The or KELC is a Lutheran church in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. It currently has approximately 2,600

baptized Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...

members in 29 congregations nationwide.Lutheran World Federation
Member Churches
- Kinki Evangelical Lutheran Church The current president is the Rev Shigeo Sueoka.

History

The KELC traces its history to the eviction of foreign Christian missionaries from mainland China in the 1950s after the establishment of the People's Republic of China. In 1951, missionaries from the

Norwegian Missionary Society The Norwegian Missionary Society or the Norwegian Mission Society ( no, Det Norske Misjonsselskap, NMS) is the first and oldest missionary organization in Norway. It was started by a group of approximately 180 Stavanger residents in August 1842, ...

(NMS) and the

Evangelical Lutheran Free Church of Norway The Evangelical Lutheran Free Church, or the Free Church as it is commonly known ( no, Den Evangelisk Lutherske Frikirke, shortened ''Frikirken''), is a nationwide Lutheran church in Norway, consisting of 83 congregations and 21,817 baptised memb ...

(LFCN) established a mission in Japan, primarily in the Kinki region. On November 3, 1961, 14 congregations planted by the NMS and LFCN organised themselves as the KELC. In 1976, the KELC was accepted as a full member of the Lutheran World Federation. The KELC was officially recognized as a religious body in 1980.

Structure and organization

Congregations by prefectures

Hyōgo Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 () and has a geographic area of . Hyōgo Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the east, Osaka Prefecture to the southeast, an ...

:Congregations in the cities of Amagasaki, Kawanishi,

Kobe Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whic ...

, Sanda and Takarazuka *

Osaka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 () and has a geographic area of . Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture ...

:Congregations in the cities of Hannan, Izumisano, Osaka, Sakai, and Yao * Wakayama Prefecture :Congregations in the cities of Kainan, and Wakayama as well as the town of

Misato Misato may refer to: Places *Misato, Akita, a town in Akita Prefecture *Misato, Gunma, a town in Gunma Prefecture *Misato, Kumamoto, a town in Kumamoto Prefecture *Misato, Mie, a village in Mie Prefecture *Misato, Miyagi, a town in Miyagi Prefectur ...

* Nara Prefecture :Congregations in the cities of Nara, Sakurai and Kashihara * Mie Prefecture :Congregations in the cities of Shima, and Tsu

Ministries

Some KELC local congregations operate kindergartens and nursery schools. The KELC also sponsors the Kobe Lutheran Theological Seminary together with the West Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church.

Affiliations & cooperation

The work of Lutheran missionaries resulted in the establishment of five major Lutheran church bodies and a number of smaller ones, with a total membership of approximately 30,000. The largest of these, with about 20,000 members, is the

Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church The or JELC is a Lutheran church in Japan. It currently has approximately 21,990 Lutheranism#Baptism, baptized members in 122 congregations nationwide. The current president of the JELC is the Rev Sumiyuki Watanabe. History Early history The beg ...

. Other Lutheran churches include the

Japan Lutheran Church The or NRK (based on its Romaji initials) is a confessional Lutheran denomination in Japan. It currently has approximately 766 baptized members in 35 congregations nationwide. The current chairman of the NRK is Rev. Shin SHIMIZU. History ...

, the West Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church, the Japan Lutheran Brethren Church, the Lutheran Evangelical Christian Church and the

Fellowship Deaconry Evangelical Church A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher educatio ...

(Marburger Mission). Cooperation among the various Lutheran churches in Japan is common, particularly with respect to outreach ministries. Church planting plans are mutually shared in order to avoid duplications. Most of the Lutheran churches have also joined together to form the , which publishes Christian books and materials; one notable endeavor being in the publication of a common Lutheran hymnal.Okinawa Lutheran Church
Lutheran Mission in Japan
/ref> The KELC is also a full member of the Lutheran World Federation and is cooperates with the

and the Evangelical Lutheran Free Church of Norway Japan Mission.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Lutheranism in Japan

Christian organizations established in 1951 Lutheran denominations established in the 20th century 1951 establishments in Japan