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    Malagasy Lutheran Church

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    The Malagasy Lutheran Church was established in 1950 by the unification of 1800 Lutheran congregations in Madagascar. It is now one of the largest Christian churches on the island with nearly 4 million members, and one of the fastest growing Lutheran churches globally. The church traces its origins to Norwegian missionaries who arrived in the 19th century and established the first congregations. It is led by President Rev. Dr. Denis Rakotozafy and is active in health initiatives and international missionary work.

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    Malagasy Lutheran Church

    Uploaded by

    scott901
    27 views3 pages
    The Malagasy Lutheran Church was established in 1950 by the unification of 1800 Lutheran congregations in Madagascar. It is now one of the largest Christian churches on the island with nearly 4 million members, and one of the fastest growing Lutheran churches globally. The church traces its origins to Norwegian missionaries who arrived in the 19th century and established the first congregations. It is led by President Rev. Dr. Denis Rakotozafy and is active in health initiatives and international missionary work.

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    The Malagasy Lutheran Church was established in 1950 by the unification of 1800 Lutheran congregations in Madagascar. It is now one of the largest Christian churches on the island with nearly 4 million members, and one of the fastest growing Lutheran churches globally. The church traces its origins to Norwegian missionaries who arrived in the 19th century and established the first congregations. It is led by President Rev. Dr. Denis Rakotozafy and is active in health initiatives and international missionary work.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    27 views3 pages

    Malagasy Lutheran Church

    Uploaded by

    scott901
    The Malagasy Lutheran Church was established in 1950 by the unification of 1800 Lutheran congregations in Madagascar. It is now one of the largest Christian churches on the island with nearly 4 million members, and one of the fastest growing Lutheran churches globally. The church traces its origins to Norwegian missionaries who arrived in the 19th century and established the first congregations. It is led by President Rev. Dr. Denis Rakotozafy and is active in health initiatives and international missionary work.

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    of 3

    Malagasy Lutheran Church

    The Malagasy Lutheran Church (Malagasy: Fiangonana


    Malagasy Lutheran
    Loterana Malagasy, FLM; French: Église luthérienne malgache)
    is one of the most important Christian churches in Madagascar, Church
    established in 1950 by the unification of 1,800 Lutheran Fiangonana Loterana Malagasy
    congregations in central and southern Madagascar. The oldest of
    these congregations was founded in the early 19th century with the
    arrival of missionaries from the Norwegian Missionary Society
    (NMS).

    With almost 4 million baptized members, it is the third largest


    church in Madagascar and is one of the fastest growing Lutheran
    churches in the world. The growth is due in part to an indigenous Logo of the FLM
    revival movement, known as Fifohazana, that has worked through
    the church since the early twentieth century. Most of the church Classification Protestant
    leaders are members of the Fifohazana movement. Orientation Lutheran
    Leader Denis Rakotozafy
    The FLM also boasts a health care program of nine hospitals and
    thirteen dispensaries. SALFA, as it is known, is a community- Associations LWF, ILC, CCCM,
    based primary health project with special initiatives that cover child AACC, WCC
    survival, family planning, and HIV/AIDS prevention. Region Madagascar

    Members of the church have also served as missionaries in Origin 1950


    Cameroon, Papua New Guinea and Thailand. Congregations 7,000 in 2023[1]
    Members 4 million in
    Organization 2023[2]
    Ministers 1,731
    The Malagasy Lutheran Church is subdivided into 25 synods
    including the synod of Europe, each with a president elected by Official website http://www.flm-
    local congregation representatives. The governing body of the foibe.org
    church is elected every four years by a national gathering of over
    300 representatives from the 25 synods. The governing body consists of the offices of President, Secretary
    General, Vice President, Vice Secretary General, and Treasurer. The presiding Bishop is the Rev. Dr. Denis
    Rakotozafy.[3]

    Fifohazana movement
    Fifohazana is a revival movement, focused on the Word of God,[4] that has been incorporated into the
    Malagasy Lutheran Church.[5] The movement was started by a Christian convert called Dada
    Rainisoalambo in 1894.[6] It trains laypersons, called mpiandry (lit. "shepherds"), to proselytize and
    minister to non-Christians and Christians who continue to practice the traditional Malagasy religion.[4]
    Throughout Madagascar, the movement has established compounds, called toby, where church activities,
    exorcism, counseling, and medical care are carried out.[7]

    History
    Norwegian missionaries John Engh and Niels Nilsen, sent by the
    Norwegian Missionary Society, arrived first in Madagascar
    (Antananarivo) in 1866. The same year, they founded the first
    Lutheran church in Betafo in the south of the central region of the
    island. Then the American Lutheran mission began work in the
    south-west in 1888. The church became autonomous as one body
    in 1950 under the name Malagasy Lutheran Church (or FLM:
    The fourth class of Malagasy
    Fiangonana Loterana Malagasy) and the first Malagasy pastor
    seminarians at Masinandraina, in
    elected to preside to this unified church was the pastor Rakoto
    1893
    Andrianarijaona.

