Association of Free Lutheran Congregations

The Association of Free Lutheran Congregations

Current President President A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership... :	Rev. Elden K. Nelson
Congregations:	270
Mailing Address:	3110 East Medicine Lake Blvd. Plymouth, Minnesota 55441
Official Website:	www.AFLC.org

Association of Free Lutheran Congregations is the fifth largest Lutheran church body in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The AFLC includes congregations in 27 different states, as well as four Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

provinces. The AFLC is not an incorporated synod

Synod

A synod historically is a council of a church, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. In modern usage, the word often refers to the governing body of a particular church, whether its members are meeting or not...

, but a free association. Each local congregation is a separate corporation.

History

The AFLC was formed by 40 churches in 1962. The churches that formed the AFLC were members of the Lutheran Free Church

Lutheran Free Church

The Lutheran Free Church was a Lutheran denomination that existed in the United States from 1897 to 1963 mainly in Minnesota and North Dakota...

who did not wish to join the American Lutheran Church

American Lutheran Church

The American Lutheran Church was a Christian Protestant denomination in the United States that existed from 1960 to 1987. Its headquarters was in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Upon its formation in 1960, the ALC designated Augsburg Publishing House , also located in Minneapolis, as the church publisher...

. The body was originally called the Lutheran Free Church-not merged. The ALC filed suit against the group for using the name Lutheran Free Church. By 1964 the name Association of Free Lutheran Congregations was established.

Today

In 2006 the AFLC had 43,360 baptized members in 267 churches. The estimate for 2009 saw the AFLC growing to 44,000 members. Minnesota remains the geographic center of the organization, with over 80 congregations and over 12,000 members. There are also numerous congregations in the neighboring states of North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. The AFLC headquarters are at 3110 East Medicine Lake Blvd., Plymouth, Minnesota

Plymouth, Minnesota

As of the census of 2000, there were 65,894 people, 24,820 households, and 17,647 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,002.0 persons per square mile . There were 25,258 housing units at an average density of 767.4 per square mile...

55441 along with the Association Free Lutheran Bible School and Seminary

Association Free Lutheran Bible School and Seminary

Association Free Lutheran Bible School and the Association of Free Lutheran Theological Seminary are located in Plymouth, Minnesota at the national offices of the Association of Free Lutheran Congregations.-Bible School:...

Committees and corporations

The AFLC has five corporations that are sponsored by the AFLC to direct their common endeavors: the Coordinating Committee, the Schools Corporation, the Missions Corporation, the AFLC Foundation and the Association Retreat Center (ARC), located near Osceola, Wisconsin

Osceola, Wisconsin

Osceola is a village in Polk County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,421 at the 2000 census. The village is located mostly within the Town of Osceola.The downtown features Cascade Falls, a waterfall with a crest, located on Osceola Creek....

. There are two auxiliary corporations in the AFLC: the Women's Missionary Federation (WMF) and Free Lutheran Youth (FLY).

Coordinating Committee

The coordinating committee consists of seven members from the congregations currently part of the AFLC. The main duties of the coordinating committee includes monitoring the pastoral roster, monitoring the congregational roster, and providing guidance for the other ministries of the AFLC, including youth, evangalism, parish education, etc.

Schools Corporation

The schools corporation's main delegation is the election of the board of trustees, which governs the seminary and Bible school

Association Free Lutheran Bible School and Seminary

. This corporation consists of fifty members from the congregations of the AFLC.

Association Free Lutheran Bible School

The AFLC leaders came to the consensus to create a Lutheran Bible School patterned after the fundamental teachings of the Lutheran Bible Institute founded in 1919. The school was opened in 1966 with 13 students, but grew to 35 the next year. By the 1990s, the AFLBS

Association Free Lutheran Bible School and Seminary

was averaging 105 students. Today there are approximately 200 students attending the school.

Missions Corporation

The missions corporation consists of one hundred members of the congregations of the AFLC, and elects from itself a World Missions Committee and a Home Missions Committee, which are involved in the outreach of the AFLC into the United States and several other countries.

Other Committees/Corporations

The Association Retreat Center (ARC) is a separate organization of the AFLC near Osceola, Wisconsin

Osceola, Wisconsin

that serves as a retreat center for various activities within the AFLC.

The Women's Missionary Federation (WMF) serves the women of the churches with Bible

Bible

The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...

studies, fellowship, and has an emphasis on missionary services.

The Free Lutheran Youth (FLY), formerly known as the Luther League Federation, is a youth organization dealing with youth ministry.

Doctrine

The AFLC accept and believe in the Holy Bible as the complete written Word of God, preserved by the Holy Spirit for salvation and instruction. The AFLC accepts the ancient ecumenical symbols, namely, the Apostles, the Nicene

Nicene Creed

The Nicene Creed is the creed or profession of faith that is most widely used in Christian liturgy. It is called Nicene because, in its original form, it was adopted in the city of Nicaea by the first ecumenical council, which met there in the year 325.The Nicene Creed has been normative to the...

