this? Why, through those who have been placed into the office of the holy ministry—the ministry of reconciliation.” And just as the people who saw Jesus’ miracle spread the report throughout Judea, so too “overseers, pastors, bishops” are called “to spread this report about Jesus who are still walking in that procession of death.”

The Spiritual Temple

The morning continued with the third and final presentation on the “Spiritual Temple” by keynote speaker, Rev. Dr. Thomas M. Winger. On the first day, Dr. Winger spoke about the “Pagan Temple.” On the second day, he compared the Spiritual Temple to the Old Testament Temple. This final day he devoted to an exploration of the Spiritual Temple itself and the unity we enjoy through it as Christians, focusing especially on Ephesians 2:14.

In Ephesians, Dr. Winger said, Paul is “deeply concerned with the relationship between God’s chosen people, Israel, and the rest of the world, that is the Gentiles.” And “Paul’s chief response to this disunity”—which has been exacerbated by the news that Paul had been arrested for his mission to the Gentiles—“is to point them to their common Baptism.”

*Rev. Dr. Thomas M. Winger presents the final section of his keynote address.*

“One might distil the letter’s major theme,” Dr. Winger said, in this way: “all those who have been joined to Christ by Baptism into His death and resurrection have not only been reconciled to God the Father, but have also been united with one another in His Body, the Church.” This leads ultimately to “the heart of the letter” and its “urgent appeal to Christian unity.”

“This imperative—to maintain the unity of the Spirit—is an appeal to what later Lutheran dogmaticians will call the concordia of the church, the outward harmony towards which we strive,” Dr. Winger continued. “But the foundation of that appeal, in Paul’s thinking, is the unitas, the true essential unity, that the church already possesses on the basis of a common Baptism and a sharing of the same spiritual gift of grace.” The true unity of the church, then, is the work of God, not something we create.

Paul points “to the cross itself as the location of reconciliation between Jews and Gentiles,” Dr. Winger explained. “He ‘has made both one.’ He has ‘created the two into one man’ because in His flesh Christ includes both all Israel and all the Gentiles…. Because Christ took both parts of the human race to the cross, both are equally redeemed. He carried both peoples in His own body on the cross, killing the hostility between them by reconciling them both to God and drawing them both into Gods presence.”

“They have been built into a new Temple,” Dr. Winger said, “and incorporated as members of Christ’s own body. They are one Church.”

*ILC Chairman Juhana Pohjola thanks Dr. Winger for his presentations at the ILC 2025 World Conference.*

Paul’s decision to describe the Church as a new Spiritual Temple has implications for us today, Dr. Winger said, and our demonstration of the unity we enjoy through Christ. This is particularly true of worship in the church. Dr. Winger noted that, while Martin Luther encouraged “freedom from the legalistic use of worship practices in the mediaeval church,” he also encouraged uniformity in worship practice among churches within the same territory. Today, however, “territories are no longer the limit of travel for modern people,” Dr. Winger noted, “who easily and often move from end of the country to another, or even to another country.” In a world like this, he continued, “can the commonality of our liturgy foster a unity, a concordia, among churches with a common confession?”

Dr. Winger further asked the conference “to consider how Paul’s appeal to a common Baptism and a common worship to unite Jews and Gentiles throughout the ancient world might be instructive for our Lutheran church scattered across lands and languages.” “Is the Christian faith anchored to culture,” he asked, “or does it transcend it?” And how then can the “divine service reflect the heavenly nature of the Christian Church?”

The Treasure of History

The morning continued with two presentations on the value of history. Rev. Dr. Jonathan E. Shaw, the Director of Church Relationsfor The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, presented on “The Purpose and Meaning of History.”

*Rev. Dr. Jonathan E. Shaw speaks during plenary discussion at the ILC’s 2025 World Conference.*

“Understanding the purpose and meaning of history is essential for us as Christians,” Dr. Shaw said. “We must honour history, remember history, and understand its purpose and meaning in the incarnation and atonement of the Son of God. But up front, we have to realize that this view of history runs against western, liberal culture.”

Dr. Shaw went on to trace changing views of history through the ages of Rationalism and Modernism into our present age of Post-Modernism and its “eroded” understanding of history. But “the true importance of history can only be realized in Christ,” Dr. Shaw said. “He is the eternal Son of God, the Lord of history, the purpose and meaning of history. All history is from Him, points to Him, and is fulfilled in Him.”

