The Lutheran World Federation is a global communion of national and regional Lutheran denominations headquartered in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland. The federation was founded in the Swedish city of Lund in the aftermath of the Second World War in 1947 to coordinate the activities of the many differing Lutheran churches. Since 1984, the member churches are in pulpit and altar fellowship, with common doctrine as the basis of membership and mission activity.
Christianity is a minority religion in Malaysia. In the 2020 census, 9.1% of the Malaysian population identified themselves as Christians. About two-thirds of Malaysia's Christian population lives in East Malaysia, in the states of Sabah and Sarawak. Adherents of Christianity represent a majority (50.1%) of the population in Sarawak, which is Malaysia's largest state by land area. Christianity is one of four major religions, including Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism, that have a freedom protected by the law in Malaysia based on diversity law especially in East Malaysia.
Confessional Lutheranism is a name used by Lutherans to designate those who believe in the doctrines taught in the Book of Concord of 1580 in their entirety. Confessional Lutherans maintain that faithfulness to the Book of Concord, which is a summary of the teachings found in Scripture, requires attention to how that faith is actually being preached, taught, and put into practice. Confessional Lutherans believe that this is a vital part of their identity as Lutherans.
The Ceylon Evangelical Lutheran Church (CELC) is a Lutheran body in Sri Lanka. It is a denomination of around 5000 members and has been in fellowship with the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod (LCMS) since 2001. It is a full member of the International Lutheran Council.
A free church is any Christian denomination that is intrinsically separate from government. A free church neither defines government policy, nor accept church theology or policy definitions from the government. A free church also does not seek or receive government endorsements or funding to carry out its work. The term is only relevant in countries with established state churches. Notwithstanding that the description "free" has no inherent doctrinal or polity overtones. An individual belonging to a free church is known as a free churchperson or, historically, free churchman. In Scandinavia, free churchpersons would include Protestant Christians who are not communicants of the majority national church, such as the Lutheran Church of Sweden. In England, where the Church of England was the established church, other Protestant denominations such as Presbyterians, Congregationalists, Baptists, the Plymouth Brethren, Methodists and Quakers are, accordingly, free churches. In Scotland it might be used regarding any Protestant denomination, including the Free Church of Scotland, the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland, the Reformed Presbyterian Church of Scotland etc, in distinction to the established Church of Scotland.
The Methodist Church in Singapore (MCS) is the church that Methodists in Singapore belong to. The Church has 46 churches island-wide with around 42,000 members, and is the largest mainline Protestant denomination in Singapore. Its current bishop and head of the Church is Bishop Dr Gordon Wong, who was elected at the 12th Session of the General Conference on 7 September 2020.
The Methodist Church in Malaysia is a body within the Methodist tradition in Malaysia. With approximately 200,000 members in more than 1034 congregations, it is the second largest Protestant denomination in the country after Sidang Injil Borneo. The current bishop of the Methodist Church in Malaysia is the Rev. Dr. T. Jeyakumar.
The Lutheran Church in Malaysia or LCM is one of four Lutheran bodies in Malaysia. It currently has 52 congregations nationwide with a total of 6,736 baptised members and is the largest entirely Lutheran body in the country. Until 2012, the body was known as the Lutheran Church in Malaysia and Singapore.
The Lutheran Church of China was a Lutheran church body in China from 1920 to 1951. It was established as a result of the consultations between the various Lutheran missionary bodies in China that was initiated during the China Centenary Missionary Conference held in Shanghai in 1907. The church survived as an organised body after the Chinese Communist Revolution but was absorbed into the state-backed Three-Self Patriotic Movement.
William Fitzjames Oldham was a British-American bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church and missionary bishop for South Asia. He distinguished himself as a missionary, an author and a church official. He was the founder of Anglo Chinese School in Singapore in 1886.
Evangelical Lutheran Conference & Ministerium of North America (ELCM) is a Lutheran church body based in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Currently the ELCM has active congregations in Pennsylvania, New York, and Virginia; as well as mission efforts across the United States. The ELCM has fellowship agreements with Lutheran bodies in Kenya and India. The ELCM sees itself as a centrist confessional Lutheran body. The body was founded in September 1999 at Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church, Duncansville, Pennsylvania. The current president of the ELCM General Conference is Rev. Roy A. Steward.
The Protestant Church in Sabah or PCS is one of the four Lutheran World Federation member churches in Malaysia. It currently has 322 congregations nationwide in 21 parishes with a total of 32,000 baptised members, making the PCS the second largest of the four Lutheran bodies in the country. Its membership is primarily made up of the indigenous peoples of Sabah, with the largest majority being from the Rungus tribe of the native ethnic Kadazan-Dusun population. The current president cum bishop of the Protestant Church in Sabah is Bishop Christopher Ogodong.
The Basel Christian Church of Malaysia or BCCM, formerly known as Borneo Basel Self Established Church, is one of the four Lutheran bodies in Malaysia. In 2009 BCCM had 112 congregations nationwide and 63,000 baptised members. In 2023, BCCM had 64,500 members.
The Taiwan Lutheran Church is one of the six Lutheran bodies in Taiwan. It currently has 80 mission sites nationwide with a total of 11,422 baptized members.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Malaysia or ELCM is one of the four Lutheran bodies in Malaysia. It currently has 21 congregations nationwide with a total of 3,650 members.
The Lutheran Church in Singapore (LCS) is a Lutheran denomination in Singapore. Constituted in 1997, it currently has approximately 2,834 members in 7 congregations nationwide.
The Methodist Church in Indonesia or GMI is a body within the Methodist tradition in Indonesia. GMI is jointly presided by two bishops, each representing the component annual conferences within the church.
The Tranquebar Mission was established in 1706 by two German missionaries from Halle namely, Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg and Heinrich Plütschau. Ziegenbalg and Plütschau responded to the appeal of King Frederick IV of Denmark to establish a mission for the natives, living in the Danish East India Company colony of Tranquebar. The mission was responsible for the printing and publication of the Bible in the Tamil language. In 2006, the 300 years anniversary of the mission was celebrated by the Tamil Evangelical Lutheran Church (TELC), with many international delegates in attendance. A monument to acknowledge 300 years of the mission was raised by the TELC on this occasion.
The Sabah Methodist Church is a body within the Methodist tradition in Malaysia. With approximately 200,000 members in more than 1034 congregations, it is the largest Protestant denomination in the country. The current bishop of the Methodist Church in Malaysia is the Rev Dr Ong Hwai Teik.
The Evangelical Lutheran Zion Church is a Protestant Lutheran church situated at Jalan Sultan Abdul Samad, Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was built to serve mainly Tamil labourers from South India many of whom were Lutherans.
