Cambodian Lutherans continue work to register new church body

Cambodian Lutherans take their registration to the office of the Evangelical Fellowship of Cambodia.

CAMBODIA – Work to build a new Lutheran church body in Cambodia continues apace.

Church members in Cambodia applied to the government at the end of January to register anew church body under the name Cambodia Lutheran Church (CLC). Provincial authorities in Kompot gave their approval on February 21. From there, the CLC passed the registration to the Evangelical Fellowship of Cambodia on February 22, as this entity must also indicate their approval for new Protestant church bodies in Cambodia.

Following that process, the registration passed to the federal level for approval from the Minister of Cult and Religion on February 27.

Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC) has long been involved in supporting Lutheran outreach in Cambodia, and has committed to providing financial support to the Cambodia Lutheran Church throughout its registration and development. Rev. Dr. Leonardo Neitzel (LCC’s Mission Executive) and Rev. Dr. Leonard Harms (LCC’s Mission Advisor for Southeast Asia) will travel to Cambodia in early April to provide guidance on church governance and other matters.

The CLC is now Lutheran Church–Canada’s partner church in the region. Lutherans in Cambodia had formerly been organized in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Cambodia, until its government registration lapsed in 2016, prompting the development of the new synod.

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