Each week Religion News Service presents a gallery of photos of religious expression around the world. View the slideshow here.
This week’s photo selection includes the first anniversary of a deadly blast in Beirut, Lebanon, Olympic moments and more.
Read MoreWe pray for Rev. Sarah Stadler and the people of Grace Lutheran Church in Phoenix, part of the Capital Conference. Visit their site at graceinthecity.com, and their social media pages on Facebook and YouTube.
Read MoreAnita Fete Crews, Director of Blessed Tomorrow, shares this letter, which includes recently released action sheets.
Join the discussion on the next Connections Call sponsored by Lutherans Restoring Creation, which will advocate for the reduction of greenhouse gases for the health of all. Tuesday, 8/17/2021, 5 pm MST/PDT.
Join them as they discuss the development of a Sample Memorial to go to Churchwide Assembly 2022 asking our ELCA Advocacy office to specifically advocate that government leaders and public servants prioritize a reduction of greenhouse gases by 50% no later than 2030. More info here.
Read MoreWe share this article from Reuters: Global warming is dangerously close to spiralling out of control, a U.N. climate panel said in a landmark report Monday, warning the world is already certain to face further climate disruptions for decades, if not centuries, to come.
Humans are "unequivocally" to blame, the report from the scientists of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said. Rapid action to cut greenhouse gas emissions could limit some impacts, but others are now locked in. Read the full article.
Read MoreKelly Sherman-Conroy writes, “As the Team Leader of MYLE (Multicultural Youth Leadership Event) and group of amazing leaders of color who I am graciously working alongside, we want everyone to know what MYLE is so that this life changing opportunity for our youth of color can experience a Beloved Community like no other.”
Read MoreThe Spirited Book Club discusses Kurt Struckmeyer's radical 'way' of Jesus in A Conspiracy of Love: Following Jesus in a Postmodern World. Thursday, 8/19/2021, 2 pm. Register at the bottom of our calendar listing.
Read MoreWe pray for the family of Elijah Defassio, who died unexpectedly August 4, 2021. Elijah is the son of the Rev. Dr. Daniel Defassio, pastor at Shepherd of the Desert, Sun City, who entered the church triumphant on January 22, 2021.
We pray for Elijah’s mother Suzy, and Elijah’s family and friends. Read his obituary here, and contribute to a fundraiser here.
Read MoreJeff Musfeldt recently became the Lutheran representative on the BeConnected Faith Network Advisory Committee. Encouraging faith communities to support service members, veterans and their families is a major focus of the Arizona Coalition for Military Families (see www.arizonacoalition.org.) We thank Jeff for all of his service, both to country and our church.
Read MoreRev. Dr. Megan Rohrer will be installed as the fifth Bishop of the Sierra Pacific Synod on Saturday, 9/11/2021 at 2 pm MST/PDT Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, CA.
Your prayers and presence are requested at the livestream on this special site: spsbishopinstallation.com. Read their profile at Living Lutheran.
Read MoreMany bishops have had interesting and varied career paths to their current calls. But most of those paths don’t travel through Hollywood. But before entering ministry, she spent 18 years working in production for Warner Bros. Television.
Brenda Bos of Glendale, Calif., was elected June 5 to serve a six-year term as bishop of the Southwest California Synod.
Read MoreJust as the Olympians are surrounded by family, friends, mentors, and entire countries, we too are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. This week, Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton encourages us to "run like the wind."
Read MoreAll Creation Sings includes several short songs that can be taught “paperlessly,” that is, singing together without printed or projected words or music for worship.
This kind of singing is often ideal for small retreats or outdoor settings in addition to weekly worship. This post guides you to several audio-video resources.
Read MoreAs the world faced the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, Pastor Ken Nyhusmoen took to his keyboard, writing inspiring devotionals to share with the people of Desert Hills Lutheran Church of Green Valley, Arizona.
Pastor Nyhusmoen now makes these devotionals available to everyone in Each New Day: Meditations During Challenging Times. Available in a variety of formats on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Google Play.
Read MoreReligion News Services provides this slideshow highlighting the many faiths of Olympic athletes in Tokyo. “The religious variety is sometimes stated and visible, and sometimes not. Here are a few of the images from the Games where we spotted the intersection of religion and sports.”
Read MoreOn Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021, congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America will join together for “God’s work. Our hands.” Sunday.
Bishop Eaton invites your congregation to join this annual day of service and celebrate who we are as the ELCA ― one church, freed in Christ to love and serve our neighbor. Learn more and plan your day at ELCA.org/DayofService.
Read More'Faith communities are really good at doing this, walking with people through adversity until they get out the other side,' she said. Read the story from Religion News Service.
Read MoreFor the past few years, each newsletter shows what our team is doing in that week, with three bullet points for each person. We’re expanding this section, continuing with summaries for each person, but providing opportunities for expansion on their week if they desire. We hope this provides you with more insight into your synod.
We have an upcoming Grand Canyon Synod Council meeting, and Bishop Hutterer and Pastor Jacqui are traveling to House of Prayer and NELM in Rock Point. Pastor Miguel meets with First Evangelical Lutheran council in Mesa. View all the details for each team member in this post.
Read MoreMountain View Lutheran in Phoenix seeks part-time Children's Music Director to lead their Joyful Noiz Children’s Choir (youth choir 2nd grade and up) and contribute to the spiritual development of children through high quality and energetic music. View job description as PDF and download a job application form at mvlutheran.org/jobs by September 4, 2021.
Read MoreIt’s been a few months since I wrote about Covid. I had hoped, like all of you, that we were past this virus.
We want to be done with Covid, but Covid isn’t done with us. It’s a phrase we hear a lot lately, as the Delta variant spikes the number of reported cases in the United States to 100,000 per day, eerily repeating last winter’s trajectory.
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