“Christianity is true not because it has a coherent theology—you can create coherent ideologies—but because the eternal Son of God has created history, poured Himself into history, and reconciled sinners to the Father in history,” Dr. Shaw continued. “This means that history matters. Christ is the Lord of history—yesterday, today, and forever.”

Following Dr. Shaw’s presentation, Rev. Dr. Daniel N. Harmelink presented on the importance of “being faithful keepers of the Lord’s redeeming work among us.” Dr. Harmelink is Executive Director of Concordia Historical Institute (CHI).

The church today faces “the constant temptation to forget our redeemed history,” Dr. Harmelink said. “Our old, unbelieving nature can do nothing but neglect and forget and discount the unexpected, abundant blessings of redemption God showers on his pitiful, hopeless people.” But if we neglect God’s blessings, if we neglect His Word and Sacraments, then—as Luther says—the rain-shower of God’s grace will pass to other lands.

*Rev. Dr. Daniel N. Harmelink speaks during the 2025 World Conference. (Photo: T. Winger).*

For this reason, Dr. Harmelink said, the Scriptures tell us that “blessed are those who hear the Word of God and keep it.” And ‘keep’ does not mean ‘obey,’ he continued. It means to “to honour and treasure it.” Dr. Harmelink traced the chronicling work of people like Adam, Moses, Joshua, and others as they were called to keep God’s Word “before the eyes and in the ears of both young and the elderly… so that true faith would be strengthened, and hope and joy and thanksgiving would flourish.”

“In gratitude and thanksgiving” then for God’s great mercies, “we cannot but set up our own” memorials “as witnesses to the coming generations of Christ’s unmerited deliverance among us,” Dr. Harmelink said. To that end, he noted, CHI works to “preserve and proclaim Christ’s redeeming work among ‘Book of Concord’ Lutherans.”

“We would love to partner with you in responsibly retrieving, preserving, organizing, and sharing the redeemed history of which we have been made stewards,” he told the convention. CHI can share resources to help churches establish archival guidelines; handbooks for the preservation and digitization of historical resources; and give access to CHI’s own holdings from around the world.

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For more news from the ILC’s 2025 World Conference, click here.

2025 World Conference: Asia Regional Focus on Shamanism and Syncretism

by Mathew Block | Sep 16, 2025

*Presenters in the Regional Focus on Syncretism in Asia: Rev. Dr. Jun-Hyun Kim, Rev. Henry Paul D. Roa, and Rev. Michael Hauser. (Photo: T. Winger).*

PHILIPPINES – The afternoon of the second day of the International Lutheran Council’s (ILC) 2025 World Conference saw attendees turn to regional issues, with a panel of presentations from Asia.

The theme for the Asia Regional Focus was “Syncretistic Blends Affecting Lutheran Churches in Asia: The Examples of Shamanism, Sorcery, and Albularyo.” The presenters included Rev. Michael Hauser, an Australian missionary to Papua New Guinea; Rev. Dr. Jun-Hyun Kim, Interim President of Luther Theological University in South Korea; and Rev. Henry Paul D. Roa, President of the Lutheran Church in the Philippines’ South Luzon District.

After defining shamanism and sorcery, Rev. Hauser provided insight into the situation in Papua New Guinea, with special focus on the issue of “Sanguma.” “False accusations of ‘sanguma’ or sorcery for selfish reasons” have become a serious problem within Papua New Guinea, he noted, leading to horrific violence: in the past 20 years, according to a study by the ANU College of Asia and the Pacific, more than 600 people have been reported killed and another 340 wounded in mob-violence. But the real numbers are expected to be much higher, with “attacks often involving whole communities and involving gruesome torture and humiliation,” Rev. Hauser said.

“One wonders, quite rightly, how Christians could be involved in such attacks,” Rev. Hauser noted. The irony is that the attempt to rout out such alleged sorcerers is itself riddled with syncretistic tendencies. Christians rely on “self-professed seers who operate under the guise of ‘prayer warriors’” to identify these supposed sorcerers, Rev. Hauser said. While the government has attempted to criminalize this practice, more must be done by churches themselves, Rev. Hauser noted, to treat the root causes of the issue. Christians mission must be more willing to say, “This is idolatry, and is not Christian,” Rev. Hauser said, and bring to bear its own rites like excommunication—perhaps even of entire communities for a time—to lead those responsible to repentance.

