In my life, the amount of hope I find Easter morning has always been related to the depth of the Lenten journey before. The glorious Sunday morn is not possible without the nights of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.
Two Easters ago, the reality of the pandemic truly hit the church. And if you look at Lent through the lens of giving something up, it can feel as if we’ve had two years of Lenten fasting from normalcy.
Read MoreAlong with updates from the team, in this update we share photos from Bishop Hutterer’s visit to preach at Emmanuel Sudanese in Glendale, where she recognized Solomon Kuch as the congregation leader.
Read MoreAs I approach the end of my Lenten journey, I see the Grand Canyon Synod has many places of holy ground. I have experienced holy ground when in conversation with candidates hoping to enter seminary and with candidates near graduation, waiting to interview with a congregation.
I am on holy ground when I visit our various congregations to preach, preside, meet church leaders, and participate in conversations in special congregation meetings.
Read MoreThere are a handful of spots remaining for the Grand Canyon Synod Holy Land Trip, led by Bishop Deborah K. Hutterer and Rev. Mark Holman.: January 2-11, 2023. View information on the trip here and view a PDF here.
The trip also includes an optional 3-days post-tour excursion to Jordan, January 11-14, 2023. A waiting list will be available for those who try to reserve after the trip’s limit is reached.
Read MoreIn this updates we share photos from last week’s “Synod on the Move,” where a number of the Office of the Bishop staff traveled to southern Arizona for a variety of events. We also share what the team is up to in the upcoming days.
Read MoreAs part of Synod on the Move, Bishop Hutterer, Rev. Jacqui Pagel, and Rev. Pat Reed journey to southern Arizona this weekend for a variety of events, including the Installation of Rev. Michael Sager at Desert Hills Lutheran in Green Valley, gathering with active pastors and deacons and Hotel Congress, conversations with retired rostered ministers at Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, as well as preaching at Santa Cruz, Abounding Grace, Mt. Zion, and attending other meetings.
We also share photos from Bishop Hutterer’s visits last week to Mount of Olives in Phoenix and Casa De La Misericordia y de Todas las Naciones (House of Mercy and of All Nations) in Nogales, a service of Cruzando Fronteras.
Read MoreSouthern Arizona area retired pastors and deacons are cordially invited for coffee, donuts, and conversation with Bishop Deborah Hutterer on Saturday, March 26, 2022 from 10:30am to noon MDT at Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, 1200 N Campbell Ave, Tucson, AZ 85719.
Please RSVP to Theresa Thornburgh (office@gcsynod.org) if you plan to attend. The Bishop is very much looking forward to meeting with you!
Read MoreBishop Hutterer and Pastor Jacqui Pagel will attend Faith Formation In A Secular Age, the Luther Seminary event at Living Water with Dr. Andy Root. As usual, staff travels around the synod to preach and visit.
At our in-office staff retreat on Wednesday, we were visited by Rev. Lisa Kipp, who updated us on the latest relief efforts by Lutheran World Relief.
Read MoreBishop Hutterer visits Cruzando Fronteras, Rev. Miguel Gomez-Acosta preaches at Epiphany of Christ Lutheran in Apache Junction, and Rev. Jacqui Pagel preaches at Community Lutheran in Bullhead City. Read all the updates from the staff in this weekly post.
Read MoreBishop Hutterer attends the Conference of Bishops, with others in the Office of the Bishop attending leadership meetings and preparing for synod assembly. Photos from the Inauguration of Cal Lutheran president Lori E. Varlotta, as well as the Conference of Bishops, are also in this post.
Read MoreAs part of our Monday meetings, the Office of the Bishop staff recently discussed The Forgotten Luther, a series of three books edited variously by Carter Lindberg, Paul Wee, Ryan P. Cumming, and Conrad Braaten.
True to its name, the premise of the series is to reclaim the Martin Luther’s oft-forgotten voice for socio-economic justice. Martin Luther addressed the crises of the day on the basis of Scripture with pioneering theology. The series calls us to do the same.
Read MoreBishop Hutterer travels out of state for events, with others in the Office of the Bishop preaching and attending leadership meetings. Photos from Bishop Hutterer’s visit to Our Saviour's Lutheran in Buckeye are also in this post.
Read MoreOpenings are still available for the Grand Canyon Synod Holy Land Trip, led by Bishop Deborah K. Hutterer and Rev. Mark Holman.: January 2-11, 2023. View information on the trip here and view a PDF here.
Read MoreThe installation of Rev. Michael Sager as senior pastor of Desert Hills Lutheran Church in Green Valley is Sunday, 3/27/2022 at 3pm MST/PST.
Bishop Hutterer will preside. Clergy are invited to vest and process.
Read MoreThe installation of Lourdes Olson will be Saturday, 2/26/2022, 5pm PST, 6pm MST, at New Song Lutheran in Henderson. There will be a reception after worship and a concert featuring Opera On Tap at 7:00pm.
Read MoreWe thank the 78 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.
Send in your report today! It takes just a few minutes.
Read MoreThe Office of the Bishop staff attends many leadership meetings across the synod and ELCA in the coming days. Photos from Bishop Hutterer’s visit to Covenant Lutheran in Quartzite are also in this post.
Read MoreYour valuable partnership through your mission support to the Grand Canyon Synod meant we were able to do many amazing things in 2021. You can read about these achievements in this post.
Your statements of intent (PDF statement of intent in English, PDF statement of intent in Spanish) are due 2/15/2022. Thank you for your gifts and partnership as we are church together for the sake of the world.
Read MoreThe Office of the Bishop staff will be at the upcoming synod council meeting, and catching up on paperwork and reports and meetings. Check this post for photos from the latest ordinations and installations.
Read MoreMembers of the Office of the Bishop joined other Lutherans and partners at the Lutheran Advocacy Day at the Arizona Legislature this week.
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