, and the Athanasian Creed

Athanasian Creed

The Athanasian Creed is a Christian statement of belief, focusing on Trinitarian doctrine and Christology. The Latin name of the creed, Quicumque vult, is taken from the opening words, "Whosoever wishes." The Athanasian Creed has been used by Christian churches since the sixth century...

s; Luther's Small Catechism

Luther's Small Catechism

Luther's Small Catechism was written by Martin Luther and published in 1529 for the training of children. Luther's Small Catechism reviews The Ten Commandments, The Apostles' Creed, The Lord's Prayer, The Sacrament of Holy Baptism, The Office of the Keys & Confession, and The Sacrament of the...

and the unaltered Augsburg Confession

Augsburg Confession

The Augsburg Confession, also known as the "Augustana" from its Latin name, Confessio Augustana, is the primary confession of faith of the Lutheran Church and one of the most important documents of the Lutheran reformation...

as the true expression of the Christian faith and life.

Five principal reasons for the formation of the AFLC:

Recognizes the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...

as the inspired and inerrant authority in all matters of faith and life.
Recognizes that the teaching and preaching of God's Word is the main task of the Church, to be conducted in such a way that the saints are built up and unbelievers see their need for salvation.
Believes that the congregation is the right form of the Kingdom of God on earth, with no authority above it but the Word and the Spirit of God;
Believes that Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

unity is a spiritual concept, not a man-made organization such as the World Council of Churches
World Council of Churches
The World Council of Churches is a worldwide fellowship of 349 global, regional and sub-regional, national and local churches seeking unity, a common witness and Christian service. It is a Christian ecumenical organization that is based in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland...

or the National Council of Churches
National Council of Churches
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA is an ecumenical partnership of 37 Christian faith groups in the United States. Its member denominations, churches, conventions, and archdioceses include Mainline Protestant, Orthodox, African American, Evangelical, and historic peace...

.
Believes that Christians
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...

are called to be a salt and light, separated from the ways of the world, and that this difference is to be reflected in the life of the congregation as well as in the institutions of the church body.

The AFLC allows open communion

Open communion

Open communion is the practice of Christian churches that allow individuals other than members of that church to receive Holy Communion...

and women's suffrage

Women's suffrage

Women's suffrage or woman suffrage is the right of women to vote and to run for office. The expression is also used for the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending these rights to women and without any restrictions or qualifications such as property ownership, payment of tax, or...

in congregational voting.

Publications

The official publication of the AFLC is "The Lutheran Ambassador", with twelve issues per year devoted to Bible-centered articles and news of the churches. Ambassador Publications is the parish education department of the AFLC.

The "Ambassador Hymnal" is the hymnal

Hymnal

Hymnal or hymnary or hymnbook is a collection of hymns, i.e. religious songs, usually in the form of a book. The earliest hand-written hymnals are known since Middle Ages in the context of European Christianity...

published by the AFLC, which contains over 600 hymns as well as selected order of church services and responsive Bible

Bible

readings.

Presidents of the AFLC

Name	Term
John P. Strand	1962-1978
Richard Snipstead	1978-1992
Robert L. Lee	1992-2007
Elden K. Nelson	2007-

Annual Conferences

The AFLC schedules each year a conference to share reports of congregations and other various ministries. The main reason for these conferences is spiritual edification, as the schedules include prayer times, worship hours, and business meetings together. It is here that suggestions to changes are presented and discussed. It is also here that the elections for positions in committees/corporations are made.

1963 Fargo, North Dakota
1964 Valley City, North Dakota
1965 Minneapolis, Minnesota
1966 Thief River Falls, Minnesota
1967 Fargo, North Dakota
1968 Cloquet, Minnesota
1969 Minneapolis, Minnesota
1970 Valley City, North Dakota
1971 Cloquet, Minnesota
1972 Minneapolis, Minnesota
1973 Ferndale, Washington
1974 Thief River Falls, Minnesota
1975 Minneapolis, Minnesota
1976 Hancock, Minnesota
1977 Fargo, North Dakota
1978 Minneapolis, Minnesota
1979 Whitefish, Montana

1980 Valley City, North Dakota
1981 Minneapolis, Minnesota
1982 Dickinson, North Dakota
1983 Osceola, Wisconsin
1984 Minneapolis, Minnesota
1985 Osceola, Wisconsin
1986 Warm Beach, Washington
1987 Thief River Falls, Minnesota
1988 DeKalb, Illinois
1989 Minot, North Dakota
1990 Bloomington, Minnesota
1991 Osceola, Wisconsin
1992 Osceola, Wisconsin
1993 DeKalb, Illinois
1994 Valley City, North Dakota
1995 Osceola, Wisconsin
1996 Stanwood, Washington

1997 Thief River Falls, Minnesota
1998 Red Wing, Minnesota
1999 Fergus Falls, Minnesota
2000 Osceola, Wisconsin
2001 Williston, North Dakota
2002 El Campo, Texas
2003 Brookings, South Dakota
2004 Osceola, Wisconsin
2005 Valley City, North Dakota
2006 Stanwood, Washington
2007 Sioux Falls, South Dakota
2008 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
2009 Fergus Falls, Minnesota
2010 Plymouth, Minnesota
2011 Sioux Falls, South Dakota

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.