Dr. Kim, meanwhile, spoke on the “enduring influence of Korean shamanism within the life and practice of Korean Christianity.” This has led Korean Christians to adopt several shamanistic attitudes, he noted. As a result of this syncretism, he said, “many believers treat worship as a ritual performance for receiving blessings rather than as an act of obedience and communion with God.” Everyday believers neglect “personal responsibility for faith,” entrusting their destiny instead to church leaders who are treated more like “quasi-magical figures,” replacing the shamans of old. This results in an “undue reliance” on external rituals or works like “church attendance, offerings, or revival meetings as an automatic means of receiving blessing.” Likewise, “shamanism’s emphasis on fate has influenced many Christians to view life events as predetermined, leading to passivity and resignation rather than active discipleship.” This focus on achieving blessings for oneself has led to reduced missionary zeal.

“While Christianity once opposed such folk beliefs, many believers have unconsciously absorbed shamanistic ideas into their faith,” Dr. Kim concluded. “This syncretism manifests in transactional prayer, dependence on church leaders, and fatalistic resignation. Today, “the challenge for Korea Christianity is to resist this distortion by preserving the Gospel’s purity—emphasizing salvation, covenantal blessing, and ethical discipleship”—and by “rooting itself firmly in the message of Jesus Christ.”

Rev. Roa then spoke on the situation in the Philippines. “Syncretism is common in the Philippines,” he noted, with the blending of Christianity and pagan practices becoming “a normal and acceptable spiritual practice” for many. He noted, for example, the common practice of seeking assistance from an “albularyo” or medicine man. Modern medical care can be expensive, he noted, so many—including Christians—seek out these traditional healers. But for the albularyo, “every disease is connected with sin” and “offending the spirits.” The offered cure, then, “is all about appeasing an angry god/spirit.” Yet Christians are put at ease because the albularyo will often incorporate a Christian prayer as well.

There are numerous other instances of syncretism present in the Philippines, Rev. Roa noted, with many focused on seeking prosperity—for example, by superstitious customs at weddings like pinning money to the married couple while they dance and the placing of coins near doors and windows. Other rituals are secretly done to ward off death. For example, church members will sometimes secretly break a glass when the body of a dead person is removed from the church following a funeral. “The effect of this blended spirituality—Christianity and paganism—is a false sense of Christianity and a false faith,” Rev. Road concluded. “The church has the great responsibility to proclaim the Word of God in its purity, and to be clear and brutally honest that Christianity mixed with pagan practice is not Christianity.

Following the presentations, attendees participated in an open question and answer period with the panel, with members noting that while the specifics may differ, the issue of cultural and religious syncretism is one that many countries face.

Translating the Word of God

*Lutheran Bible Translators presents during the ILC’s 2025 World Conference. (Photo: T. Winger).*

The afternoon continued with a presentation by Lutheran Bible Translators (LBT), a Recognized Organization of the International Lutheran Council. LBT’s Director of Partnerships and Scripture Engagement highlighted how, over the history of LBT, the organization has work to make God’s Word accessible in 223 languages, including 135 currently—work which it accomplishes in partnership with local church leaders. That total includes 48 milestone projects (translations of the New Testament and full Bibles), as well as lectionaries, liturgies, Bible apps, audio Bibles, and more.

Bishop John Donkoh of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ghana (ELCG) then joined LBT’s representative for a discussion about the work of the organization. In the course of that discussion, Bishop Donkoh was presented with the first copy of the full Komba Bible—a project that the church in Ghana has been working with LBT on for 22 years. The two noted that a translation project like this one is a huge undertaking. The Komba language, for example, had never been written down before; before translation could begin, the language had to be studied, a writing system developed, and literacy taught so the Komba people could read and write their own language.

The day concluded with participants breaking into regional groups for continued conversation.

The ILC is grateful to Lutheran Bible Translators for providing today’s translation equipment.

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For more news from the ILC’s 2025 World Conference, click here.

2025 World Conference: The Old Temple and the New

by Mathew Block | Sep 15, 2025

*IELPA President Alton Alceu Figur preaches during the ILC’s 2025 World Conference. (Photo: T. Winger).*

PHILIPPINES – The second day of the International Lutheran Council’s (ILC) 2025 World Conference began with a service of Matins, with Rev. Michael Blodgett serving as liturgist and President Alton Alceu Figur of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Paraguay (IELPA) serving as preacher.

