Moravian Church in North America and the ELCA Celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Full Communion Partnership

Winston-Salem, North Carolina – The Moravian Church in North America and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will celebrate ten years of partnership on January 27, 2010. The event, being held at the Augsburg Lutheran Church, 845 West 5th Street, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, will begin at 5:30 PM and include fellowship, informative program, and at 7:30 PM a worship service will be held with a band prelude. The theme for the evening is “Following our Shepherd – Jesus Still Lead On.”

This evening of celebration is being held to honor the ministry that has occurred in the last decade and explore where God is leading Lutherans and Moravians together in the years ahead. The event is open to all. The event is being attended by leaders and members of both denominations.

Approximately a decade ago, following the affirmative vote in 1998 of both the Southern and Northern Provinces of the Moravian Church (the two governing bodies of the Moravian Church in North America), the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America also voted in 1999 to approve the full communion proposal between the two church bodies. On January 27, 2000 the first worship service of full communion was held in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

This partnership is reflective of denominations around the world seeking deeper relationships with one another. Full Communion promotes visible Christian unity in ecumenical work around the world. Denominations reach consensus while also respecting important differences. In this way, Lutherans and Moravians have developed a relationship based on a common confessing of the Christian faith and a mutual recognition of baptism and sharing of the Lord’s Supper. The ELCA and Moravian pursue joint-worship together, listen to one another in decision-making, are able to exchange clergy, and are committed to evangelism, witness, and service in local communities and in the world.

The Moravian Church, which celebrated its 550th anniversary in 2007, is one of the oldest Protestant denominations, dating back to 1457 in Europe and first coming to America in 1735. Moravians have a strong tradition of ecumenical work and are best known for their missionary work and rich musical heritage. The Moravian Church in North America is comprised of the Northern and Southern Provinces. The Northern Province has around 23,000 members in 95 congregations in 13 states in the U.S. and two Canadian provinces. The Southern Province includes nearly 17,000 members in 58 congregations, which are located primarily throughout the Southeast. The worldwide Moravian Church consists of 19 provinces with nearly 795,000 members, half of which live in Africa.

Local press and media are invited to the event for photo and reporting opportunities. For more information contact Becky Honeycutt at 1.888.725.5811 or at bhoneycutt@mcsp.org.