WELS and LCMS

I have been reading your site for this past week looking for why WELS and LCMS are different and cannot be in fellowship together. We believe the same things. The only thing I can find different is that WELS determined a long time ago that they shouldn't be in fellowship with LCMS over the understanding of fellowship, and LCMS accepted ALC into their fellowship. But both WELS and LCMS believe that we don't take Communion, worship, or pray with those that don't believe as we do. You can see my confusion. I do not see the difference between our synods except that LCMS accepts WELS ,but WELS does not accept LCMS. Our pastor actually told me he thought we were in fellowship together. Can a WELS person be married in an LCMS church or vice versa?

Differences between the synods exist in the areas of church and ministry, fellowship, and the roles of men and women. They are well documented on this web site. (Your statement about the synods’ acceptance of one another is inaccurate.)

You may or may not be aware that representatives from WELS, LCMS and ELS (Evangelical Lutheran Synod) have met annually since 2012 to better understand each other’s doctrinal positions.

There is nothing to prohibit the weddings referenced in your question.