Grand Canyon Synod

News

8/25/2020 Online Gathering: Grief and Lament

8/25/2020 Online Gathering: Grief and Lament

Grand Canyon Synod active and retired rostered leaders are invited to a one hour time for learning and conversation around grief and lament in our lives and ministries. Please set aside time on Tuesday, Aug. 25 at 2 pm. Register in advance for this meeting.

As rostered leaders going through ministry at this time in our daily lives Pastor Brenda Smith will guide us and teach us spiritual practices that will keep in grounded in God’s loving embrace. Please have a bible and candle available.

News, Leader ResourcesBrian FlatgardAugust 13, 2020Comment

Last change to register for Beginning a Culture of Generosity

Last change to register for Beginning a Culture of Generosity

Register by August 15, 2020 for Beginning a Culture of Generosity and reap the benefits of this one-time only program established for your fall stewardship season in this unprecedented year of pandemic.

This program, from the consulting firm GSB Fundraising, is just $150 with a $500 scholarship from 3E and the Grand Canyon Synod to each congregation.

Stewardship, Leader ResourcesBrian FlatgardAugust 13, 2020Lilly 3E, 2020 Beginning a Culture of GenerosityComment

8/13/2020 Prayer: Give thanks for nurses

8/13/2020 Prayer: Give thanks for nurses

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.

Prayers, Leader ResourcesBrian FlatgardAugust 13, 2020Daily PrayerComment

Movie Night Discussion: "The Hate U Give"

Movie Night Discussion: "The Hate U Give"

Come 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.

NewsBrian FlatgardAugust 12, 2020Northeast Valley Conference, Racial Justice, Phoenix Fusion, Gloria Christi Federated Church - Paradise ValleyComment

Phoenix Fusion presents Advocacy 101 sessions

Phoenix Fusion presents Advocacy 101 sessions

Phoenix 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?

News, Z AdvocacyBrian FlatgardAugust 12, 2020Phoenix Fusion, Grace Phoenix, Capital Conference, Lutheran Advocacy Ministry Arizona (LAMA)Comment

Diakonia info sessions available for upcoming fall classes

Diakonia info sessions available for upcoming fall classes

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.

News, Leader ResourcesBrian FlatgardAugust 12, 2020Diakonia, Lay LeadershipoComment

POSITION FILLED: Facilities Technician needed at Our Saviour's, Tucson

POSITION FILLED: Facilities Technician needed at Our Saviour's, Tucson

Our 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.

Help WantedBrian FlatgardAugust 12, 2020Our Saviour's Tucson, Kino ConferenceComment

8/12/2020 Prayer: Ask God to help us proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ and salvation

8/12/2020 Prayer: Ask God to help us proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ and salvation

“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.

Prayers, Leader ResourcesBrian FlatgardAugust 12, 2020Daily PrayerComment

An urgent call to control COVID-19 in Arizona prisons

An urgent call to control COVID-19 in Arizona prisons

Join 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.

Z AdvocacyBrian FlatgardAugust 11, 2020Arizona Faith NetworkComment

Disaster Strikes: A Firsthand Account from Beirut

Disaster Strikes: A Firsthand Account from Beirut

Sylvia 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.

LettersBrian FlatgardAugust 11, 2020Comment

In Memoriam: Adita Torres, Lutheran Church of Peru

In Memoriam: Adita Torres, Lutheran Church of Peru

We 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.

In Memoriam, PrayersBrian FlatgardAugust 11, 2020Lutheran World Federation Comment

Save the Date: 9/20/2020 Creation focused video worship service

Save the Date: 9/20/2020 Creation focused video worship service

Lutherans 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.

Leader ResourcesBrian FlatgardAugust 11, 2020Lutherans Restoring Creation, Climate ChangeComment

Rev. Dr. Carmelo Santos: The Freedom of a Christian to Love Interreligiously

Rev. Dr. Carmelo Santos: The Freedom of a Christian to Love Interreligiously

The 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.

LettersBrian FlatgardAugust 11, 2020Ecumenical and Inter-Religious RelationsComment

Church employees and the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA)

Church employees and the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA)

Tom Cunniff, ELCA General Counsel, gives some guidance on inquiries about church employees (particularly ministers) taking leave to care for children.

Leader Resources, Z Covid-19Brian FlatgardAugust 11, 2020ELCA Attorneys AssociationComment

Congregational Vitality Training Online

Congregational Vitality Training Online

Because 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.

Leader ResourcesBrian FlatgardAugust 11, 2020Comment

8/11/2020 Prayer: Pray that we will listen carefully to God and be receptive to the ways God speaks to us each day

8/11/2020 Prayer: Pray that we will listen carefully to God and be receptive to the ways God speaks to us each day

Pray 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.

Prayers, Leader ResourcesBrian FlatgardAugust 11, 2020Daily PrayerComment

Season of Creation: A Journey of Discipleship

Season of Creation: A Journey of Discipleship

Rev. 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.”

Letters, Leader ResourcesBrian FlatgardAugust 10, 2020Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations, Climate ChangeComment

ELCA commemorates 500th anniversary of Luther’s "The Freedom of a Christian"

ELCA commemorates 500th anniversary of Luther’s "The Freedom of a Christian"

This 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.

Brian FlatgardAugust 10, 2020Bishop Elizabeth Eaton, The Freedom of a Christian, 500 yearsComment

Bishop Eaton: Dark Works

Bishop Eaton: Dark Works

In 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.

LettersBrian FlatgardAugust 10, 2020Living Lutheran, Bishop Elizabeth EatonComment

8/10/2020 Prayer: Pray for the ELCA Youth, Young Adult and Youth Gathering ministries and the ELCA Youth Ministry Network

8/10/2020 Prayer: Pray for the ELCA Youth, Young Adult and Youth Gathering ministries and the ELCA Youth Ministry Network

Give 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.

Prayers, Leader ResourcesBrian FlatgardAugust 10, 2020Daily PrayerComment