    Among the first churches which have been founded in Madagascar


    by the first missionaries, there are:

    Betafo (1867)
    Masinandraina and Antsirabe (1869)
    Loharano, Soavina Ambohimasina and Manandona
    (1870)
    Antananarivo Ambatovinaky et Fisakana (1871)
    Ilaka, Ambatofinandrahana and Fihasinana (1875)
    Soatanana Fianarantsoa (1876)
    Masombahoaka Fianarantsoa (1878)
    Lutheran Church, founded in 1869, in
    At its founding the Malagasy Lutheran Church had around 18,000 Antsirabe
    members; today it has approximately 3 million and is the 9th largest
    church in the Lutheran World Federation (LWF). It was the first
    former "mission field" church to be accepted into the LWF.

    Relations with other churches


    The Malagasy Lutheran Church joined the World Council of Churches in 1966. It is also a member of the
    Lutheran World Federation (LWF), All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC), Malagasy Council of
    Christian Churches (FFKM), and the Malagasy Council of Protestant Churches (FFPM).

    The Malagasy Lutheran Church established a relationship with the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod and
    also approved a vote on 25 May 2018 to "more fully realise our unity as Lutheran Christians", with the
    possibility of a future recognition of altar and pulpit fellowship between both churches.[8] The church was
    admitted at the International Lutheran Council as a full member at their World Conference, held in
    Antwerp, Belgium, on 25–26 September 2018.[9]

    See also
    Religion in Madagascar
    Christianity in Madagascar

    References
    1. "Malagasy Lutheran Church official website" (http://www.flm-foibe.org). Retrieved July 28,
    2023.
    2. "Malagasy Lutheran Church" (https://www.lutheranworld.org/country/madagascar).
    lutheranworld.org. Lutheran World Federation. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
    3. Block, Matthew (2020-11-08). "Malagasy Lutherans elect new president" (https://ilc-online.or
    g/tag/rev-dr-denis-rakotozafy/). International Lutheran Council. Retrieved 2023-10-07.
    4. Bennett, Robert H. (2013). I Am Not Afraid: Demon Possession and Spiritual Warfare. St.
    Louis: Concordia Publishing House. pp. xx, 6.
    5. Razakandriana, Rivoniaina (2009). "The Malgasy Lutheran Church (FLM) as a missional
    church: An analysis of past and present models of evangelization with a special focus on the
    contemporary movement Tafika Masina" (https://brage.bibsys.no/xmlui/bitstream/handle/112
    50/162057/2009_Rivoniaina-MTh.pdf?sequence=1) (PDF). Misjonshøgsskolen. p. 56.
    6. Austnaberg, Hans (2008). Shepherds and Demons: A Study of Exorcism as Practised and
    Understood by Shepherds in the Malagasy Lutheran Church (https://books.google.com/book
    s?id=3SWKaonYD18C&q=dada+rainisoalambo&pg=PA42). New York: Peter Lang
    Publishing. p. 42. ISBN 9780820497174.
    7. Daniel, Rakotojoelinandrasana (2008). "Holistic and Integrated Care for Spirit, Mind, and
    Body as Practiced by the Fifohazana" (https://books.google.com/books?id=LMMjORk3uIcC
    &q=the+toby&pg=PR9). In Rich, Cynthia Holder (ed.). The Fifohazana: Madagascar's
    Indigenous Christian Movement. pp. 91–92. ISBN 9781604975819.
    8. "Malagasy Lutherans to seek fellowship with the LCMS, International Lutheran Council" (htt
    ps://ilc-online.org/2018/05/28/malagasy-lutherans-to-seek-fellowship-with-the-lcms/).
    International Lutheran Council. 28 May 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
    9. ILC welcomes 17 new member churches representing 4,15 million Lutherans worldwide,
    International Lutheran Council Official Website, 26 September 2018 (https://ilc-online.org/20
    18/09/26/ilc-welcomes-17-new-member-churches-representing-4-15-million-lutherans-world
    wide/)

    External links
    Official FLM website (http://www.flm-foibe.org) (In Malagasy)
    Celebrating Global Mission website, history of FLM (https://www.cgmmag.com/historyofmissi
    on/malagasy-lutheran-church/)
    Profile of the FLM at Oikumene.org (https://web.archive.org/web/20081201194926/http://ww
    w.oikoumene.org/fr/eglises-membres/regions/africa/madgascar/malagasy-lutheran-church-fl
    m.html)

    Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Malagasy_Lutheran_Church&oldid=1183808658"

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