The Old Apostolic Lutheran Church of America (OALC) is a Firstborn Laestadian church in North America. Firstborn Laestadians are a subgroup within Laestadianism. The Old Apostolic Lutheran Church originated in the 1890s. In the Nordic Firstborn Laestadian revival, the movement works within the official Church of Sweden, which is also called the "Lutheran Folk Church". The Church of Sweden has for a long time recognized the Laestadian movement and has allowed them to hold their own services in the state churches, both before and after the separation of church and state. Even in America it still has a relationship with the Church of Sweden. Doctrine The OALC believes in the Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It confesses the Holy Bible, consisting of the Old and New testaments, as the only unchangeable Word of God for salvation and the standard by which all doctrines of salvation should be examined. The OALC accepts the Apostles' Creed, the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, the Unaltered Augsburg Confession, and the original doctrine of Martin Luther, Lars Levi Laestadius, and the elders of this church in Swedish Lapland in this era (known as the Church of Firstborn). Membership The Old Apostolic Lutheran Church is the largest Laestadian/Apostolic Lutheran church in America. At its beginning in about 1900, it was a small group when the Laestadian movement in America was splintered, giving rise to the "New Apostolic Lutheran Church" and the "Old Apostolic Lutheran Church." Originally, the OALC had only a few church buildings, and services were usually held in homes. During the twentieth and twenty-first centuries the OALC had grown due primarily to the belief in, and creation of, large families. The Old Apostolic Lutheran Church of America is the nationwide ecclesiastical association, and has member congregations in the following states: Washington, Michigan, Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota, North Carolina, Delaware, Wyoming, Montana and Wisconsin. The most significant membership is in southwest area of the state of Washington. Other large congregations are located in Lake Norden, South Dakota ; Hancock, Michigan ; Minneapolis, Minnesota ; Duluth, Minnesota ; and Detroit, Michigan. The OALC also has congregations in Canada and in Alaska. In the Battle Ground area of Washington, churches now exist in Brush Prairie, Lewisville, Heisson, Woodland, and Yacolt. A future church is being planned for Battle Ground. This large number of Old Apostolic Lutherans is concentrated in the central and northern sections of