Advent Pilgrimage in Palestine is a four-week virtual pilgrimage from the ELCA’s Peace Not Walls, Young Adult Ministry, Arab and Middle Eastern ministry, and ALAMEH featuring young adult voices from the ELCA and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land.
Read MoreAre you looking for stewardship resources to fuel your ministries and your imagination? Here are three places to find guidance and support:
Public figures, from social media influencers to celebrities to politicians, talk about how “woke” they are. The term has developed more layers of meaning in the past few years.
Read MoreELCA Worship shares their news for November, 2022, featuring: Prompts for Prayers of Intercession, Readings for the Assembly (Emended) is available for provisional use; All Creation Sings; Resources for multi-religious ministry; Common prayer at the World Council of Churches, 11thAssembly; Lutheran Summer Music Program; Music that Makes Community, and worship resources from Augsburg Fortress.
Read MoreTaking Faith Home (TFH) is an annual resource that provides a weekly guide for faith-filled conversations during the church year. Here are some of its key features:
Based on the Revised Common Lectionary used by many congregations
Gives examples of each of the Four Key faith practices (caring conversations, devotions, service, and rituals and traditions)
Includes a weekly prayer, Bible verse, mealtime prayer, and blessing
Offers suggested daily Bible readings and Hymn for the week
Executive certificate in religious fundraising from the Lake Institute on Faith & Giving, Wednesdays from Jan. 4 through March 8 (except for Ash Wednesday), with a smaller cohort meeting an additional day each week. The course is offered at a steep discount for parish deacons and ministers, at only $550. Contact Rev. Larry Strenge or Rev. Timothy Brown with questions. Learn more here.
“Learning Donor Motivations” stewardship webinar, Monday, Jan. 30, 2023, 6 p.m. Central time.
According to Wikipedia, politics, from the Greek politika (“affairs of the city”), is the set of activities associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. It’s jarring to see such a definition because politics is currently far from what it was intended to be.
Read MoreWe’ve updated our Congregations in Transition page with an updated manual (PDF, Word) created by a joint effort of the Grand Canyon and Rocky Mountain Synods.
Read MoreA common challenge regarding stewardship is finding organic ways to speak about it. The following upcoming readings this Advent and Epiphany are just a few hooks on which a stewardship thought might hang: Matthew 24:36-44, Nov. 27; Matthew 3:13-17, Jan. 8, 2023; and Matthew 5:13-20 | Feb. 5, 2023.
Read MoreThe gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke all have sections where Jesus makes dramatic predictions about things that will happen in the future. Because these things seem to be hidden from general knowledge and are being revealed as special information to Jesus’ followers, they are called “apocalyptic” sayings. These terms “apocalypse” and “apocalyptic” are Greek words meaning “uncovering” or “revealing.”
Read MoreWelcome to the first issue of “Where Your Heart Is,” the new stewardship newsletter of the ELCA (subscribe here).
In the coming months and years, I hope we not only dig into some of the things valued in our lives, both personal and collective, but also highlight the important and honest fact that all of life is an act of stewardship, from our first breath to our last. How do we use our days?
Read MoreIn this Living Lutheran article, 1517 Media’s Dawn Rundman recommends three books: The Wit of Martin Luther; Baptized, We Live: Lutheranism As a Way of Life; and Luther the Reformer.
Read MoreA worship resource for Veterans Day includes prayers, hymn suggestions, and other ideas. Both PDF and Word versions are available at elca.org/Resources/Worship#Liturgy.
The resources may be used and adapted as needed for Veterans Day observances or in weekly worship on the Sunday closest to November 11. To learn more about caring for returning veterans, resources are available from the ELCA Federal Chaplaincy Ministries.
Read MoreAs we prepare for the upcoming election season, the ELCA understands government as a means through which God works to preserve creation and build a more peaceful and just social order in a broken world. We share resources to help clarify how churches can appropriately be involved in elections and advocacy.
Read MoreThe ELCA provides this PDF resource, provided to assist congregations in this time surrounding a national election. The readings, prayers, and assembly song suggestions could be used in settings such as prayer vigils, as part of Morning or Evening Prayer, as part of regular weekly worship in the weeks preceding or following an election, or devotions at home or in other settings.
Read MoreI’ve lived in both cities and in the country–and in a few different states. There are commonalities among people everywhere I’ve lived. Most people want the best for themselves, their families, and the world. But we disagree on what that looks like and how we can bring it about.
Read MoreSometimes we experience a tension in life. We want to see ourselves in a position of superiority, thinking of ourselves as better than “other kinds of people”. But we also feel a pull toward humility and a stance of shared humanity with all people. Resentment may come into play. We are tempted to dehumanize those we resent, maybe even punish them.
Read MoreWe share the video and resources from our Creating Communications Connections webinar on Tuesday, 10/11/2022. Brian Flatgard, Director of Communications, presented an overview of communications basics and strategy. Watch the webinar here with the passcode: 0mCcG5?g
View ELCA congregational communication tools and branding, view our synod’s communication guidelines, and this great principles of design article.
Read MoreI keep thinking about the people’s determination in the Ukraine. It has been nearly eight months since the invasion began. Ukraine’s population is forty-four million compared to Russia’s one hundred forty-four million. This giant has attacked them, and it has not been as easy as Russia had hoped. What makes the Ukrainians continue to resist?
Read MoreFor 2023, the Grand Canyon Synod is offering two categories of grant applications: Project Support Grants, and Adapting, Connecting, Transforming, and Sustaining (ACTS) Grants. More info at gcsynod.org/grants.
Resources and a recording from our info meeting about the 2023 Grand Canyon Synod Grants are now available. View a PDF of the slides, and click here to view the Zoom recording, using this passcode: S$5$Hnqj
Read More