About WELS

ABOUT WELS

WHAT WE BELIEVE

WHO WE ARE

OFFICIAL REPORTS

HISTORY

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Ephesians 2:8-10

Learn about WELS

WELS is a group of more than 340,000 men, women, and children in nearly 1,300 congregations across the United States and Canada united by a common faith in Christ’s saving love. We are committed to a common calling—encouraging each other in our faith and sharing God’s gift of a Savior with the rest of the world.

335,648

People

1,243

Congregations

Mission Statement: The Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod exists to give all glory to God by upholding, defending, and proclaiming the truth of the Holy Scriptures as articulated in the Lutheran Confessions, and by providing a means for congregations and their members to extend the reach of their God-given mission of proclaiming the gospel in Word and sacrament through joint mission efforts at home and abroad, the training of called workers, and coordination of gospel applications to encourage spiritually healthy called workers in spiritually healthy congregations and schools.

What’s in a name?

Our acronym stands for the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod. We admit, it’s a mouthful. But each word is significant.

Wisconsin is where three pastors serving German immigrants joined together in a common fellowship more than 150 years ago. Today, it is still where more than half of our membership calls home—but now we have congregations spread all across North America and missions spanning the globe.

Evangelical is a Greek word. Literally translated it means “gospel oriented.” It is an apt description, for the gospel of Jesus Christ is at the core of all we believe and proclaim.

Lutheran refers to those who adhere to the teachings of Martin Luther, the leader of the Reformation in Germany. God used Luther to point out the errors of the church some 500 years ago—that salvation was something that must be earned. It was Luther who once again made clear that salvation is received through faith in Jesus as a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8,9).

Synod literally translated means “walking together.” As a fellowship of Christians, we walk together as individuals and congregations sharing a common bond of faith in Jesus articulated in the Lutheran Confessions.

We invite you to walk with us.

WELS’ Extended Family

WELS is united in fellowship, meaning one in doctrine, with the Evangelical Lutheran Synod in the U.S. and with more than 30 other Lutheran church bodies around the world as a member of the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference.

More about the Evangelical Lutheran Synod

More about the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference