As ecumenical and inter-religious partners, we have a role to play in preparing for the post-pandemic future. We can encourage people to love their neighbors by getting vaccinated – when it is our turn. We can advocate for equitable distribution in the US and globally.
Read MoreMany congregation leaders are asking how they can take advantage of technology to continue to hold necessary meetings to conduct the business of the congregation. The ELCA provides an FAQ of the questions being asked most often (view as PDF). This is also a part of our annual congregation meeting resource page.
Read MoreThroughout the Advent and Christmas season, we highlight submissions to the 2020 Generosity Film Festival.
Pastor Dana Reardon, with First Evangelical Lutheran Church in Mesa, Arizona, shares a story of generosity while reporting live from First Lutheran's Food Bank. This video won the BestCommunity Outreach Story award.
Read MoreDesert Streams Lutheran Church, Surprise, is offering two filing cabinets of choir music, as well as vestments, paraments, choir robes and banners. If interested, contact them at (866) 506-8944 or dslcsurprise@gmail.com.
Read MoreWe finish 2020 grateful for all the ways the people of the Grand Canyon Synod adapted and adjusted. We give thanks for God’s continued faithfulness, and for the generosity that continues unabated, even during a pandemic.
We invite congregations to prayerfully consider what God's call to share from your blessings in support of our joint mission and ministry. Please visit our statement of intent page and let us know your mission support.
Read More“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” Pray that we will support and encourage each other in these good works and disciplines that keep our spirits, minds and bodies healthy and whole.
Read MoreWhat do you get when two lawyers, a Robert’s Rules of Order expert, and a Bishop walk into a Zoom room? A great set of resources for holding your congregation’s annual meeting online!
Visit our annual congregation meeting resources page to see a video of our resource meeting, our Zoom resources, Bryan Daum’s primer covering constitutions and state law, Pastor David Brandfass’s presentation on Robert’s Rules of Order, the ELCA’s FAQs, and our Q&A’s.
Read MoreIn this week’s Story of Faith in Action (SOFIA), we meet Matt Rusch, director of Outlaw Ranch, who started from scratch in building a family camp connecting cultures.
The idea was to make family camp look like the church in South Dakota, which is both multilingual and racially diverse, he said. "We just jumped into this,” he said. “[There was] no model. We [thought], ‘We know God is in the mix, so somehow it will work out.’”
Read MoreLos Posadas This traditional celebration, popular in Mexico and observed by some ELCA congregations, uses lighted paths and processions to follow Mary and Joseph’s journey through Bethlehem in search of lodging. Pray that our recollection of Mary and Joseph’s experience might prompt us to welcome strangers, immigrants and neighbors in need.
Read MoreNow through December 21, the shortest day of the year, Jupiter and Saturn will continue to get closer in the sky. Best time to see is about a half hour after sunset. Check it out and then watch our Longest Night service.
Will they look like one star? Some answers here at earth sky.org. Plus, possible astronomical explanations for the Star of Bethlehem or Christmas star.
Read MoreThe holidays expose underlying family dynamics in many families. Time together, gift giving, and special meals can all offer an opportunity for favoritism among siblings and cousins, or at least the illusion of such.
Read MoreThe 2018 ELCA Youth Gathering is a trip I will forever remember. Becoming a leader in the church is a true gift from God and I cherish my ability to share those gifts with the people of God.
Read MorePresiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton discusses how we ought to heal following the 2020 United States presidential election, perhaps by unifying around one central question: Is the neighbor being served?
Read MoreWhat do our gifts mean, and what impact do they have? Pray for thoughtfulness when we buy gifts, for awareness of who we include and exclude, and for mindfulness of how the money we spend during this time of thanksgiving might fulfill God’s loving, merciful and generous promises.
Read MoreELCA Coaching presents Growing Young: Empathy, Wednesday, December 16, 12 pm MST, 1 pm PST. Links @ elcacoaching.org.
This week, we will hear from Kate and her pastor, Rev. John Gosswein of Family of Christ Lutheran, Kearney, NE, as they share about their congregation who takes their young people and empathy seriously.
Read MoreIn her Christmas message, Bishop Eaton shares a story of gathering with women from Honduras: “I told the young Honduran woman about another young woman who was forced to leave home because of a government decree. She, too, was pregnant and made a long and difficult journey.”
Read MoreThe allegations of medical neglect and invasive gynecological procedures in a privately-run detention center in Irwin County, Ocilla, Ga.—including coerced sterilization—quickly drew disbelief and condemnation worldwide this fall. Far from unique, these shocking allegations echo the historic and current reality of cruel and inhumane treatment towards migrant women.
Read MoreELCA Good Gifts provide an opportunity for you to support the ministries and programs —domestic and global — that mean the most to you and the people you love. Give thanks that our church believes God is calling us into the world together and that, through our generosity and love, we can make a difference.
Read MoreJoin Presiding Bishop Eaton as she lights the candles and says a prayer for the third week of Advent.
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