The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL) is a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

denomination that has congregations in

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

and State of Palestine. First recognized as an autonomous religious community by

King Hussein Hussein bin Talal ( ar, الحسين بن طلال, ''Al-Ḥusayn ibn Ṭalāl''; 14 November 1935 – 7 February 1999) was King of Jordan from 11 August 1952 until his death in 1999. As a member of the Hashemite dynasty, the royal family o ...

in 1959,Evangelical Lutheran Church of Jordan and the Holy Land
History and Mission
the church currently has 2,500 members in six congregations. The current

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

is Sani Ibrahim Azar,Evangelical Lutheran Church of Jordan and the Holy Land
The Bishop
/ref> who was elected in 2017, but consecrated as bishop on 14 January 2018. The bishop emeritus,

Munib Younan Munib Younan ( ar, منيب يونان, translit=Munīb Yūnān; born 18 September 1950 in Jerusalem) is a Palestinian Bishop Emeritus of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL). From January 1998 to January 2018 he w ...

, retains an official role. Younan is the former President of the

Lutheran World Federation The Lutheran World Federation (LWF; german: Lutherischer Weltbund) is a global communion of national and regional Lutheran denominations headquartered in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland. The federation was founded in the Swedish ...

(2010–2017), and remains a member of the ELCJHL Council.

History

Early history

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land has its origins in the arrival of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

missionaries to

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

in the mid 19th century. Protestant missions had begun in the early 19th century, but Protestant Christians had no legal protection in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

, unlike the Roman Catholics and

Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church ( Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also cal ...

, who were legally

protected Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although th ...

by treaty. In 1840, the

King of Prussia The monarchs of Prussia were members of the House of Hohenzollern who were the hereditary rulers of the former German state of Prussia from its founding in 1525 as the Duchy of Prussia. The Duchy had evolved out of the Teutonic Order, a Roman C ...

Frederick William IV Frederick William IV (german: Friedrich Wilhelm IV.; 15 October 17952 January 1861), the eldest son and successor of Frederick William III of Prussia, reigned as King of Prussia from 7 June 1840 to his death on 2 January 1861. Also referred to ...

sent his diplomat, Christian von Bunsen to present a proposal to

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

for the establishment of a joint Protestant

bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

under the protection of both Prussia and the United Kingdom. An agreement was reached to establish a joint bishopric of the Anglican

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

and the

Evangelical Church in Prussia The Prussian Union of Churches (known under multiple other names) was a major Protestant church body which emerged in 1817 from a series of decrees by Frederick William III of Prussia that united both Lutheran and Reformed denominations in Pru ...

, comprising

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

and

united Protestant A united church, also called a uniting church, is a church formed from the merger or other form of church union of two or more different Protestant Christian denominations. Historically, unions of Protestant churches were enforced by the state ...

congregations, known as the Anglican-German Bishopric in Jerusalem and this was facilitated by the passing of the

Bishops in Foreign Countries Act 1841 The Bishops in Foreign Countries Act 1841 (5 Vict., c. 6) is an Act of Parliament passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom to enable the United Church of England and Ireland to create bishops overseas. The Act authorised the consecration o ...

. The first Bishop was a Jewish convert, Michael Solomon Alexander, who arrived in 1842.

Early Lutheran mission

In 1851,

Theodor Fliedner Theodor Fliedner (21 January 18004 October 1864) was a German Lutheran minister and founder of Lutheran deaconess training. In 1836, he founded Kaiserswerther Diakonie, a hospital and deaconess training center. Together with his wives Friederik ...

was invited to bring four deaconesses to begin a hospital and the first formal school for girls in the

Levant The Levant () is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia. In its narrowest sense, which is in use today in archaeology and other cultural contexts, it is ...

, Talitha Kumi, was set up in Jerusalem. In 1860, Johann Ludwig Schneller set up the Syrian Orphanage in Jerusalem for children who were made homeless or orphaned by

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

in the region. A provisional chapel for the use of the Prussian Protestants was erected in 1871 on land granted by Sultan Abdülaziz in the

Muristan The Muristan ( he, מוריסטן, ar, مورستان) is a complex of streets and shops in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. The site was the location of the first Bimaristan (from Persian ''Bimārestān'' بیمارستان ...

area of Jerusalem. Due to political and theological differences, the joint bishopric was finally abolished in 1886 and the Evangelical mission continued work independently of the Anglicans. Lutherans focused primarily on social work and education while the Anglicans focused on evangelism. In 1898, the newly constructed Church of the Redeemer was officiated by

Kaiser Wilhelm II , house = Hohenzollern , father = Frederick III, German Emperor , mother = Victoria, Princess Royal , religion = Lutheranism (Prussian United) , signature = Wilhelm II, German Emperor Signature-.svg Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor ...

and served as the headquarters of the Evangelical mission.

