The United Lutheran Mission Association (ULMA) 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 reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

church organization in the United States.

History

The United Lutheran Mission Association was established at a meeting in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, on July 16, 2005. There, representatives of two congregations that were formerly members of the

Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod The Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod (LCMS), also known as the Missouri Synod, is a traditional, confessional Lutheran Christian denomination, denomination in the United States. With 1.8 million members, it is the second-largest Lutheranism, Luth ...

(LCMS) began work on establishing

Confessional Lutheran Confessional Lutheranism is a name used by Lutherans to designate those who believe in the doctrines taught in the ''Book of Concord'' of 1580 (the Lutheran confessional documents) in their entirety. Confessional Lutherans maintain that faithfulne ...

congregations in the United States. The current congregations of ULMA are: Pilgrim Lutheran Church in

Decatur, Illinois Decatur ( ) is the largest city and the county seat of Macon County in the U.S. state of Illinois, with a population of 70,522 as of the 2020 Census. The city was founded in 1829 and is situated along the Sangamon River and Lake Decatur in Ce ...

; Our Redeemer Lutheran Church in

Forsyth, Illinois Forsyth is a village in Macon County, Illinois, United States. Its population was 3,734 at the 2020 census, up from 3,490 in 2010. It is included in the Decatur, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area. History The settlement of Forsyth dates to ...

; Faith Lutheran Church in

Jackson, Michigan Jackson is the only city and county seat of Jackson County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 33,534, down from 36,316 at the 2000 census. Located along Interstate 94 and U.S. Route 127, it is approxi ...

; and Trinity Lutheran Church in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

. The member churches of ULMA are in altar and pulpit fellowship with the Australian Evangelical Lutheran Church.

Structure

There is no central office or centralized organizational structure other than the individual representatives from the member congregations who meet twice each year. ULMA recommends that pastors train at the

Walther Theological Seminary Walther Theological Seminary is an institution of theological higher education located in Decatur, Illinois, USA, that provides preparation of pastors for the congregations and missions of the United Lutheran Mission Association (ULMA) and Confess ...

. The ULMA has clergy trained in the seminaries of other Lutheran denominations such as the LCMS, the

Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod The Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS), also referred to simply as the Wisconsin Synod, is an American Confessional Lutheran denomination of Christianity. Characterized as theologically conservative, it was founded in 1850 in Milwaukee ...

, and the

Evangelical Lutheran Synod The Evangelical Lutheran Synod (ELS) is a US-based Protestant Christian denomination based in Mankato, Minnesota. It describes itself as a conservative, Confessional Lutheran body. The ELS has 130 congregations and has missions in Peru, Chile, ...

References

External links

* Lutheran denominations in North America Christian organizations established in 2005 Lutheran organizations established in the 21st century {{Lutheran-stub