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Topic - Evangelical Lutheran Church In America

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is a mainline Protestant denomination headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA officially came into existence on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three churches and currently has about 4,633,887 baptized members. It is the seventh-largest religious body and the largest Lutheran denomination in the United States. The next two largest Lutheran denominations are the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod (with approximately 2.41 million members) and the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (with approximately 390,000 members). There are also many smaller Lutheran church bodies in the United States. - Source: Wikipedia

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** FILE ** Evangelical Lutheran Church in America voting members (from left) Orinda Hawkins-Brinkley, Diane Yeager, Marj Ellis and Steven Schnittke, along with others, pray during the church's General Assembly in Minneapolis in 2009, at which the denomination approved resolutions in support of gays.

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The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America also affirms women in ministry, and last month ordained a transgender woman, Bishop Megan Rohrer of its Sierra Pacific Synod, as the nation’s first transgender bishop.

Baptist missions group tells new churches to nix women preachers →

One observer outside the ELCA said Bishop Rohrer’s installation may not attract the unchurched, however welcoming the denomination advertises itself as being.

First transgender bishop hopes election promotes 'safe lives' for peers →