New resources are now available from ELCA World Hunger to enrich the life of your congregation in Advent 2022 and Lent 2023! The theme for the new seasonal materials is "A Journey Through the Psalms With ELCA World Hunger." Download free versions at ELCA.org/hunger/resources.
Read MoreFor communities In Puerto Rico and the Caribbean dealing with the damage caused by Hurricane Fiona…
For communities in Alaska in the wake of Typhoon Merbok…
For communities In Japan in the wake of Typhoon Nanmadol…
For communities in Papua New Guinea impacted by the September 11 earthquake…
For communities In Pakistan dealing with the effects of summer monsoon flooding…
In thanksgiving for siblings of Hispanic & Latinx heritage…
For Synod Council Members across the church…
ELCA World Hunger announces two more “Hunger at the Crossroads” webinars on conflict and hunger and health and hunger. You are invited to join ELCA World Hunger staff and experts to learn about the intersections of these important topics. Learn more and register here or in this post. Watch the recordings of previous “Hunger at the Crossroads” webinars here.
Read MoreAcross 18 years in the Negro Leagues, Norman Thomas “Turkey” Stearnes parlayed power and speed into enshrinement in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
But his daughter Rosilyn Stearnes-Brown, the choir director and organist of Amazing Grace Lutheran Church in Warren, Mich., is just as impressed by what her father achieved through force of will as an older-than-average schoolboy.
Read MoreIn her September, 2022 column for Living Lutheran, Bishop Eaton writes: “In Christ we are individually members one of another. Sometimes we might feel like we are stuck with each other. This is the great mystery and beauty of the wounded body of Christ—we are woven together.” Read in English at https://bit.ly/3RUS2a5 and in Spanish at https://bit.ly/3f1BfDT.
Read MoreRight before today’s assigned Gospel reading, Jesus clearly says “you cannot serve God and wealth” (Luke 16:13, NRSV). And in the following verse, the Gospel of Luke tells us that the Pharisees, “who were lovers of money” were upset and “they ridiculed him” (Luke 16:14, NRSV).
And then in this morning’s pericope, Jesus offers this parable about a chasm—the chasm between the rich man and Lazarus. This is the chasm between those who have a hard time seeing past themselves and those who go unseen, the chasm between the lovers of money and those who lose their lives as a result.
Read MoreI moved to Minnesota in July 1998 after graduating from Waldorf University, Forest City, Iowa (then the ELCA’s Waldorf College). I’d heard there was a congregation in Minneapolis that had a Swahili service in the afternoon. The day I visited, I knew right away that I’d found my church.
Read MoreThe updated 2022 Model Constitution for Congregations is now available at ELCA.org.
It is recommended that ELCA congregations and synods review the adopted amendments for their constitutions as soon as possible after each churchwide assembly to incorporate the required changes and to consider the recommended changes.
Read MoreThis September brings with it a heavy joy. Every year the calendar’s turn to Labor Day and the weather’s switch to rain and chill bring us back from the fun of summer.
But years in the shadow of a global pandemic have called our attention to the same questions that Jesus poses in this month’s Gospel readings.
Read MoreELCA Worship shares their September, 2022 newsletter, including:
Readings for the Assembly (Emended) is available for provisional use
Upcoming ALCM Webinar, “Tried and True—With a Twist!”: Friday, Oct. 7, 2 p.m. Eastern time
Music that Makes Community: Advent Planning workshop and other events and resources
Journey to Baptismal Living: North American Association for the Catechumenate
Sometime in July/August of 2025, the ELCA Churchwide Assembly will be held in Phoenix. Part of the proceedings will be a presentation from the recently established Commission for a Renewed Lutheran Church, which will reconsider the denomination’s organizational structure and its statements of purpose.
Read MoreELCA Disability Ministries shares their September, 2022 newsletter featuring:
Worship Designed for All: A Deep-rooted History of Lutheran Accessibility
September is Suicide Prevention Month
Updated ELCA Find a Congregation page with accessibility options
Lutherans Restoring Creation shares their September, 2022 Good Green News, which contains follows up on the Churchwide Assembly vote to take dedicated action to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, as well as the Inflation Reduction Act, promising the infrastructure to help us all work for a Just Transition to less harmful energy production and consumption.
View the newsletter here, as well as stories and resources that are shared in their variety of events and local ministries.
Read MoreELCA Global Mission shares their August/September, 2022 Global Links newsletter, with updates from the Becoming Conference, news from the droughts in the Horn of Africa, mission personnel, and how you can get involved. Read it here.
Read MoreBoost your emotional health this fall by joining live webinar led by Learn to Live’s clinical team. 2022 September’s sessions – which run 15- or 30-minutes – focus on Time Management; Staying Refreshed and Preventing Burnout; and Avoiding Negative Thinking Traps. Click here to learn more about the webinars, and use the code PORTICO to register.
Read MoreJoin ELCA Coaching every Wednesday at 11am MST/PDT, noon MDT, as we practice Courageous Leadership. Log in info is on the ELCA Coaching website.
Join us on Wednesday, September 21, 2022, as we hear from digital creator Dylan Marron, who has racked up millions of views for various projects, but he's found that the flip side of success online is internet hate. Over time, he's developed an unexpected coping mechanism: calling the people who leave him insensitive comments and asking a simple question: "Why did you write that?"
In a thoughtful talk about how we interact with others, Marron will explain how sometimes the most subversive thing you can do is actually speak with people you disagree with, not simply at them.
Read MoreAndrea Arey, our Regional Representative from Portico, provides us with updates on 2023 Portico plans. Questions? She can be reached at AArey@porticobenefits.org or 949-338-9573.
Read MoreHappy National Hispanic Heritage Month! As we celebrate, I can’t help reflecting on what is being celebrated: independence, legacy and identity. As far as my own identity, I grew up, like many Puerto Ricans, hearing the poems and songs that claim we all have a Black grandma hidden away somewhere. There was this shared idea among the people in my life that, no matter how hard we try to hide it, somewhere in our DNA we are all Black.
Read MoreThe September, 2022, bimonthly e-newsletter for ELCA congregational and synodical leaders is here, featuring: Stewardship Kaleidoscope, Sept. 26-28 2022; church accessibility; 2023 Portico annual enrollment reminder; Lutheran Men in Mission’s National Bold Gathering; starting a risk control program; and Tithe.ly All Access.
Read MoreFor those suffering and battling wildfires…
For peaceful transitions of power, especially in the United Kingdom…
For an end to violence between nations, especially Russia/Ukraine, Israel/Palestine, Eritrea/Ethiopia, and Armenia/Azerbaijan…
For those in the path of Typhoon Muifa…
For congregational council presidents and all church leaders…
For colleges & seminaries – their students, staff, faculty and boards…
