The North American Lutheran Church (NALC) is a Christian denomination with congregations in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Formed in 2010, the NALC describes itself as the theological center of Lutheran belief and practice due to its position between the more liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the conservative Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS).
The history of its denomination, published on the NALC website, speaks of Lutheranism in North American coming about as early as 1619, and growing substantially during the 19th-century immigration of Lutherans from Northern Europe, most of whom settled in the Midwest of the United States. These German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, and Icelandic immigrants formed ethnic churches, seminaries, and colleges.
During the mid-20th century, many of these ethnic churches began to merge, forming the Lutheran Church in America (LCA) and the American Lutheran Church (ALC), but the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod did not merge.
The LCA and the ALC, along with an offshoot of the LCMS, continued this trend toward Lutheran unity by organizing a planning process in the 1980s to gather most North American Lutherans into one church, the ELCA.
As it turned out, the ELCA was besieged by demands from the left, including a quota system designed to bring about greater inclusion of those considered to be marginalized. Newly promoted feminists objected to retaining the name of the Holy Trinity as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as sexist and oppressive.
The ELCA did not give in to all of these demands, but the result was that its ministries became political and advocacy-oriented, according to the NALC account, and it progressively began moving to the left.
One significant breaking point, according to the NALC account, was when the ELCA decided to forego overseas missionary efforts, determining that these activities represented Western colonialism.
Another was when the ELCA repudiated the traditional Christian teaching on marriage and sexual ethics, and voted to approve the blessing of gay unions in 2009.
In response to these positions, Lutheran CORE (Coalition for Reform) was founded. Although CORE's original intent was not to form a new denomination, this changed due to feedback that it received during a large meeting in Fishers, Indiana. In August 2010, CORE announced the formation of the NALC.
The NALC denomination was formally constituted in Grove City, Ohio. Included were conservative members of the ELCA, as well as representatives of several conservative American and international denominations. Congregations joining the NALC elected their own leaders at the body's first annual meeting in August of 2011.
Headquartered in Hilliard, Ohio, the NALC has a lean structure that includes a full-time Bishop, General Secretary, Assistant to the Bishop for Ministry and Ecumenism, and Assistant to the Bishop for Missions, as well as a small group of administrators and secretaries.
The denomination operates a seminary, North American Lutheran Seminary, in conjunction with Trinity School for Ministry, which is a seminary of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA).
The NALC maintains a loose relationship with the ACNA and the LCMS, and has established dialogue with the LCMS, the Lutheran Church-Canada, the Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ, the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Church in North America, and the Eastern Orthodox Churches.
The NALC is organized into twenty-eight mission districts, covering most of North America, including Canada and the Caribbean. Each district has a Dean, which is an NALC pastor who provides pastoral care for other pastors and congregations within the district.
The NALC identifies itself a part of the one holy, catholic, and apostolic church, holding that the Scriptures are the highest standard for doctrine and practice, and accepts the ecumenical creeds and the Lutheran Confessions as true witnesses to the Word of God.
The NALC ordains men and women to the ordained ministries. Both men and women are eligible to serve in every office of the denomination and church. The NALC and Lutheran CORE endorsed an anti-abortion stance in 2012, and are associated with Lutherans for Life, the anti-abortion ministry of the LCMS. The denomination disapproves of homosexual relationships and same-sex marriage.
Topics related to the North American Lutheran Church denomination are appropriate for inclusion in this category, particularly its national, international, and district offices, colleges, and publications. Local NALC churches may be listed here if their websites include a substantial content representative of the denomination.
Recommended Resources
Each month, The Academy hosts a free webinar based on expressed needs by NALC leaders for NALC leaders, including such topics as culture shock, technology, leading effective change, spending time with people in the way that Jesus did, leadership burnout, and others. Included on the site are videos and other media resources, prayer requests, and a Good News section, which includes links to its virtual meetings, video archives, and other resources. Online reply forms are also available.
https://missions.nalcnetwork.com/the-academy/
Produced by Sola Publishing, Holy Families is an initiative of the North American Lutheran Church. The site includes daily devotionals, prayers, and educational resources for parents helping their children learn the Small Catechism. Also important are parent resources, with a variety of leadership articles, and children pages, intended to help families think about how their faith applies to everyday life. Print-friendly PDF activity sheets may be downloaded, with other resources.
https://www.holyfamilytime.com/
North American Lutheran Church
Founded in 2010, the NALC embraces four core values: Christ Centered, Mission Driven, Traditionally Grounded, and Congregational Focused. The denomination's website presented the history of the organization, the NALC constitution, an informational brochure, a video. The denomination's governance structure, its bishop and staff, and mission districts are defined, along with a calendar of upcoming events, and links to denominational partners, programs, contacts, and schedules.
https://thenalc.org/
North American Lutheran Church Teachable
Maintained by the North American Lutheran Church, this site offers online courses to assist NALC leaders to bring about the renewal of NALC congregations, developing and delivering resources that challenge leaders and open the church to the work of the Holy Spirit in ministry and mission. Two featured free courses are presented, which may change from time to time, but currently cover the Small and Rural Church and Life to Life Discipleship. Others require registration.
https://north-american-lutheran-church.teachable.com/
North American Lutheran Seminary
NALS is the seminary system of the North American Lutheran Church. With no buildings of its own, the seminary is housed at Trinity School for Ministry in Ambridge, Pennsylvania, although it has formed memoranda of understanding with various other institutions. Offering degree, diploma, and certificate programs, its site will bring prospective students from the beginning of the journey through the necessary steps to become enrolled. Its academic programs and contacts are included.
https://www.thenals.org/
Women of the North American Lutheran Church
Comprised of women and women's groups of NALC congregations, the Women of the NALC serves to connect NALC women together as a community, and to enhance the work of the local church. The Women's Council and other volunteers are called to assist members in Christian missions, the study of the Word, service to others, and fellowship among Christian women. Its mission, purpose, and motto are stated, and a calendar of events, a list of council members, a newsletter, and contacts are included.
https://www.wnalc.org/
