On Monday, April 9, 1945, Dietrich Bonhoeffer was hanged in a concentration camp in Flossenburg, Germany, for his role in a conspiracy to assassinate Adolf Hitler. A week earlier, on April 1, the wider world had celebrated the news that Jesus “is not here; for he has been raised” (Matthew 28:6).
Read more about Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s subversive witness in Living Lutheran.
Read MoreIn her April column for Living Lutheran, Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton writes about Easter and Earth Day, reminding us that we are redeemed, reconciled and reunited in the beauty of the Creator’s loving handiwork.
Read her column in English at https://bit.ly/3uR9fFu and in Spanish at https://bit.ly/3wXV9UA.
Read MoreThe Weekly Online Gathering for ELCA Leaders continues this Wednesday, April 21, 2021, 12pm MST and PDT. Links to the meeting at elcacoaching.org, as well as archives. Join Zoom meeting here.
Growing Young: Prioritize Young People (and Families) Everywhere - Rachel Alley and others.
Read MoreWe thank the 70 active and retired rostered ministers who checked in with Bishop Hutterer via our annual rostered minister reports. Your feedback is crucial in weaving the fabric of our synod. And your answers to financial questions help us promote the financial health of our leaders.
There’s still an opportunity to respond. Send in your report today! It takes just a few minutes.
Read MorePriscilla Paris-Austin, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Seattle, sees her commitment to racial justice and equity work as a “both/and” imperative involving personal and systemic change. Here, she shares a reflection on how her experiences led her to her work in inspiring and achieving the God-given dream of liberating love.
Read MoreELCA World Hunger is excited to share a new opportunity from Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary’s Center for Climate Justice and Faith.
The Center’s work focuses on helping leaders learn about sustainability, caring for creation and working for justice so that all can enjoy the abundance of God’s creation.
Read MoreThese grants are intended to help congregations become vital and healthy by defining their values, strengthening their mission, noticing their context, and evaluating their ministry. Click to download the application as a Word document.
We hope that you and your community will be innovative and think outside the box. Applications are due by April 20, 2021.
Read MoreLutheran Disaster Response gives an update on several Middle Eastern countries with humanitarian crises.
Read MoreAs this pandemic draws on and we sometimes lose track of our schedule, Presiding Bishop Eaton assures us that no matter where we are or what we are doing, we are in the right place and surrounded by God’s presence.
Read MoreA year ago, their rehearsal was one fo the first documented superspreader events. But tragedy and isolation couldn’t keep their voices apart. Read or listen to the article and hear their music.
Read MoreThe Weekly Online Gathering for ELCA Leaders continues this Wednesday, April 14, 2021, 12pm MST and PDT. Links to the meeting at elcacoaching.org, as well as archives. Join Zoom meeting here.
The Eisenhower Matrix: Managing Time and Priorities in a Too-busy World, with The Rev. Dana Peterson, DEM for the Rocky Mountain Synod.
Read MoreFeel the call to be a leader? Know someone who would make a good leader?
Learn more on our nominating page about open positions on synod council, job descriptions, and info on Churchwide assembly. Elections to fill these positions will take place at the 2021 Synod Assembly on June 12, 2021.
Read MoreWe pray for Rev. Allen Cassel and the people of Peace Lutheran Church in Peoria, part of the Cactus Conference. Visit their site at peaceaz.org and their YouTube page.
Read MorePastor Pam Reynolds was installed at Lord of Life Lutheran Church, Sun City West, on Saturday, February 6, 2021.
We reprint an inspiring letter Pastor Reynolds wrote just before she was ordained from the church’s newsletter, Lifelines. Read it below or in this PDF.
Read MoreGenerous scholarships for congregations are available for congregations interested in the Stewardship for All Seasons program. Learn how to do year-round, ongoing stewardship, which results in more money for ministry.
For more information and a brochure about the program, please visit gcsynod.org/stewardship-for-all-seasons.
Read More“The risen but scarred body of Christ is the ultimate signifier of divine empathy,” writes Peter Wehner in this opinion letter.
Read MoreIn conjunction with the amazing audio/video technicians and Bruce Ewing at Community Lutheran in Las Vegas, we are putting together a virtual choir as part of the 2021 Grand Canyon Synod Assembly.
The deadline to sign up for virtual choir sign up is April 30, 2021, limited to 80 people. Learn more on our virtual choir page.
Read MoreI used to sell insurance. During that time, I learned that most car accidents occur within five minutes of home. Why? We’re overconfident in a familiar place. The most common collision isn’t caused by another person: it is us driving, on autopilot, into a neighbor’s parked car. Ask me. I’ve done it.
At this point in the pandemic, I believe we are in a similar situation. As we return to “normal,” we think we’re safe, and our old habits return. Tired from a year of pandemic, we stop practicing the vigilance and best behaviors that kept us safe on our long and strange journey.
Read MorePrescott’s Daily Courier ran an article featuring Pastor Tricia Lowe of Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Prescott Valley. The article, For Christians, COVID-19 darkness illuminates Easter blessing of eternal life, is available on their website and in this PDF.
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