East European Missions Network

latvian lutheran church

The national awakening in began in 1987 under the movement called Rebirth and Renewal, led primarily by Lutheran pastors. Political independence was joyfully declared in on May 4, 1990. From a small, oppressed church mostly of elderly people, it suddenly became the spiritual center of freedom and hope for the nation and about the only source of integrity and honesty with which to overcome the endemic corruption.

Currently, there are about 300 congregations in the Latvian Lutheran Church, the “official” church of Latvia. Major disappointment with the state university school of theology, led the Latvian Lutheran church to establish their own seminary in 1998. Though there is currently a shortage of pastors, graduates from the new Martin Luther Academy will begin to meet this shortage within a few years.