Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton invited me and two other U.S. bishops (Bishop Susan Briner and Bishop Patricia Davenport) to participate in an annual retreat held early September for newly elected leaders by the Lutheran World Federation (LWF).
In addition to the three ELCA bishops, there were bishops and pastor presidents from Zambia, Ghana, South Korea, Thailand, northern India, Bolivia, the River Table (Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay) and Peru.
Read MoreWe are blessed to be church together in a time of renewal. Looking back through centuries of our faith’s history, we can imagine the anxiety and doubt of people living in times of extreme change. We can also see what must have been nearly invisible to that congregation of saints: the Holy Spirit at work.
Dr. Dwight Zscheile, of Luther Seminary, recently wrote about predictions from an ELCA Research & Evaluation project that the ELCA may be gone in 30 years. You can read Zscheile’s article at faithlead.luthersem.edu/will-the-elca-will-be-gone-in-30-years.
Read MoreGet ready for a time for fellowship, relaxation, worship and learning in a pleasant desert setting: November 4-6, 2019, at Spirit in the Desert Retreat Center in Carefree, Arizona.
We are delighted that Fr. Greg Adolf, Rector of St. Andrew the Apostle Parish in Sierra Vista, AZ, has accepted our invitation to be the 2019 Presenter! Chaplain will again be the Rev. Steve Holm, a well-known retired parish pastor who continues to write a daily devotional for Spirit in the Desert’s website. We are also privileged that our new Bishop, the Rev. Deborah Hutterer, and synod staff member, the Rev. Mark Holman, will be with us! View this PDF for more info and to register.
Read MoreEvery year, the President of the United States determines the number of refugees that can be admitted to the country. This is called the Presidential Determination, and is set in early October for the upcoming year.
This October, administration officials will reportedly propose the number of refugees allowed into the United States in 2020 be set to zero.
Read MoreBishop Deborah Hutterer will attend the Retreat of Newly Elected Leaders (RoNEL), an activity of the The Lutheran World Federation’s Church Leadership in the Sustainability Program. The activity targets newly elected leaders (Bishops, Pastor Presidents) who come together to contemplate about their vocation.
Read MoreGathering under the theme "We are church," voting members of the 2019 Churchwide Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) made a number of key decisions to further the mission and ministry of this church. The assembly, the chief legislative authority of the church, met Aug. 5-10 at the Wisconsin Center in Milwaukee.
Read MoreShow your respect for women who are resilient in the face of injustice and violence. Encourage others to join you. Share your Thursdays in Black campaign photos on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, using hashtags #ThursdaysinBlack.
Read MoreMany of you know the ELCA Churchwide Assembly convened in Milwaukee, Wisconsin last week. In addition to daily worship, during the business meetings there were many decisions and conversations, including resolutions and memorials. Among the business items addressed included a resolution on the subject of Sanctuary. The Grand Canyon Synod supports/endorses the Background Provided to the Assembly by the Memorials Committee. Please click to read more on this background, and what the resolution on Sanctuary means and does not mean.
Read MorePlease remember in prayer the voting members of the Grand Canyon Synod as they gather in Milwaukee: Veronica Alvarez, Roger Bailey, Pastor David Brandfass, Paul Gryniewicz, Bishop Deborah Hutterer, Norman Johnson, Erin LaHaye, Pastor Chon Pugh, Maria Valenzuela, Renee Waterstradt, and Deacon Janice Zimbelman.
Pray for save travel, and may the Holy Spirit work through them as the assembled discern the future of our church.
Read MoreFor many Lutherans, immigration is a memory that is still alive in ourselves and our families. You may have grown up in a congregation that worshipped in different languages. Your home church might have had German inscribed in the stained glass, or you celebrated a holiday with special foods.
Our involvement with immigration is as old as the Bible.
Read MoreWhile working at Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest, I once met a refugee woman named Anastasia. When I asked her what she appreciated most about her new life in the United States, she told me it was the food in her cupboard, the water coming from her sink, and the fact that her children could go to school. She felt safe.
It really reminds you of the things in life that can be so easily missed.
Read MoreFrom the front of the room at the 32nd Grand Canyon Synod Assembly this past weekend, I had an overwhelming sense of Holy Spirit’s presence. Friends greeting one another by name. New faces sparking conversation. Volunteers and staff serving with pride. While we spoke of singing a new song, I was also listening for new songs.
Read MoreOnce a year, in Minnesota, my family gathers together for an annual camping outing. While every family is unique and might have different traditions, family reunions are a way to make new memories together and remember what is most important in life.
Synod Assembly is the one time of year that our synod family gets together. Where we can dwell on what this work is really about.
Read MoreGod often surprises me. I believe it was Anne Lamott who said, “God can be such a showoff.” Indeed.
Read MoreWith great joy, we pray for the marriage of Bishop Deborah Hutterer and Reverend Alan Field. As they enter into a new adventure and gift of love, we turn to God with thanks and praise.
Read MorePhotos from the the Rocky Mountain Synod Assembly, where Bishop Hutterer attended and assisted with opening worship.
Read MoreWhen I attended the Bishop’s Academy this January, the featured topic was care of creation. Dr. Cynthia Moe-Lobeda and Dr. Larry Rasmussen shared their brutal facts, resources for hope, and the reminder of our baptismal call to strive for justice and peace throughout all the earth. I was awakened to the urgency of their message.
Read MoreBishop Hutterer joins Lutheran leaders to advocate on Capitol Hill. Join them in taking action!
Over 80 ELCA bishops, ministry leaders, and advocates from across the nation visited Capitol Hill speaking about critical disaster recovery and environmental needs in our communities. Send your legislators a customizable letter at the ELCA Action Center to illustrate specific disaster concerns with your legislators today!
Read MoreI am flooded with joy thinking of the special traditions and celebrations that have just taken place across the Synod this past Holy Week. Thank you for proclaiming the new life and hope of life in Jesus into the hearts and spirits of so many.
I am also reminded that the very first Easter was something much different. As they went to the tomb, the followers of Jesus might have felt that they were abandoned by God and that death had the last word.
Read MoreAt La Roca, the shelter I visited last week, children, women and men went to the border and stood in line. Once they received a number they could stay at La Roca while they waited for their number to be called. Cruzando Fronteras (a Lutheran-Episcopal ministry) supports this shelter.
Refugees who have been processed in the U.S. and await their court date are released. In Phoenix last week about 200 were released each day. With ICE lacking the capacity for growing asylee numbers, families have been released to churches in Phoenix for temporary and transitional shelter until they are capable of traveling to their final destination. Currently, there are not enough churches to accommodate the increasing numbers of asylum-seekers, and these families are being released on the street and at bus stations, with no means to continue their journey. Many would label this a humanitarian crisis, and as God’s people we can step in make a difference.
Read More
