From the Rev. Amy E. Reumann in the ELCA Advocacy office in Washington, D.C. we get the update of Advocacy Connections: May 2020
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Read MoreWhat do a Malayan Tiger, Santa Catalina Island Rattlesnake, Ridgeway Hawk, Hawksbill Turtle and Eastern Black Rhino have in common? Each of these animals is classified as critically endangered – that is, facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild due in large part to human activity.
In the ELCA resource, “Why Lutherans Care for Creation,” we are reminded that the key tenet of Lutheran ethics has been faith active in love. More »
Read MoreRemember in prayer our ELCA missionaries, global companions and international leaders. Pray for their health and well-being as well as their continuing witness and service in the world even though some of
our work together may have been temporarily suspended.
Janis Richert with the GCS Stewardship Team writes that Lutheran Church of the Foothills in Tucson has: “carried on as servants in ministry during the pandemic,” with weekly recorded gospel readings, pastor sermons, emailed bulletins and retired pastors sharing messages as well. Help serving the homeless at Primavera Men’s Shelter has continued, and since they began utilizing Vanco several years ago, “online giving in this time of worshiping at home is quite easy and greatly appreciated!”
Read MoreThese petitions are offered as guides to prayer for the global, social and outreach ministries of the ELCA, as well as for the needs and circumstances of our neighbors, communities and world. Thank you for your continued prayers for the life and mission of this church. Download a Word doc, or PDF for letter size printout or legal size printout, or view the ELCA resource page.
Read MoreDr. Michael T. Osterholm, Director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at University of Minnesota, introduces us to their Effective COVID-19 Crisis Communication report. They stress six key principles:
Don’t Over-reassure
Proclaim Uncertainty
Validate Emotions—Your Audience’s and Your Own
Give People Things to Do
Admit and Apologize for Errors
Share Dilemmas
Looking at the jumping daily charts of coronavirus cases and deaths can be confusing. Long-term declines and increases are easier to see when you look at graphs which use 7-day averages, where each plot point is the average of a day and the previous six days of data. The New York Times as done just that each state in our synod: Arizona, Nevada, and Utah. We’ve also compiled the relevant graphs side-by-side for comparison.
As of May 21, 2020:
Arizona: 15,315 cases and 763 deaths
Nevada: 7,386 cases and 378 deaths
Utah: 7,717 cases and 90 deaths
Cathy Cermak, with New Spirit Lutheran in Tucson, shares this story of ELCA World Hunger Daily Bread Grants being added to New Spirit’s work to feed 24 students for a year through Blessings in a Backpack.
Read MoreDaudi Msseemmaa, the ELCA’s regional representative in East Africa, writes: “During a severe drought in 2008-2009, I spent time in dusty villages where the carcasses of livestock littered the ground and hungry children fainted in class. There was a lot of suffering. But I did not encounter hopelessness, even among malnourished mothers whose couldn’t provide enough breast milk for their infants. They had a saying – God is far, but he is very near.”
Read MoreAs of May 17, 2020, over 4.5 million people have been infected and over 307,000 have lost their lives due to the rapid spread of COVID-19. The pandemic is affecting all aspects of life for people across the globe.
Lutheran Disaster Response is supporting partners around the world during this time. Since January 2020, LDR International has contributed over one.1 million in 26 countries in response to the pandemic.
Read MorePastor Ben Bergren with Community, Las Vegas shares his writings: “As I write this one of our church members is dying of COVID-19.”
“Most likely by the time you read this, they will have passed. The thought of this both saddens and exhausts me because it reminds me of the selfishness and brokenness of humanity. This is not a political issue at all. This is a condition of the heart.” Read the full article »
Pastor Bergren also shares an article this week entitled “Rehoboam’s Folly.”
Read MoreA thriving church is one so convinced of the resurrection that we’re free to give our lives in service to others. Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton shares how the ELCA continues to thrive in country churches, cityscapes and places with no walls in this message for 2020 Synod Assemblies. Watch in our blog post, YouTube or Facebook.
Read MoreAscension of Our Lord. While we look forward to everlasting life and being with Jesus in heaven, pray that we will live with confidence and joy in the promise of salvation and the presence of the Spirit, which sustains and equips us for the work we are called to today as people of the good news.
Read MoreHeather R. Nelson, Ph.D., is a music director at a mid-sized Baptist church in Missouri usually reads voice research in her spare time. “Yes, I am just that nerdy,” she writes. “But it’s also riveting. The voice is one of the most wonderful creations that God has bestowed upon us.”
The more Nelson read about the safety of public singing during COVID-19, she saw the decision to do so “would be the most important decision I have made in ministry so far.”
So, she compiled all the reliable research and distilled it into a single document.
Read MoreCharles Zoll, Music Director with Holy Trinity in Chandler, shares a music video of congregants helping neighbors during the shelter in place order. Watch at youtu.be/O-ETLui0EOs.
Read MoreOn this seventh Sunday of Easter, we gather in our homes and yet together as one, praying for the church, the world, and all who are in need. Our response to each petition is, “Your mercy is great.”
Read MorePaul Evenson, Board Chair and the entire Board of Directors and Staff of Spirit in the Desert are pleased to announce their new Executive Director, Eric Simonson.
We are thankful for God’s provision at this time for filling this vacancy and giving us a new leader with a heart for the Lord and the mission of Spirit in the Desert. Welcome Eric and Michelle to the “Spirit Family” — we’re glad you are here!
Read MoreApril 1, Census Day, is a key reference date for the 2020 Census—not a deadline. You can still respond after that date, and the deadline has been moved to fall of 2020.
The Arizona and Nevada Census 2020 websites, loaded with resources, are https://census.nv.gov and https://azcensus2020.gov/be-counted.
Bahney Dedolph, Deputy Director with the Arizona Council of Human Service Providers, shares words of encouragement on how we can lift our low response rates.
Read MoreMiloy Canete, Director of Worship and Music with Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church in Goodyear is offering 50+ copies of With One Voice books for any sister congregations who wants it. You can pick it up at the church office or arrange to have it delivered. Call the church office at (623) 932-2394.
Read MoreIn a time of physical distancing due to the coronavirus, ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton reminds us that we aren’t islands—we are united in baptism.
In her May column, she writes: “We don’t have to go it alone. In fact, we cannot, because, in Christ, we are knit into one body. And just as surely as Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one—this wildly mysterious community of the Trinity—so are we one.” Read her column in English at https://bit.ly/2Wh5fjr and in Spanish at https://bit.ly/2yAdqxW.
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