Congo (DRC) Summary Page

LCMS World Mission began supporting mission work in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in 1984. The LCMS works with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Congo Manienga-Kivu Diocese, which has nearly 20,000 members served by 20 pastors and 54 evangelists, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of East Congo, which has 10,000 members served by nine pastors.

Currently, Lutheran congregations receive support for the theological education of their pastors by the LCMS’ support of the Lutheran Center for Theological Studies in Dapaong, Togo, which serves the French-speaking West African Lutheran church bodies of seven countries: Togo, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Benin, Burkina Faso, Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

LCMS World Relief and Human Care currently assists families displaced by conflict in eastern Congo with food and cooking supplies, blankets and clothing.

There are several Lutheran church bodies in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Several have asked for assistance in better understanding their confessional Lutheran identity. These churches exist in the context of war and violence. Relationships with the LCMS are new and emerging, but as a part of God’s mission in Africa, Lutherans in the Congo are spreading God’s Word in places that foreign missionaries cannot go.

The Communaute Evangelique Lutherienne au Congo-Est (CELCE), founded in 1977, is one of the emerging Lutheran churches. It has 9,700 members served through eight parishes and preaching stations. There is one pastor ordained by a bishop from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania. This pastor has trained nine others through mentoring.

The CELCE is an emerging Lutheran church body which operates in difficult and violent contexts. The pastors in this church are trained by mentoring within the church body. Your support will allow two men to attend the Lutheran Center for Theological Studies (CLET) in Togo, providing for their travel and school expenses.

The Eglise Evangelique Confessionnelle au Congo (EELCCO) was officially recognized in 1991. It has an estimated 150 pastors, ten vicars and 25 evangelists. There are 17-20 seminarians training in various theological institutions. Total membership is an estimated 5,000 spread through approximately 100 parishes and preaching stations.

The Eglise Evangelique Lutherienne du Congo (EELCO) has five semi-autonomous dioceses. LCMS World Mission has initiated relationships in Eastern Congo with the EELCO Kivu-Maniema diocese, with central offices in Bukavu. This diocese has an estimated eight parishes and a membership of roughly 1,500 served by 10 pastors in a context of continual unrest caused by tribal tensions and warfare.

Emergency Assistance for Internally Displaced

The Eastern region of the DRC has been a conflict zone for more than a decade. The latest conflict started in July 2009 and resulted in a flood of displaced families who fled the atrocities of war to seek refuge in the larger, more secure cities. These families live in inhuman conditions, lacking adequate shelter, food, medical care or school fees for their children. The Lutheran Church, which is currently developing a relationship with LCMS missionaries in the area, would like help to provide food and other items for these displaced families. With a disaster grant from LCMS World Relief and Human Care, the church will provide food, blankets, clothing, cooking pots and plates for a family of five. Church members will assemble and distribute these kits.

For more information on mercy work in the LCMS, contact  us at 888-THE-LCMS (888-843-5267) or infocenter@lcms.org .