Give thanks for nurses, who care for our physical, emotional and spiritual needs in diverse settings, including hospitals, community clinics, congregations, schools, home care, the military, facilities for older adults, health education programs and global mission. Pray for the Evangelical Lutheran Parish Nurse Association and its work supporting, equipping and encouraging parish nurses across the country.
Read MoreCome join fellow Phoenix Fusion friends as we gather together via Zoom on Monday, Aug 17th @ 6:30 pm to discuss the movie, The Hate U Give (PG-13, preview here), based on Angie Thomas’ novel. Register for the Zoom Meeting here. Facilitated by Pastor Brent Maxwell, Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Paradise Valley.
Read MorePhoenix Fusion is in the midst of four sessions on advocacy, which can be seen as a series or on their own, Thursdays at 6:30 pm. Hosted by Pastor Sarah Stadler and friends, you can find more info and Zoom links on their Facebook event page.
8/13/2020 6:30 pm: How do bills become laws, and how can we participate in the process?
8/20/2020 6:30 pm: What are best practices for communicating with lawmakers?
8/27/2020 6:30 pm: What is LAMA (Lutheran Advocacy Ministry of Arizona), and how can we participate in it?
Diakonia classes start on September 7, 2020, and three information night sessions are scheduled for anyone to attend: Tues., 8/18/2020 7 pm (Zoom Link); Weds., 8/19/2020 6:30 pm (Zoom Link); Mon., 8/31/2020 6 pm (Zoom link).
The Grand Canyon Synod Diakonia program (diakoniaaz.org) is a means to prepare lay leaders in changing times to support the mission of the church with wisdom and understanding in accordance with our Lutheran understanding of who God is and how God works.
Read MoreOur Saviour’s Lutheran in Tucson is looking for a Facilities Technician. View the job description and please remit your resume to Kathryn at admin@lutherantucson.org for consideration.
Read More“How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” Ask God to help us proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ and salvation, that all who hear will believe, be saved and enjoy the blessings of being a sibling in Christ with believers throughout the world.
Read MoreJoin Valley Interfaith Project and the Arizona Faith Network in urging the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry (ADCRR) and Arizona Department of Health Services (DHS) to protect prison staff, inmates, and their families during the COVID-19 crisis.
On Tuesday, it was reported that half the population of the Whetstone Unit of the Arizona State Prison Complex, 517 individuals, have tested positive for COVID-19. Learn more and sign a petition for a testing blitz and other measures to control the virus in Arizona prisons.
Read MoreSylvia Haddad, the executive director of the Department of Service to Palestinian Refugees (DSPR), shares a personal account of her experience with the Beirut explosion on August 4, 2020.
Read MoreWe are grateful for the life and ministry of President Adita Torres, Lutheran Church of Peru. Adita died of COVID-19 on her 61st birthday, August 10, 1959-2020. May she be welcomed to the communion of saints with the same love she offered on earth. God bless her memory.
An interview posted on The Lutheran World Federation site sheds light on her work in Peru, and Bishop Michael Rinehart, Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast Synod, shares a remembrance.
Read MoreLutherans Restoring Creation is preparing a creation focused video worship service utilizing the lectionary texts for Pentecost 16 that congregations can download and use, available by Monday, 9/14/2020.
Bishop Elizabeth Eaton, The Rev. Dr. Barbara Rossing, Rev. Lenny Duncan, Rebekah Bruesehoff, and others will participate, with music provided by Marty Haugen, the Rev. Dr. Leah Schade, and John Tirro.
Read MoreThe image became emblazoned in my memory: a group of Muslims prostrating in prayer at Tahrir Square while a group of Christians formed a ring around them, holding hands to protect them, and looking outwardly to give them privacy.
Read MoreTom Cunniff, ELCA General Counsel, gives some guidance on inquiries about church employees (particularly ministers) taking leave to care for children.
Read MoreBecause of the pandemic, the Congregational Vitality Training Conference is online and free, and runs August 2020–January 2021 (view PDF brochure). With the registration deadline coming up, contact Miguel Gomez-Acosta to get the registration link as soon as possible.
Read MorePray that we will listen carefully to God and be receptive to the ways God speaks to us each day, especially when we least expect it or are slow to recognize God’s voice amid the noise and competing voices in the world.
Read MoreRev. Paul Gehrs writes: “I write to you from Treaty 1 Territory: the land of Anishinaabeg, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota, and Dene Peoples, and on the homeland of the Métis Nation. I acknowledge that from time immemorial, Indigenous Peoples have lived as stewards and defenders of this land; this work is ongoing.”
Read MoreThis year marks the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther's treatise The Freedom of a Christian. Bishop Eaton invites the church to read, study and reflect on this Lutheran witness of the Christian faith.
To commemorate the anniversary, the ELCA has developed a study guide as a companion to the treatise, available as a PDF at elca500.org.
Read MoreIn her August column for Living Lutheran, Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton says, “Darkness and blackness and night are too often contrasted with lightness and whiteness and day, and found deficient.” She wants us to “consider the beautiful dark works of God.” Read her column in English at https://bit.ly/3gF21O4 and in Spanish https://bit.ly/2PnQ9Ef.
Read MoreGive thanks to God for leaders — paid and volunteer — who serve in youth, young adult and family ministries in our congregations and synods. Pray for the ELCA Youth, Young Adult and Youth Gathering ministries and the ELCA Youth Ministry Network, that their collective work of supporting, equipping and nurturing faith and of connecting leaders and young people will yield abundant fruit.
Read MoreWhen we gather for worship, we gather to be sent. One need that surfaced as part of the development process of All Creation Sings was a desire for more hymns and songs connected to the Sending.
Learn more by reading the full article here; viewing a list of the contents of All Creation Sings as well as a digital preview, or listening to a sample song, Let Us Enter In, recording by Bread for the Journey.
Read MoreThe Rev. Virginia S. Aebischer, Columbia, S.C., was elected during an online assembly to serve as bishop of the South Carolina Synod. The Rev. Herman Yoos has served as bishop of the South Carolina Synod since 2008 and will retire Aug. 31.
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