The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Guyana (ELCG)

Welcome to the official website of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Guyana (ELCG)

Left: Picture of the old Ebenezer Lutheran Church Building - New Amsterdam, Berbice

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Guyana (ELCG) is a national communion of Christian Congregations in the Lutheran tradition which was founded on the 15 th October 1743. On this date a small group of Dutch colonists assembled at the home of Lodewyk Abbensettes to plant a church of the unaltered Augsburg Confession. This event took place at Fort Nassau , some 85 miles up the Berbice River . Nine years after the planting of the church, the congregation at Fort Nassau received its first pastor on 17 th October 1752. He was Johan Henrik Faerkenius.

ELCG Events

ELCG 75th Convention Bulletin - May 2018

ELCG 74th Convention Bulletin - May 2017

ELCG 73rd Convention Bulletin - May 2016

ELCG Plants Tree at Luther Gardens, Wittenberg
The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has set a goal of planting 500 trees in the park and around the town to commemorate the anniversary of the Reformation, when on 31 October 1517 Martin Luther nailed his theses on the church door in Lutherstadt, Wittenberg. Churches of all denominations from all over the world are also invited to become "godparents" to one of the trees in Wittenberg and to plant a second tree in the area of their home Church. Read more ...

OUR LUTHERAN HERITAGE:- Poem by Thamesha Watson, Youth Leader St. Andrew Parish to mark ELCG's 270th anniversary

270^th Anniversary:
The year 2013 marked the 270th Anniversary Year of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Guyana, having been founded on 15th October 1743. To mark this anniversary event, the Church in collaboration with the Guyana Post Office Corporation, on 6th October 2013 issued commemorative postage stamps at a National Youth Service held at St. Andrew Lutheran Church. The stamps are of $80 and $20 denominations and bear the Church’s logo of the Cross, Bible and Swan, and are on sale at Post Offices.

On Wednesday 16th October 2013, a mass Church Assembly of members and guests converged at Lutheran Courts New Amsterdam, Berbice from 9:00 am for Divine Worship service, fellowship and special presentations from member Parishes.

Even though the church was established in 1743 it was not until around 1752 that the first sanctuary was built. By the 1790s the Dutch Colony of New Amsterdam at Fort Nassau was relocated to the present day New Amsterdam location. The Lutherans applied for land and set up the church on the present site of the Ebenezer Lutheran Church . It is said that the original church building at Fort Nassau was shipped out on rafts and relocated in the New Amsterdam. Read More

Our Mission
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Guyana lives to be the instrument of the Holy Spirit in obedience to the commission of its Lord, and specifically:

To proclaim the Gospel through Word and Sacraments; to relate that Gospel to people’s need in every situation; and to extend the Ministry of the Gospel to all the world.
To gather into fellowship those who respond in faith to the call of the Gospel, and to nurture them in the faith through that fellowship.
To affirm its unity in the true faith and to give outward expression to that unity.
To safeguard the pure preaching of the Word of God and the right administration of the Sacraments in all its congregations in conformity with its Confession of Faith.
To participate in ecumenical Christian activities, contributing its witness and work and co-operating with other Churches which confess God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Quick Links

ELCG's Constitution