Right off the bat we see why Hallmark has a robust industry in Christmas cards and not Advent cards. “Happy Advent, You Brood of Vipers” might not sell too well as a holiday card, but these words are certainly a wake-up call for the audience of John the Baptizer.
Read MoreAfter a two-year pause during the COVID-19 pandemic, ELCA’s Young Adults in Global Mission (YAGM) program is getting ready to send volunteers out into the world again!
Young adults aged 21 to 29 can apply now for an international service year that will shape their faith, career, identity and understanding of how they fit into God’s work in the world. Watch the video in this post and then more and apply at ELCA.org/YAGM.
Read MoreYou are invited to join ELCA Coaching at 1pm Central on Wednesday, December 15, as we host faith leaders (both rostered and lay) across the nation for a unique experience exploring Courageous Leadership with two faith leaders with over 60 years between them! We are honored to have Rev. Arne Jessen and Baird Linke as ELCA Coaches as well. Log-in info here.
Read MoreThe ELCA has posted guidance for congregations who received ballots or who are otherwise entitled to vote on the Boy Scouts of America bankruptcy plan. Please note that this is not legal advice and that, due to the nature of our polity, the ELCA cannot dictate what congregations do.
Click here for the Summary of Select Information about the Boy Scouts of America Bankruptcy Case, updated December 6, 2021. You can find this and more sexual misconduct resources on the ELCA legal resource page.
Read MoreFeeling stressed? Stressful times often lead to unkind words and actions toward one another. Bishop Eaton reminds us to consider Luther’s explanation to the 8th commandment: We are to fear and love God so that we don’t tell lies about our neighbors, betray or slander them or destroy their reputation. Instead we are to come to their defense, speak well of them and interpret everything they do in the best possible light.
Read MoreEighty years ago, on a beautiful Sunday morning, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, was tragically transformed from an island paradise into a bloody battlefield. After the Japanese bombed the U.S. Navy, war was declared and tragedy ensued. During times like these, the Lutheran church has always trusted our chaplains to bring a ministry of Word and Sacrament — to remind people that, no matter how difficult the circumstances, there is always a way toward peace.
Read MoreWe pray for Rev. William Phillips and the people of Christ Lutheran Church in Las Vegas, part of the Colorado River Conference. Visit their site at christlasvegas.org, and their social media pages on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter.
Read MoreIn a July 30, 2021, news release, the IRS issued a call for entities with an Employer Identification Number (EIN) to ensure that the IRS has the entity’s current “responsible party” on file. The IRS believes maintaining current responsible party contact information is critical to its efforts to fight identity theft and other fraud related to EINs. View the form here.
Read MoreBishop Eaton offers a prayer for World AIDS Day, December 1, 2021.
Read MoreThis Gathering webinar provides information about one of the program days at the Gathering, Synod Day. For more information about the 2022 Gathering, “boundless: God beyond measure,” visit elca.org/Gathering.
Read MoreI am thrilled to share with you that at the close of our early-bird registration we crossed over the 10,000-person mark for the 2022 ELCA Youth Gathering. It’s exciting and hopeful to know that even during an unusual and tough couple of years, thousands of you are preparing for the Gathering next summer.
Questions? Our Grand Canyon Synod Gathering Coordinator is Pastor Shari Bernau, with Living Water Lutheran in Scottsdale: pastorshari@lwlcaz.org.
Read More"Hunger and Poverty by the Numbers: Where Are We at Now?" is a webinar with Ryan Cumming (ELCA World Hunger) on December 9, 2021, at 5pm MST, 4 pm PST. Registration for this webinar is at forms.office.com/r/iN8KcajcJ4.
The webinars are open to anyone passionate about ending hunger and eager to learn more. In each session, we will dive deeply into the topic, with presentations from ELCA World Hunger staff and partners and time for questions and conversation.
Read MoreFor the victims of the Oxford High School shooting and all victims of gun violence…
For peace between nations…
For equity and justice for all peoples…
For all affected by flooding in the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia…
For human rights activists and organizations…
For judges, lawyers, and all who make far-reaching and life-impacting decisions…
Two years after the original projected date of completion, the Minoru Centre for Active Living in Richmond, VA is open. It’s not every day that a community gets a new center for events with indoor swimming facilities. It’s also not every day that such community centers win international prizes for their accessibility.
Read MoreAll Creation Sings, the worship and song supplement to Evangelical Lutheran Worship, released in late November 2020.
The ELCA Worship Staff would like to know how you’ve gotten to know All Creation Sings since its release last Advent. What is a newly discovered hymn or song that has worked very well in your assembly? Have you used elements of Settings 11 or 12 over this past year?
Read MoreWe are thankful to share a perspective from a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania during the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence.
“Violence and peace are contagious. Maintaining them depends on one’s decision. A family member who has been raised experiencing one of the two is most likely to act the same toward people around them. One act of peace can change a society, and the same of violence.”
Read MoreZechariah’s prophecy in the first chapter of Luke, our reading for this second Sunday in Advent, is sometimes overlooked in favor of the Magnificat of Mary in the same chapter. Mary’s song, which we will read later in Advent, is a theological ode to God, who “lift[s] up the lowly” (Luke 1:52).
Read MoreIn response to the verdicts in the trial of Travis McMichael, Gregory McMichael and William Bryan in Brunswick, Ga., for the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, we offer a word of prayer and healing.
Read MoreAnnual report covers are now available online for congregations that are preparing for their annual meetings. The document includes a letter from Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton, a hymn and litany and a story about how change and creativity have helped shape congregations this past year. The digital covers are available as pages or as spreads and can be found at ELCA.org/SOFIA#relevantresources.
Read MoreThis Advent brings several reasons for hope: children can soon receive vaccinations for COVID-19, many congregations are gathering again in person, families look forward to holiday celebrations. Yet humanity grieves losses and experiences great suffering and forms of oppression, as does the planet itself.
Two new hymns in All Creation Sings that address this, see “Can You Feel the Seasons Turning” and “Abba, Abba, Hear Us” among others in the “Lament” and “Creation” sections.
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