Church Affiliation

St. Luke is a member congregation of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. The word synod comes from two Greek words: syn meaning "a meeting or assembly," and hodos, meaning a"way or journey."  We describe ourselves as congregations "walking together," because our congregations all confess and practice the same teachings of God's Word.  As a Synod we combine our strengths and resources to do things that individual congregations can't do.  We send missionaries to other countries, maintain colleges and seminaries, provide loan funds for building churches, and operate a health and retirement system for full-time church workers.

We are people of the Bible. The Bible is our Sacred Scriptures, the Word of God. We treasure God’s Word because it teaches us about eternal life through Jesus Christ. The Word is Gospel (“good news”) because it assures us of God’s love and faithfulness. It inspires us to tell others. It moves us to help people in need. . . (learn more about the Bible). 

We are a teaching church. Because God’s Word is so important, we emphasize Christian nurture. We offer Sunday school for children, youth, and adults and other Bible study classes and ministries to help people of all ages learn and apply the Word in their daily lives.

Our Missouri Synod congregations operate the largest Protestant school system in the United States. We have 1,000 preschools and day-care centers, 998 elementary schools, and 64 high schools.

Our 10 colleges prepare professional church workers and offer Christian training for Christian laity. Two seminaries provide education beyond the bachelor level to prepare pastors of our congregations