Evangelical Lutherans in Mission

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Evangelical Lutherans in Mission (ELIM) was a moderate caucus within the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod (LCMS). It was formed in 1973 as an oppositional group following sweeping victories by the LCMS's conservative wing at the synod's 1973 convention in New Orleans. ELIM gained further momentum in the wake of the 1974 Seminex controversy at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. The organization dedicated a large portion of its resources to supporting the break-away Seminex institution. For several years, ELIM published a newsletter entitled Missouri in Perspective, intended to provide moderate-to-liberal commentary on synodical affairs. Many of the leaders, ministers, and congregations that supported ELIM eventually left the LCMS in 1976 to form the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC), one of the three predecessor churches of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The organization survived as a cross-denominational group (composed of AELC and moderate LCMS members) until the ELCA came into existence in 1988.