This 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 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 MoreTwo thirds of everything Jesus said related to money and not because Jesus cared about money but because Jesus cares about us and our spiritual welfare. He taught us that where our treasure is there will our heart be also. And Jesus wants our hearts.
Read MoreTotal Inclusion was launched in 2020 after some lead up work by the ELCA and Lutheran Outdoor Ministries (LOM). The goal of Total Inclusion is to enrich the lives of youth from traditionally marginalized groups by creating a welcoming and safe experience for them at ELCA affiliated camps.
Read MoreI read an article the other day that suggested that generosity is an early sign of Alzheimer’s. My first reaction was to laugh, because I have often told people that God has early Alzheimer’s. I say that because it tells us in the psalms that God not only forgives our sins, but also forgets them. That is one way that God is generous to us. And that is a good thing.
After I stopped laughing however, I decided that this is something I should think about seriously. Read more in this post or view as PDF.
Read MoreThe ELCA gathers for its Churchwide Assembly next week, August 8–12, 2022. As I travel to Ohio to attend this gathering, I invite you to pray for all 900 voting members are attending, including ten others who will represent the Grand Canyon Synod: Glenn Austad, Roger Bailey, Pastor David Brandfass, Barbara Carl, Laura Hollengreen, Hannah Manzanares, Pastor Matthew Metevelis, Pastor Charles Newman, Sarah Morris, and Pastor Christine Stoxen.
Read MoreIn this video message, Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton shares information on the upcoming 2022 Churchwide Assembly, asks for our prayers as our church gathers and discerns, and invites us to watch.
Read MoreI remember a particular Sunday in October 1962. It was the first anniversary of me being blind, and I was pretty proud of myself. I remember this Sunday so specifically because the sermon text was on the healing of Blind Bartimaeus, and the import of the sermon was, “If you believe strongly enough God can do anything.”
After worship, for the first time I remember, but certainly not the last, I remember the man who came up to me and said, “I know that if you believe enough God will heal you.”
Read MoreIn a July 18, 2022 letter to President Joseph R. Biden, the Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), expressed gratitude for his July 15 visit to the Augusta Victoria Hospital (AVH) in East Jerusalem and his announcement of a $100 million multiyear commitment to the East Jerusalem Hospital Network (EJHN), of which AVH is a member.
Read MoreIn this video, Bishop Eaton encourages us to celebrate the full participation of all in the body of Christ.
Read MoreWhere will we be on Independence Day 2065? With God’s grace, I hope to live to see it. I hope to see it and smile, as my ancestors are today watching over me as I walk these same streets. Mere footsteps on the long path to justice. Inches closer on the road to freedom.
Read MoreOur prayers are with the family of Jayland Walker as they laid him to rest on Wednesday in Akron, Ohio, a place I know well and a community dear to my heart. We join all who gathered to mourn the brutal killing of their loved one.
Read MoreWe share a Living Lutheran post from Rev. Howie Wennes, written at the start of the pandemic.
Once a month I do a Bible study for inmates at the Ventura County Jail. I once asked them, “Do you know where the ‘Complaint Department’ is in the Bible?” Surprised to hear that, they asked, “Where?”
I told them that the best example is in the book of Psalms. There are 150 psalms and 50 of them fit into the lament category. Laments are cries of pain and pleas for God to notice and help.
Read MoreOn this Independence Day, I encourage us all to spend some time relearning our shared history. Take time to read through five reflections written by Women of the ELCA participants as part of a study of the ELCA Declaration to People of African Descent. Review the Repudiation of the Doctrine of Discovery, adopted by both the ELCA (in 2016) and affirmed by Women of the ELCA (in 2017). It’s a start.
Read MoreNew Spirit Lutheran in Tucson shares two videos for their annual report, one for their Blessings in a Backpack program, and one for their Homeless Blessings program, both made possible partially with help from a Grand Canyon Synod Grant.
Read MoreIn this report, the Grand Canyon Synod Stewardship Team updates us on their Generosity Project Holy Exchange project, made possible partially with help from a Grand Canyon Synod Grant.
Read MoreIn this report, Santa Cruz Lutheran in Tucson updates us on their audio/visual upgrade for live streaming, made possible partially with help from a Grand Canyon Synod Grant.
Read MoreIn this report, Native American Urban Ministry in Phoenix updates us on their expansion of their online ministry and Christian education, made possible partially with help from a Grand Canyon Synod Grant.
Read MoreIn this report, La Sagrada Familia in Phoenix updates us on their expansion of their youth and women’s ministries, made possible partially with help from a Grand Canyon Synod Grant.
Read MoreIn this report, Central Lutheran in Arizona City and Casa Grande updates us on their seventh year of Adult Community Education (ACE), made possible partially with help from a Grand Canyon Synod Grant.
Read More
