- Denominational Profile
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Denominational Profile
History
 |
merged intoUnited Lutheran Church in America (1918) |
merged intoLutheran Church in America (1962) |
| The 1918 merger of the General Synod, the General Council, and the General Synod of the South formed the United Lutheran Church in America, the largest Lutheran body through much of the twentieth century. |
Membership Data
| Year | Clergy | Churches | Members |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925 | 2,891 | 3,651 | 850,440 |
| 1929 | 3,147 | 3,701 | 924,393 |
| 1931 | - | - | 962,461 |
| 1933 | - | 3,698 | 1,443,780 |
| 1935 | 3,264 | 3,702 | 1,503,803 |
| 1937 | - | 3,713 | 1,541,841 |
| 1939 | - | 3,750 | 1,611,778 |
| 1941 | - | 4,046 | 1,709,290 |
| 1943 | - | 3,762 | 1,690,204 |
| 1946 | - | 3,798 | 1,778,943 |
| 1947 | - | - | 1,778,943 |
| 1949 | 3,830 | 4,134 | 1,954,342 |
| 1951 | 3,966 | 3,883 | 1,962,256 |
| 1953 | 3,971 | 3,991 | 2,061,004 |
| 1954 | 4,069 | 4,015 | 2,113,779 |
| 1955 | 4,154 | 4,050 | 2,175,726 |
| 1956 | 4,177 | 4,050 | 2,174,500 |
| 1957 | 4,376 | 4,171 | 2,293,902 |
| 1959 | 4,636 | 4,260 | 2,369,263 |
| 1960 | 4,761 | 4,308 | 2,385,224 |
| 1961 | 4,893 | 4,363 | 2,390,075 |
Data were taken from the National Council of Churches' Historic Archive CD and recent editions of the Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches. The National Council of Churches' data collection was discontinued after the 2012 Yearbook was published, and has been resumed by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies (ASARB). The tables and graphs will be updated when the new collection is available. See the Yearbook of Churches. Denomination descriptions provided by Dr. J. Gordon Melton, Director, Institute for the Study of American Religion (ISAR). [More information on data sources]
