(Chicago) – From February 20 to 22, 2025, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) representatives gathered at the Lutheran Center in Chicago for their annual in-person dialogue. This year’s discussions focused on how faith communities confess and express their beliefs in light of the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea. As churches worldwide prepare to commemorate this milestone in partnership with the World Council of Churches (WCC), the dialogue explored themes of faith affirmations and the shared legacies of the Restoration and Reformation movements.

Central to these discussions were Rev. Dr. Kristine A. Culp (Disciples of Christ) and Rev. Dr. Carmelo Santos-Rolón (ELCA), both members of the WCC Faith and Order Commission. Dr. Santos presented a paper titled The Role of Creeds and Confessions in the Lutheran Tradition: Creeds as Mirrors and Skins, Not Walls or Armor, while Dr. Culp shared Where to Start and Other Ecumenical Questions. Their insights provided a strong foundation for a rich theological exchange on the role of creeds and confessions in shaping faith communities.

Beyond theological dialogue, the gathering was rooted in shared worship and prayer, including an Ecumenical Prayer Service drawn from the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, a Lutheran liturgy, and moments of personal reflection. Participants also took time to share what they had learned about each other’s traditions, offering unique perspectives on the progress of the dialogue.

Looking Toward the Future: Strengthening Local Relationships

As the dialogue concluded, participants evaluated their progress and considered next steps for deepening collaboration. A key affirmation was the need to move beyond theological discussions and explore new ways to support relationships at the congregational and mid-judicatory levels. The group is now discerning different pathways for collaboration, including opportunities for shared ministry, engaging external partners, and creating resources to strengthen local ecumenical engagement.

Rev. Dr. Robert Cornwall, co-chair of the dialogue representing the Disciples of Christ, reflected on the significance of this gathering:

The ELCA-Disciples Dialog has met for the past five years. We have built relationships and explored areas of commonality and difference. While these two denominations are different in a number of ways, we share a common faith in Jesus Christ, something that continues to be confirmed. In this most recent dialogue, we used the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea to reflect on that council and the creed that emerged from it and the later council at Constantinople. We were blessed with the leadership of Rev. Dr. Carmelo Santos (ELCA) and Rev. Dr. Kristine Culp (Disciples), both of whom represent the two denominations on the Faith and Order Commission of the WCC. In the course of the discussions, we gained a better understanding of how creeds and confessions function in both traditions.

Disciples are often presumed to be anti-creedal, which is not true. Thus, Disciples often respond that we are non-creedal. While creeds and confessions function differently for Disciples than the ELCA, we discerned that it is more appropriate to speak of the Disciples as a Covenantal and Confessing church that stands on our confession that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God (Matt. 16:16). Even on the matter of the Trinity, when we look closely at the Preamble to the Design, we see a strong trinitarian pattern.

This conversation feels as if it has helped us turn a page such that we can begin pondering new pathways of relationship, including sharing ministry. Speaking on behalf of the Disciples team, we are grateful to our ELCA hosts for this session, and for the willingness of everyone to listen carefully to one another. Finally, we are all in agreement that in these challenging times, we need each other.

Bishop Bill Gafkjen, co-chair representing the ELCA, echoed this sentiment:

Centered in prayer as we gathered, our dialogue team listened deeply to one another and spoke with humility and honesty in our quest to discover potential new forms of ecumenical partnerships. We began with each member of the dialogue sharing what we have learned about and from each other’s traditions. This sharing made it clear that we have learned a great deal about one another, that we have much in common, and that we can recognize, honor, and affirm each tradition as we continue to explore our differences.

This set us up nicely for our deep and courageous exploration of the role and functions of creeds, confessions, and affirmations of faith in each tradition. Our exploration was fueled by the excellent and insightful contributions of a scholar from each tradition who led us in examining each tradition’s relationship to the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD and the resulting creed that has echoed through 17 centuries.

By the end of our gathering, we were awed by the clear sense that the Holy Spirit is at work among us, brewing something new in service to the church and world as we continue walking the Emmaus Road together with the crucified and risen Christ as our companion, teacher, and guide.

As part of their ongoing work, the dialogue team has scheduled an online meeting in September to continue these discussions and further develop plans for strengthening relationships at both local and denominational levels.

For more information about the Disciples-ELCA dialogue and its work, please contact Rev. Paul Tché for the Disciples of Christ and Ms. Kathryn Lohre for the ELCA.

Please ELCA—Disciples Dialogue page to learn more.