12-year-old Abenet Coltvet is a bagpiper. When the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in St. Paul, Minnesota was cancelled, Abenet was disappointed. As the “Social Distancing” order went into effect due to the Covid – 19 pandemic, Abenet had an idea. Donning his kilt and other bagpiper apparel, Abenet made his way to the senior residence complex where his grandparents live and put on a concert.
Read MoreAll Creation Sings, the forthcoming supplement to ELW will include three new liturgical settings. Setting 11 (following the numbering sequence after the ten settings in ELW) will be a bilingual service in Spanish and English. Setting 12 will be a setting for Holy Communion with options for evening use. All Creation Sings will also include a service of word and prayer.
Read MoreIn the heated battle of humanity versus covid-19, the Zoom meeting app is booming. People want to see and be seen. Big learning curve for many. But free and open to everyone!
Indeed, being seen, and even loved, is one of life’s deepest joys. Conversely, not being seen, yet being hated, is a heavy stressor.
Read More“We will get through this together.” Over the past month, we’ve heard these words spoken countless times by health officials, governors, mayors, presidents, prime ministers, and journalists – but also doctors, nurses, grocery clerks, and other essential workers.
As a Christian, these words took on new meaning for me last week as my family navigated Holy Week while sheltering in place.
Read MoreWe are writing this blog because we see how the effects of this pandemic are compounded by the effects of systemic and everyday racism. The disparities seem even more stark and clear now. Since much of our nation is highly segregated, it can be hard to see beyond what one is personally experiencing.
Read MoreGiven the ongoing uncertainty regarding travel and large gatherings in the coming months, the decision has been made to cancel the 2020 Rostered Ministers Gathering. Refunds will be processed automatically within 30 days. Please visit ELCA.org/RMG for more information.
Pastor Christine Stoxen and the planning team thanks all volunteers for their gifts of time and talent in what would have been a spirit-filled event.
Read MoreFacing an increase of coronavirus cases in East Jerusalem, Augusta Victoria Hospital and other East Jerusalem health systems are in critical need of financial resources to help mitigate the spread of the virus.
Augusta Victoria Hospital is owned and operated by the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and several other member churches of the LWF.
Read MoreDue to the continued and anticipated impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Young Adults in Global Mission program has decided to postpone sending volunteers until the 2021-2022 year of service. This decision was made for the safety and care of volunteers and global companions. Watch the video and read the press release.
Read MoreEmergency room doctor Halleh Akbarnia shares a poignant op-ed about her first COVID-19 patient, Mr. C. They learn from one another as they share a long and frightening road toward his recovery, which is also healing for her. For twelve days she waited to see if her efforts would be successful. At the end of her wait, she went in to visit her patient. Mr. C looked up at her and said, “I remember your eyes.” Sometimes it is a small thing which establishes a deep connection.
Read MoreWhether born of fear, ignorance, or bigotry, the calumny and actual harm that the Chinese American community has suffered is morally reprehensible. The same is true for those of other communities who are assumed to be Chinese. Any sense of isolation that might be compounded by our silence only adds to the pain and offense.
Read MoreEvery day is an adjustment. As we continue to lean into the discomfort and the unknown of this pandemic, let us remember what we do know. We know that God’s love for us is boundless. God’s love cannot be measured. We know that God’s boundless promise, no matter the darkness, is that Christ prevails.
Read MoreDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, the ELCA churchwide organization is here to support our members, congregations, synods and partners. Call 800-638-3522 and press #4 or email HereToServe@ELCA.org for prayer, support and to ask your questions.
Read MoreYou can help the ministries of the ELCA by supporting your local congregation and making a gift to the ELCA’s COVID-19 Response Fund.
Your donation will provide funds to the ministries of the ELCA most in need and best positioned to help. This includes our congregations as well as local and churchwide ministries capable of reaching and assisting those in need.
Read MoreWe could all use some good news these days, right? That was exactly the kind of thinking that inspired John Krazinski, star of The Office and Jack Ryan, to launch a heartwarming series of videos called “Some Good News” from his own home, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Krazinski sets up at a makeshift news desk to tell the world about the good things happening in the midst of so much bad.
Read MoreLutheran Disaster Response is working with partners around the world to respond to the pandemic, including Jersusalem, Egypt, Sudan, Madagascar, and India.
Read MoreUpdated April 8, 2020, with the addition of a video, from the ELCA Public Health page, FAQ on Paycheck Protection Program Loans is available as a PDF in English, Spanish, and via video.
Are churches eligible? Yes. There is some misinformation out there, and some lenders are confused, but churches are eligible.
Read MoreResponding to the wide-ranging impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on ministries of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the ELCA Church Council approved a special fundraising appeal during a teleconference meeting that convened April 8.
Read MoreOur experiences this Easter are remarkably similar to those of the first Easter. Amidst fear and anxiety and crushing disappointment, we will sing our "Alleluias" with growing hope, strength, defiance and joy, confident that God loves us completely and has brought us into eternal life. Christ is risen. Alleluia.
Read MoreIn her April column for Living Lutheran, ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton reflects on this paradox found in Martin Luther’s treatise On the Freedom of a Christian: “A Christian is lord of all, servant of all, completely free of everything. A Christian is servant, completely attentive to the needs of all.” Read her column in English at https://bit.ly/2XkCvqQ and in Spanish at https://bit.ly/3aSOcJ6.
Read MoreRev. Lamont Anthony Wells writes: “In the very city that hosted the African Descent Lutheran Association’s (ADLA) August 2019 Biennial Assembly (Milwaukee, Wis.), African Americans made up almost half of Milwaukee County’s 945 coronavirus cases and 81% of its 27 deaths in a county whose population is only 26% black (as of April 3, 2020). This level of disproportionate rates of infection and death is a direct result of economic, political and environmental factors that have been growing for decades.”
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