Lutheran Denominations’ Political Diversity Highlighted in Congressional Analysis

Two weeks after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Republican U.S. Rep. Bill Shuster of Pennsylvania shared a sermon from his pastor during a House session. The pastor reminded the congregation that even in the shadow of terrorism, God remains good, in control, and still God. The message also included a preemptive defense of military action in response to the attacks.

Shuster, a conservative politician who later became one of Donald Trump’s earliest congressional endorsers in 2016, placed a sermon from his home congregation into the Congressional Record. The next year, he brought another pastor to the House chamber as a guest chaplain to open a session in prayer. These actions reflect the denomination’s presence in political and public life.

Like Shuster, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s church is part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Despite the word “evangelical” in its name, the ELCA is one of the “seven sisters” of the mainline Protestant world, known for its political and cultural influence. Since Vice President Kamala Harris selected Walz as her running mate, some conservative websites have attacked the ELCA and Walz’s local church, alleging they prove his radicalism and lack of true Christian faith.

The ELCA includes political diversity, with a slight majority of its members voting for Trump in 2020. However, attacks from rightwing sites continued. Even Christianity Today questioned Walz’s Lutheran identity, using a method akin to judging the Southern Baptist Convention by asking independent, fundamentalist Baptists what they think.

The ELCA’s political membership, along with other Lutheran groups framing themselves as non-extreme alternatives, highlights the denomination’s varied stance. Analyzing the membership of Lutherans in Congress, where Walz served for 12 years, offers insight into the political landscape of Lutheran denominations. This issue of A Public Witness tracks which denominations Lutheran congregations belong to, shedding light on the broader context of Lutheran political engagement.

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