ELCA Worship shares their monthly newsletter for July 2022, viewable online or as PDF.

Greetings in this Time after Pentecost.

We are in the final weeks before the 2022 ELCA Churchwide Assembly, gathering in Ohio, Aug. 8-12, under the theme "Embody the Word." Worship will be central to the work of the assembly. Each day participants will gather for worship including Holy Communion on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday; a Service of Word and Prayer on Tuesday; and Morning Prayer on Thursday. The worship moves through an arc that begins in the wilderness honoring where we have been as church over these last years, then into lament and repentance, and on to mission and sending. The assembly schedule, including worship times, is available on the Churchwide Assembly website. You may participate in worship remotely through the livestream, which will be available at the same website.

In peace,
Deacon John E. Weit
Executive for Worship

P.S. If you have not already been using them, consider these prayers for worship in the weeks leading up to and following the assembly.

Prompts for Prayers of Intercession

As events in the world unfold, you may want assistance in contextualizing the prayers of intercession. ELCA Worship provides “Prompts for Prayers of Intercession” each Wednesday on its Worship Blog and links to them from its Facebook page. For additional resources for crafting intercessions, visit this annotated list.

All Creation Sings

The All Creation Sings family of resources is available for purchase from Augsburg Fortress. This includes the Pew Edition, Leaders Edition and Accompaniment Edition. Newly available is the volumeIndexes to Evangelical Lutheran Worship and All Creation Sings. This revised edition of Indexes to Evangelical Lutheran Worship has been expanded and supplemented with new material from All Creation Sings.

You can learn more about All Creation Sings at its webpage, now with user-friendly filtering capabilities that enable you to more easily access informative articles, teaching videos and webinar recordings. Downloadable introductory materials and image files are also available, as are links to all ACS-related products.
Spanish resources available at Sundays and Seasons

All Creation Sings includes a fully bilingual setting of Holy Communion (Setting 11/Liturgia 11). To support use of this liturgy as well as Evangelical Lutheran WorshipSetting Seven: Santa Comunión, Sundays and Seasons now provides many more hymns and songs in Spanish. In addition to the Spanish and bilingual hymns available in All Creation Sings and Evangelical Lutheran Worship, most hymns from Libro de Liturgia y Cántico are available for download to Deluxe subscribers. Service music (#181-274) is available to both Standard and Deluxe subscribers.

Resources and Events

"The Assembly: A Spirituality"

Gathering with others constitutes the essential symbol of Christianity. This new book from Gordon W. Lathrop calls the church to think about gathering and how to refresh its practice. It articulates why and how the assembly is so important in Christianity, assisting Christian congregations and their pastors to recover vital, participatory, and life-giving in-person worship in these pandemic times.

Lutheran Summer Music Academy Festival of Hymns
July 20 at 7 p.m. (Central time)
In person or online

In partnership with the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians, this year's Festival of Hymns is embedded within Lutheran Summer Music's tradition of gathering for Evening Prayer. Reflections from the late Susan Palo Cherwien, a longtime friend of both ALCM and LSM, will lift up the three pillars of LSM: Music. Faith. Community. Organist Martin Jean(past LSM faculty member) and a variety of LSM musicians will lead the singing, along with a guest appearance from Calmus. For 40 years, the song of the church has been passed on from generation to generation through LSM. Join us online or in-person as we remember and rejoice.

Upcoming ALCM Webinars

"All Things Bright and Beautiful? Singing a Theology of Creation"
Friday, Aug. 12, 2 p.m. (Eastern time)

Michael Hawn asks: Is your congregation singing a robust theology of creation, ecological care, and environmental concerns? Hymn writers through the centuries provide a record of the church's theology of creation. He will begin with St. Francis of Assisi and conclude with hymns written in the 21st century.

"A Mighty Fortress: Copyright Reporting as a Commitment to Justice"
Friday Sept. 9, 2 p.m. (Eastern time)

Dr. Katie M. Deaver and Sierra Ronning of ONE LICENSE address questions about worship planning and copyright concerns. They will cover some copyright basics and explain why reporting music usage is truly a justice issue. They will also share insider tips and tricks for searching and reporting through your ONE LICENSE account.

Conference on Worship, Theology, and the Arts
"SCATTER the IMAGINATION of our HEARTS"
St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minn.
July 25-28

Under the theme "Scatter the Imagination of Our Hearts" (Luke 1:51), St. Olaf College's Conference on Worship, Theology, and Arts (CWTA) invites you to reflect on how the people of God can challenge, change, and inspire others, especially as faith communities imagine new responses to the twin pandemics of COVID-19 and structural racism. In-person and virtual track registration is still available. Click here for more information.

Journey to Baptismal Living:
North American Association for the Catechumenate
Journey to Baptismal Living is an ecumenical community of Christians seeking to support formation in discipleship by exploring the meaning of baptismal identity, faith, and mission.
Members offer training programs and events to develop skills and resources for baptismal preparation and for deepening faith in baptismal living. Sign up to receive information about events and resources.