Rev. Paul Gehrs writes: “I write to you from Treaty 1 Territory: the land of Anishinaabeg, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota, and Dene Peoples, and on the homeland of the Métis Nation. I acknowledge that from time immemorial, Indigenous Peoples have lived as stewards and defenders of this land; this work is ongoing.”
Read MoreIn her August column for Living Lutheran, Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton says, “Darkness and blackness and night are too often contrasted with lightness and whiteness and day, and found deficient.” She wants us to “consider the beautiful dark works of God.” Read her column in English at https://bit.ly/3gF21O4 and in Spanish https://bit.ly/2PnQ9Ef.
Read MoreIn their Camp Without Campers, Rocky Mountain Synod’s Sky Ranch shares life in quarantine for their staff, which is using the opportunity to work on the physical property and dig deep into their own worship.
If you would like to access any of their other virtual resources, you can find them here: https://skyranchcolorado.virtual-camp.org/
Read MoreWe continue out 50·40·10 celebration with a video from Pastor Connie Mentzer, Advent Lutheran, York, Pennsylvania. She shares her story of Bishop Eaton’s influence on her ministry.
Read MoreAs an intern with the Lutheran Office for World Community, I have the incredible opportunity to “sit-in” on virtual meetings to observe the UN and civil society members actively wrestle with the world’s greatest challenges.
An intersectional lens is largely maintained in conversations, making it clear that existing inequalities like racism and xenophobia create differentiated experiences within a crisis.
Read MoreDj McCoy and Kristen Theile write to us from Community Lutheran Church, in Las Vegas, where their youth ministry is a diverse group located on the East side. Their youth have been wanting to speak out about the sin of racism and where we are called as a church to respond.
Read MorePastor Lars Hammar writes: Open Space Church is grieving the first death of one of our members, Kyle May, 30 years old. He died mid-July in his home town of New Jersey while there to attend his brother’s funeral. Kyle had a joyous and free-wheeling spirit about him, and his loss has been full of grief for the community at Open Space. Your prayers are appreciated.
Read MoreOn behalf of the Grand Canyon Synod Diakonia, Mike Reed writes to thank church leaders for responding to Diakonia’s survey, and is happy to report great interest in lay leadership in congregations.
Read MoreWe continue out 50·40·10 celebration with a message from Pastor Sarah Anderson-Rajarigam, Grace Lutheran, Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania. She shares who helped her get where she is today.
Read MoreELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton’s weekly message talks about the effect COVID-19 will have on the ability to feed our struggling neighbors, and implores us to act now.
You can help by letting your elected leaders know the importance of including funding for critical feeding programs in the $1 trillion COVID response bill in congress. https://ELCA.org/COVIDaction
Read MoreA few years back I started memorizing poetry. I was reading a lot of it then, and it felt like I needed those words to be with me though out my days, and not just in the mornings when I had time to sit down with a book.
Read MoreWe continue out 50·40·10 celebration with a message from Pastor Elizabeth Ekdale, St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, San Francisco. Her message: Take more risks, be a prophet.
Read MoreIt has been a while since I wrote about in-person gathering for worship. I was waiting for certainty before I grabbed my pen. I was waiting for clarity from the federal government and the CDC, from health scientists, and from our state health departments and governors. I waited for a common-sense consensus amongst the citizens of our nation. I turned to the books of wisdom in the Old Testament, hoping for a revelation.
I am still waiting.
Read MoreIn response to the government of Israel’s plan to annex parts of the West Bank, Bishop Eaton calls on the church to accompany the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land in being a disturbing presence for peace through prayer, action, and advocacy with our elected leaders.
Read MoreLutheran Campus Ministry, which was a life preserver for me. I saw first-hand how students were hungry for a place to be heard and ask questions about life and faith. I saw students blossom and grow—they are leaders in the church today.
Read MoreIn her weekly message, Bishop Eaton reminds that when we are tired to remember we are church together and the words of Paul: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us.”
Read MoreRev. Dr. Carl E. Braaten shares this letter, Faith Active In Love During This Deadly Pandemic. Braaten also recently published a book, The Christian Faith: Ecumenical Dogmatics.
How should we as believers in Christ and members of his church act during this deadly pandemic? I have heard people say this pandemic is unprecedented; we’ve never encountered anything like this before. It’s true, we haven’t, those of us living here and now. But history tells us that plagues and epidemics have been around since time immemorial.
Read MoreMike Reed, with the Diakonia Program, reminds rostered leaders that Diakonia graduates will be calling in the next few weeks to ask about lay leadership and how the Diakonia program might help in ministry.
Read MoreToday I am grateful for essential workers.
I get glimpses of positive moments in this pandemic. One is the realization for me and many others that these workers—so often invisible or ignored in our society—are in fact essential and deserve more than our recognition.
Read MoreOn July 1 Kairos Palestine and Global Kairos for Justice, a worldwide coalition born in response to the Kairos Palestine “Moment of Truth: a word of faith, hope, and love from the heart of Palestinian suffering,” issued an urgent call to Christians, churches and ecumenical institutions: “Cry for Hope”.
We share this with you as an authentic voice of Palestinian Christians and encourage you to read and study it.
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