This June, inspired by a request from an AME congregation we asked the congregations of the ELCA South Carolina Synod to study the Parable of the Sower in Mark 4, to substitute it as their Gospel reading for Sunday, June 19, and to include the names of the Emanuel Nine in the prayers of intercession.
Read MoreThe Grand Canyon Synod (GCS) Transition Team in partnership with the Rocky Mountain Synod (RMS) walks with Congregations through the transition time of calling a new rostered leader (pastor or deacon). The Team is led by Bishop Hutterer with Director of Congregation Transitions in the GCS and RMS, Deacon Janice Zimbelman, Associate for Candidate Identification, Dr. Jerry Kingston, and Transition Coaches, Rev. Pat Reed and Rev. Glenn Zimbelman.
Read MoreThe 2022 annual report from Rev. Miguel Gomez-Acosta, Director for Evangelical Mission and Bishop’s Associate for Congregational Vitality.
“It has been three years since the last time we were gathered in one place, in-person, to conduct the business of the church. Praise be to God! In many ways this synod assembly reflects the rest of the church — we are moving in the right direction, but not quite back at full capacity.”
Read MoreThe 2022 annual report from Rev. Jacqui Pagel, Bishop’s Associate for Candidacy and Faith Formation.
“We are in this together. The church continues because we continue. We continue to love ourselves; we continue to love one another, and we continue to love God. It is my pleasure to continue with you.”
Read MoreThe 2022 annual report from Brian Flatgard, Director of Communications.
“Since we started keeping records in 2019, we’ve created over 3,600 blog posts, which also get amplified on our Facebook page and weekly newsletter and calendars. We try to give equal attention to all the information we share.”
Read MoreThe Conference of Bishops (COB) met Sunday evening; Bishop Megan Rohrer chose not to attend. I shared that I am initiating the discipline process immediately, including suspension of Bishop Rohrer, based on additional information that has come to light. The COB strongly affirmed this decision. This process will take time, and I will provide updates as appropriate. I ask for your continued prayers for this church.
Read MoreFund for Leaders alum Meredith Kesely has served as the head pastor at Abiding Presence in Burke, Va. since 2010. In 2021, the congregation called Kelsey Kresse, another Fund for Leaders alum, to serve as its associate pastor. Both pastors reflect on their leadership journeys and the ways Abiding Presence is fostering future leaders. Your support for Fund for Leaders will allow more pastors like Meredith and Kelsey to say “yes” to God’s call. ELCA.org/FundforLeaders25
Read MoreThe Rev. Rachel Eskesen, Area Desk Director for Europe, introduces three people she met on her travels in Eastern Europe. They represent the work of ELCA partners in the region that are accompanying refugees from Ukraine. For more information about Lutheran Disaster Response and the ELCA’s work in Eastern Europe, visit: ELCA.org/Ukraine.
Read MoreStirred up in the Spirit, the theme of the 2022 Grand Canyon Synod Assembly, draws on the common work we do as Synod.
In a world where we can easily provoke each other in unhelpful and even harmful ways, this assembly focuses on the ways we get to provoke each other in good and Spirited ways. We challenge each other to recognize that we are called to be public witnesses of God’s love and hope in the world. I pray this assembly renews our enthusiasm and confidence to provoke actions of love and good deeds.
Read MoreAfter listening to the concerns of this church, careful review of the report of the Listening Team and other accompanying documents, consultation with outside legal counsel, and prayerful reflection and discernment, I have decided not to bring disciplinary charges against Bishop Rohrer.
While I am not inaugurating formal disciplinary processes at this time, there remain enough serious concerns that influence Bishop Rohrer's ability to remain impactful in their role that I have asked Bishop Rohrer for their resignation, which I believe to be in the best interest of all parties involved. Leer también en español…
Read More“Stewardship is not just about what we give to the church, but how we spend and use everything that God has given us. Everything that we give comes first from God and passing it on is a way of affirming our faith that God will continue to bless us.” Read in this post or view as PDF.
Read MoreI grew up a Lutheran, having built a deep connection to God from a young age. However, like many of us I am sure, I have struggled with my faith over the last few years, especially these last two years. It seemed like the life I planned out was turned upside down and twisted without a moment’s notice. “New” things kept appearing everywhere I looked, and I felt incredibly lost, stuck in an uncontrollable void of questions and uncertainty
Read MoreThe Evangelical Lutheran Church in America grieves with the families of the 19 students and two teachers killed in Tuesday's mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Mass shootings in this country over the past two weeks have deepened the wounds of grief and sorrow. This follows the racially motivated shooting of 10 people in Buffalo, N.Y.; the shooting in Laguna Woods, Calif.; and the 27 other school shootings that have occurred in 2022. Many of the shooters have targeted children and older adults — some of the most vulnerable in our society.
Read MoreFor a long time, no one in Tulsa’s white or black communities talked about the massacre that destroyed the Greenwood district in May 1921. Those who were there remembered. A few kept the memory alive. But most simply chose to forget. Shrouded in silence for decades, it lay there in the heart of the city, eating away at it like a cancer.
Read MoreWe celebrate the contributions of Asian and Pacific Islanders in the ELCA and reaffirm our commitment to the Asian and Pacific Islander communities in the United States.
Read MoreOur hearts grieve for those who have been killed and our souls cry out against more lives lost to the hatred birthed by racism. As we mourn those lives lost as a result of the racially motivated killings in Buffalo, we ask God to ease the continued suffering and trauma of our Black siblings throughout the nation and in our church. We are one body in Christ, so when one part suffers, we all suffer.
Read MoreOn May 18, 2022, ELCA Presiding Bishop Eaton and 44 ELCA synod bishops, including Bishop Hutterer, wrote to Congress about their concerns related to the funding of Augusta Victoria Hospital. Read the full letter here: ELCA Bishops’ letter to Congress concerning US funding for Augusta Victoria Hospital.
Ask your Members of Congress to restore funding for Augusta Victoria Hospital and the other East Jerusalem hospitals (This form will give you a sample letter you can personalize and send).
Read MorePresiding Bishop Eaton wrote to Secretary of State Antony Blinken to express her “profound shock and sadness concerning the death of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in Jenin, the West Bank, on May 11 and the deplorable disruption of her funeral procession on May 13.”
Read the letter from Bishop Eaton to Secretary of State Blinken on the killing and funeral of Shireen Abu Akleh and join Bishop Eaton in taking action by writing to Secretary of State Blinken here. (The action alert will give you sample language that you can edit and personalize).
Read MoreSometimes it feels like my whole life revolves around the question “what’s next?” There’s this notion that “next” is a jump, one thing to another, and that the next thing must be substantially different from the thing before in order to be “new.” I’m starting to think that’s not the case.
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