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EKD - Evangelical Lutheran Church in Württemberg

Church family:Lutheran churches
Based in:Germany
Present in:
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About membership

Statistics of church membership, number of churches, congregations, pastors, etc. are those given by the churches and organizations, unless otherwise indicated. WCC member churches have various ways of defining their membership: state churches in which virtually every citizen is baptized and thus counted as a member, churches which include in their membership persons who are baptized but not actively participating, churches in which only adult baptized or communicant members are counted, etc. No attempt has been made to classify the membership figures in such categories, because agreed upon indicators to so do not exist.

2,346,879
Pastors:2,330
Congregations:1,414
Member of: LWF - CPCE - KKR -
Associate member of:
Website: http://www.elk-wue.de

(Evangelische Landeskirche in Württemberg)

In the early 16th century the duke of Württemberg charged a Lutheran as well as a Reformed theologian with the introduction of the Reformation. Thus from the very beginning the church of Württemberg built a bridge between these two confessions. In the second half of the 16th century its life was shaped according to Lutheran orthodoxy, whereas the liturgy remained sermon-centred, that is, ?reformed'. Later on, doctrine and Christian life were influenced by pietism, the Enlightenment and liberalism. Especially pietism, which the church managed to keep within its boundaries, brought new depth and breadth to the faith and life of the church, especially in the fields of diakonia and mission.

The organizational structure of the church is synodal; it is governed by the synod, the bishop and the consistory. Bishop Theophil Wurm's (d. 1953) efforts on behalf of a confessing Christian unity typified the ecumenical and evangelical mission of Wurttemberg's Lutherans. Besides the Roman Catholic Church there exist also some smaller churches like the Methodists and Baptists, and some Orthodox congregations in Württemberg. All of them work together in the "Association of Christian Churches in Baden-Württemberg". Increasingly a multifaith situation is developing, mainly because of the presence of immigrants from Muslim countries. There has not been a "state church" since 1918. There is free partnership between state and church, e.g. the content of religious education at public schools is the responsibility of the churches. Tasks for the years to come are: evangelism in an increasingly secular context, strengthening of ecumenical cooperation, diaconal services to the underprivileged and the disabled (migrant workers, the sick, the handicapped and the unemployed), developmental services and assistance in missionary outreach with churches in other continents.

The Württemberg Church maintains close ties with the Evangelical Lutheran churches in Montbeliard (France), Slovakia (together with the Church of Thuringia), Serbia-Montenegro, Georgia and the district of Kronstadt (Brasov) in Romania. Through the Association of Churches and Missions in South-Western Germany there are also partnerships with churches in Ghana, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, the Near East and South Africa. There are also close relations to two dioceses of the Romanian Orthodox Church.

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About the two rules of God 1 comment

The statement in the LUTHERAN family description regarding the "well-known" doctrine of the two rules of God and its impact on historical member-state relations needs to be re-assessed.

People who have some familiarity with the Reformation and Martin Luther usually identify three points of emphasis coming out of Luther's contribution to the Reformation:

First, the doctrine of Justification by Faith (according to scriptural interpretation since Luther rejected church tradition as grounds for authority);

Second, Luther taught in "the priesthood of all believers" which correspondingly adds that the clergy are not needed as intercessors between the individual and God;

Third, the reduction of the sacraments into two, being Holy Baptism and Holy Communin, based on the fact that they were instituted by Jesus during his earthly ministry.

As someone who attended Sunday School and worship services in a small town Lutheran church, the doctrine of the two rules of God was not covered as anything essential to Lutheran identity that I can recall. (Don't underestimate the value of small town church--in the 1970's a short-term pastor who was African went on to serve in the pre-eminent position of the Lutheran World Federation).

Incidentally, Martin Luther did not want his name on his church. He preferred the name "Evangelical" to describe his church; using evangelical in it historical meaning of "of or relating to the Gospel". It is generally known that Luther did not set out to found a new church, rather he wanted to reform it (posting his theses on the door was an accepted way to open debate on issues in his day). This can be an easy item of affirmation--or a difficult matter of negation--for theologians depending on their perspectives on ecclesiology, apostolic succession and the prophetic voice.

Posted By: Greg Reage on Jun 17, 2008 10:50PM

The article has been updated, with more details on the doctrine of the two rules of God, and links to sources on Lutheranism.

Posted By: The editor on Oct 17, 2008 09:36AM

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