Autonomy and independence

After the Second World War the World Lutheran Federation (WLF) took care of the remnants of the German-initiated Evangelical missions, combining Lutheran, Calvinist and united Protestant efforts. Due to the influence of the WLF the Lutheran aspect prevailed. In 1947, the Lutheran mission was granted autonomy from the

Evangelical Church in Germany The Evangelical Church in Germany (german: Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland, abbreviated EKD) is a federation of twenty Lutheran, Reformed (Calvinist) and United (e.g. Prussian Union) Protestant regional churches and denominations in German ...

and in 1959 was recognised as an autonomous religious community by

. The church was then officially named the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan (ELCJ). The ELCJ had by then grown beyond Jerusalem and had set up congregations in Ramallah and Amman to serve Lutheran Palestinians who were refugees of the

Arab–Israeli conflict The Arab–Israeli conflict is an ongoing intercommunal phenomenon involving political tension, military conflicts, and other disputes between Arab countries and Israel, which escalated during the 20th century, but had mostly faded out by the ...

. In 1974, the ELCJ joined the WLF and in 1979 the first Palestinian bishop, Daoud Haddad, was elected to lead the church. In 2005, the Synod of the ELCJ decided to rename the church to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land to more accurately reflect the work and ministry of the church that spans Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

Structure

Bishop

The ELCJHL holds

episcopal polity An episcopal polity is a hierarchical form of church governance ("ecclesiastical polity") in which the chief local authorities are called bishops. (The word "bishop" derives, via the British Latin and Vulgar Latin term ''*ebiscopus''/''*b ...

. The Bishop leads the central church structures and is the chief pastor. Bishops are consecrated within the historic Apostolic succession. * 1979–1986: Daoud Haddad * 1986–1997: Naim Nassar * 1998–2018:

* 2018–present: Sanid Ibrahim Zanar

Congregations

At present, there are 6 congregations of the ELCJHL: * Evangelical

Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, Jerusalem The Lutheran Church of the Redeemer ( he, כנסיית הגואל, ar, الكنيسة اللوثرية في القدس, german: Erlöserkirche) is the second Protestant church in Jerusalem (the first being Christ Church near Jaffa Gate). It is ...

* Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church,

Bethlehem Bethlehem (; ar, بيت لحم ; he, בֵּית לֶחֶם '' '') is a city in the central West Bank, Palestine, about south of Jerusalem. Its population is approximately 25,000,Amara, 1999p. 18.Brynen, 2000p. 202. and it is the capital o ...

* Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hope, Ramallah * Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Reformation, Beit Jala * Evangelical Lutheran Church,

Beit Sahour Beit Sahour or Beit Sahur ( ar, بيت ساحور pronounced ; Palestine grid 170/123) is a Palestinian town east of Bethlehem, in the Bethlehem Governorate of the State of Palestine. The city is under the administration of the Palestinian Nation ...

* Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd, Amman

Schools and educational programs

The ELCJHL runs four

primary schools A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...

and other educational projects that serve the broader educational needs of the Palestinian people as a whole. The four primary schools are: * Dar al-Kalima Evangelical Lutheran School, Bethlehem * The Evangelical Lutheran School, Beit Sahour * The Evangelical Lutheran School of Hope, Ramallah *

Talitha Kumi Evangelical Lutheran School Talitha Kumi - German Evangelical Lutheran School ( ar, طاليثا قومي), Near East School of Theology The Near East School of Theology (NEST), located in Beirut, Lebanon, is an interdenominational Reformed Protestant theological seminary serving Christian churches of the Middle East and North Africa, and also educates international students who ...

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

Affiliations

The ELCJHL participates actively in ecumenical relationships through: * Middle East Council of Churches * Fellowship of Middle East Evangelical Churches *

World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most ju ...

Council of Religious Institutions in the Holy Land A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...

The ELCJHL also works in partnership with:Evangelical Lutheran Church of Jordan and the Holy Land
International Partners
* Evangelical Lutheran Church in America *

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria (german: Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Bayern) is a Lutheran member church of the Evangelical Church in Germany in the German state of Bavaria. The seat of the church is in Munich. The '' Landesbischo ...

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland ( fi, Suomen evankelis-luterilainen kirkko; sv, Evangelisk-lutherska kyrkan i Finland) is a national church of Finland. It is part of the Lutheran branch of Christianity. The church has a legal positio ...

* Church of Norway *

Church of Sweden The Church of Sweden ( sv, Svenska kyrkan) is an Evangelical Lutheran national church in Sweden. A former state church, headquartered in Uppsala, with around 5.6 million members at year end 2021, it is the largest Christian denomination in Sw ...

References

External links

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Jordan and the Holy Land
{{Authority control Protestantism in Jordan Lutheranism in Israel Lutheranism in the State of Palestine

Evangelical denominations in Asia