The opening service for Bethany Lutheran Theological Seminary was conducted on September 24, 1946. Five students were enrolled during the first year. Norman A. Madson, Sr., the first dean of the seminary wrote, “Our own seminary is no longer merely a child of our fond desires, but has become a living reality.” The seminary shared…

During this centennial year, the ELS holds dear the fellowship which we have with the member church bodies throughout the world in the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference (CELC). The thirty-two church bodies consist of about 500,000 souls. The Rev. Gaylin Schmeling, of the ELS, currently serves as the president of the CELC, being elected at its latest…

The Synodical Conference came to a close after the ELS and the WELS separated from the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod over the doctrine of church fellowship. In 1993 efforts by the ELS and the WELS to form a new international organization of fellowship came to fruition in what today is known as the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran…

Since its reorganization in 1918, the ELS has participated in foreign mission work in fifteen nations. Today, in addition to the ongoing work in Peru, the ELS conducts mission work in Chile, India and South Korea. In 2008, through the acquisition of Thoughts of Faith, Inc., a church-related organization founded in 1979, the synod helps…