President Figur’s text was John 19:25-27, reflecting on Mary’s sorrow as she looked upon the death of her Son on a cross. In this account, President Figur said, “we are given the scene—the portrait—of the human misery that sin has brought into the world.” And sin continues to bring misery to our world today.

But Jesus’ death brings us hope, President Figur continued, because He assumed our flesh “and all the guilt it carries.” His suffering for the sins of humanity brings hope for this fallen world. “We are sent into this sin-broken world to cooperate in its restoration—restoration that is possible only by looking to the cross of the Saviour,” he said. “And there we see Christ as Mary saw Him—suffering out of love—teaching us that we too, in love for others, must take up our cross and follow Him as we “testify to this great and wonderful gift: salvation in Christ.”

Keynote address: The Old Temple and the New

The conference continued with the second of Rev. Dr. Thomas M. Winger’s keynote lectures, this time on “The Old Temple and the New,” drawing on Ephesians 2:22. Dr. Winger highlighted the connections between the worship of the Old Testament and that of the New Testament, in contrast to that of the “Pagan Temple” he had discussed in his first lecture.

Dr. Winger began by detailing the various rites which were part of the daily service in the Old Testament. “We have a tendency to think of Old Testament worship as a man-made attempt to appease God,” he noted, “but this is not a correct way to think of it.”

“These acts were not something that the Israelites were doing for the benefit of God,” he continued. “On the contrary, God served His people through all of the rites of the liturgy that He instituted for their benefit.”

*Rev. Dr. Thomas M. Winger presents on “The Old Temple and the New Temple.”*

Dr. Winger explained that the Old Testament rites ultimately point to Christ and to the new worship of the Christian Church. Such rites had several purposes, including “to teach God’s people the serious consequences of sin… to provide cleansing sanctification and forgiveness… to separate God’s people from the pagan world… to foretell the coming Messiah (the most important purpose)… to prefigure the pattern of New Testament worship… [and] to prepare for the fellowship of heaven.”

Old Testament worship points, then, to New Testament worship—that period when the Gentiles would be incorporated into the worship life of God’s people. “In the history of Israel, the Gentiles had become isolated from this divine gift by their exclusion from Temple worship,” Dr. Winger noted. Later tradition had developed barriers to keep Gentiles from entering into the Temple. But “the Old Testament prophesied that in the Messianic age the Gentiles would again be brought close to God and into the precincts of His Temple” and that “the Lord’s presence [would] no longer be confined to Jerusalem, but [would] be wherever the Lord’s name is proclaimed.”

“Thus, we ought to understand Paul’s proclamation of a new spiritual Temple in Christ as more than just a figurative description of the unity of God’s people,” Dr. Winger suggested. “It is a picture of God’s people gathered in worship. The Church is a new Temple, but spiritually constructed.” This new Temple of Christian worship is marked by the “equal inclusion of all people… Trinitarian in pattern… spiritual sacrifices… where Christ is found with His Name and Word… and Word and Sacraments.”

ILC Membership and and a Presentation by CPH

*General Secretary Klaus Detlev Schulz presents on the ILC.*

The morning continued with a presentation by the ILC’s General Secretary, Rev. Dr. Klaus Detlev Schulz. Dr. Schulz highlighted the nature of the International Lutheran Council and its work. He further discussed what it means to be a member of the ILC, as well as how the membership application works.

The morning ended with a presentation by Concordia Publishing House (CPH) President/CEO Jonathan D. Schultz and Vice President of Publishing, Rev. Dr. Jacob Corzine. The two highlighted the history of CPH as well as its present work today, ranging from major publications like The Lutheran Study Bible, Lutheran Service Book, and The Book of Concord to major series like Luther’s Works and the Concordia Commentary series to new resources for children and new digital apps.

*CPH President/CEO Jonathan D. Schultz. (Photo: T. Winger).*

The representatives of CPH invited participants in the conference to connect with CPH and discuss possibilities in which their church bodies might be able to benefit from CPH’s extensive Lutheran resources.

An example of that support was shared by Alison Blodgett, the ILC’s Business Manager and Treasurer. She noted that CPH had recently provided grants to assist the ILC in building up pastors’ libraries around the world through the Lutheran Leadership Development Program (LLDP). To date, CPH has worked with the ILC to distribute books in Ghana, the Philippines, South Africa, South Sudan, and Tanzania.

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For more news from the ILC’s 2025 World Conference, click here.

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