International Lutheran Council

Besides the Lutheran World Federation, another global body bringing Lutheran churches together is the International Lutheran Council. The ILC came officially into existence in 1993, as the result of a process of formation that began in 1952. The ILC defines itself as "a worldwide association of established confessional Lutheran church bodies which proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ on the basis of an unconditional commitment to the Holy Scriptures as the inspired and infallible word of God and to the Lutheran Confessions contained in the Book of Concord as the true and faithful exposition of the word of God". The International Lutheran Council has 30 member churches representing 3.3 million Christians in the world. The office of the ILC is located in St. Louis, Missouri (USA).