The SELC District is one of the 35 districts of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod (LCMS). It is one of the Synod's two non-geographical districts, along with the English District, and has its origins in the congregations of the former Slovak Evangelical Lutheran Church, which merged with the LCMS in 1971. The SELC had been formed in 1902 in Connellsville, Pennsylvania, and changed its name to the Synod of Evangelical Lutheran Churches in 1959 due to decreasing identification with the Slovak language and culture.
Spread over 11 U.S. states and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec, the great majority of congregations are in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions. The district now includes approximately 52 congregations and missions (the fewest of any LCMS district), subdivided into 4 circuits, as well as 13 preschools and 4 elementary schools. Baptized membership in district congregations is over approximately 17,000. [1]
SELC District offices are located in Cudahy, Wisconsin; the Rev. Carl Krueger, Jr. has been the district president since 1997, and was reelected to a fifth term in 2009. Delegates from each congregation meet in convention every three years to elect the district president, vice presidents, circuit counselors, a board of directors, and other officers; the last convention was held June 22-25, 2009, and the next will be held June 22-24, 2012 in Oviedo, FL.
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Oldest in Indiana: Saint Paul Lutheran Church, Whiting, Indiana, 1904
Only congregation in Missouri: Saint Lucas Lutheran Church, Boulevard Heights, St. Louis, Missouri, 1905
Oldest in Wisconsin: Saint John Lutheran Church, Cudahy, Wisconsin, 1906
Oldest in Virginia: Saint John the Baptist Lutheran Church, Emporia, Virginia, 1909
Oldest in Florida: Saint Luke's Lutheran Church, Oviedo, Florida, 1912
Only congregation in Quebec: Ascension Lutheran Church, Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension, Montreal, 1929
Oldest in Ontario: Saint Paul Lutheran Church, Corso Italia, Toronto, 1942
Largest in Pennsylvania: Saint Matthew Lutheran Church, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, 395
Largest in Indiana: Saint Paul Lutheran Church, Whiting, Indiana, 268
Largest in Connecticut: Saint Paul Lutheran Church, Greenwich, Connecticut, 201
Largest in Ontario: Our Saviour's Lutheran Church, Chatham, Ontario, 180
Largest in Virginia: Saint John the Baptist Lutheran Church, Emporia, Virginia, 148
Only congregation in Quebec: Ascension Lutheran Church, Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension, Montreal, 140
Only congregation in New York: Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Yonkers, New York, 114
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