The three churches agreed to unite in 1982. They formed a 70-member Commission for a New Lutheran Church, which planned the merger. The plan was approved by church conventions in 1986, and the ELCA constituting convention was held April 30-May 3, 1987, with the church actually beginning operations on January 1, 1988.

The ELCA meets in assembly every two years; at its 2001 Churchwide Assembly it elected its third bishop, The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, who will be eligible for re-election at the 2007 Churchwide Assembly.

MEMBERS:

• Baptized Members: 5,038,006
  (down 61,871 from previous year)
• Communing and Contributing Members: 2,394,585
• Members of Color or Whose Primary Language is Other Than English: 128,135  (2.6 percent)
  Included are African-Americans, 53,564; Latinos, 39,249; Asians and Pacific Islanders, 22,898; American Indian and Alaska Native People, 7,273; other, 15,151
• Average Worship Attendance Each Week: 1,537,043 (30.5 percent).
• Congregations: 10,721
• Synods: 65 in nine geographic regions

LEADERS:

• Clergy: 17,703 (2,760 female; 494 people of color)
• Associates in Ministry: 1,193
  (955 female, 238 male; 15 people of color)
• Diaconal Ministers: 72
• Deaconesses: 67
• Missionaries: approx. 300 adult missionaries, of which some 78 self-funded volunteers, serving in over 50 countries
• Campus Pastors and Ministries: 195 campus ministry sites supported by synod and/or churchwide funds
• Federal Chaplains: Approximately 800 (125 active duty armed forces, 180 reservists, 390 retired military, 50 Veterans Affairs, 44 Civil Air Patrol, 7 Federal Bureau of Prisons).
• Chaplaincy, Counseling and Clinical Education: Approximately 800 ordained and lay rostered people serving in 12 specialized ministries such as correctional, health care, CPE, substance abuse, police, etc.

INSTITUTIONS:

• Theological Seminaries and Deaconess Community:
  8 seminaries
  1 deaconess community
• Colleges and Universities: 28
• Schools:
  20 high schools
    240 elementary schools
    1,775 early childhood programs
• Social Service Institutions:
  280 parent corporations with many more subsidiaries, providing service in 3,000 communities
• Camps and Retreat Centers: 145, serving 450,000 yearly
  (summer programs 175,000, retreats and conferences 275,000)

FINANCES:

• ELCA Churchwide Current Fund Budget:
  2002 Revenue $82,923,681
  2002 Expense $82,077,501
  2003 Expenditure Authorization $83,574,000
  2004 Expenditure Authorization $81,505,000
• ELCA World Hunger Fund:
  2002 Income $16,012,261
  2003 Budget $16,000,000
  2004 Budget $16,250,000
• Total 2002 Income of Congregations: $2,493,316,925
• Average Giving Per Confirmed Member:
  $534.24 (Regular $447.12; Designated: $87.12)