Check out the latest photos and updates from the Office of the Bishop for this week.
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Bishop Hutterer joins Bishop Yehiel Curry of the Metro Chicago Synod in ordaining Pastor Ruby Myers, who has accepted a call to Trinity Lutheran Church in Phoenix, Arizona. Pastor Ruby's Ordination Service will be at Zion Lutheran Church (17100 69th Ave, Tinley Park, IL 60477) on Saturday, 11/13/2021, at 11 am Central. A reception will follow in the Zion Center.
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The Spirited Book Club discusses Unlearning God: How Unbelieving Helped Me Believe by America's favorite Quaker storyteller, Philip Gulley. Thursday, 11/18/2021, 2pm MST, 3pm PST. The online club is FREE, view our calendar page to register.
America’s favorite Quaker storyteller explores the terrain of faith and doubt as shaped by family, church, and young love, finding his way to a less convenient but fully formed adult spirituality.
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Do you come home from a trip with a new best friend? Have you ever prayed with someone in line at the grocery store? Do you know the life stories of all of your Lyft drivers? Do you talk to your neighbors about Jesus? If these scenarios ring true for you, you might be a hidden evangelist!
Join ELCA’s Phil Hirsch and Louise Johnson on Zoom Tuesday, 11/9/2021 at 6 pm MST, 7 pm PST, for a lively conversation with people who have a similar passion for sharing Christ’s love. Register today.
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Over the past 25 years, thousands of good Samaritans in our community have given their blood, sweat and tears to the agency I am blessed to lead..
I am proud to announce that our 25th Anniversary Gala raised over $68,000 for Lutheran Social Services of Nevada, making this our most successful fundraising event ever. These funds will all go directly back into support for LSSN’s vital programs, including providing nearly 10,000 meals to people in need through the DigiMart Food Pantry, purchasing three months of hot, nutritious meals for the Heart of the City Senior Meal Program, housing and supportive services to stabilize four families, and more.
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We pray for Rev. Adam Barnhart and the people of Shepherd of the Hills Evangelical Lutheran Church in Flagstaff, part of the High Country Conference. Visit their site at sothflagstaff.org and their YouTube page.
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During the all-virtual 2021 Vine Deloria Jr Theological Symposium at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC), presenters will talk about the intersection of Indian boarding schools and theological/Christian education as well as the work being done across the United States to bring truth and healing. Other+Wise is a co-sponsor of the symposium.
Register here for the online symposium on Nov. 16 and 17 2021. Events will also be livestreamed on LSTC’s Facebook page.
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Many congregations are just now getting ready to attend the 2022 ELCA Youth Gathering, so you aren’t behind! We’ve put together a list of 10 things you should know as you prepare to get your group together. For more information, go to elca.org/gathering.
Pastor Shari Bernau, with Living Water Lutheran in Scottsdale, is also happy to answer questions from those who are attending the Gathering from the Grand Canyon Synod: pastorshari@lwlcaz.org.
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“Pastors are concerned at the disproportionate presence of QAnon believers in their churches,” says Pastor Ed Stetzer, Executive Director of the Billy Graham Center at Wheaton College. “Pastors ask me regularly how do I address this in my church? We’ve all been taught in seminary not to politicize the pulpit.“
“People are being discipled by their cable news choices, spiritually shaped by their social media feed, and the result is they’re saying well if I believe this, I want to hear this on Sunday. The implications for the Christian Church and its witness are substantial.”
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We pray for Rev. Steven Crittenden and the people of Epiphany of Christ Lutheran Church in Apache Junction, part of the Rio Salado Conference. Visit their site at epiphanyofchristlutheran.org, and their social media pages on Facebook and YouTube.
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Meet the Rev. Amy Reumann in person at the Lutheran Advocacy Ministry Arizona (LAMA) Summit at Spirit in the Desert Retreat Center in Carefree, AZ on Sunday, December 5 from 1:30–4 pm MST. Hear about advocacy churchwide, ask questions, and leave prepared to voice our common needs in the public square. Register here.
Why are we called to be involved in advocacy? In the short video in this post, ELCA Advocacy: Set Free to Do Justice, the Rev. Amy Reumann, director of Advocacy for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the advocacy staff and community leaders in Washington, D.C. describe this important ministry and how you can get involved.
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Join us for the inaugural Faith Network quarterly meeting via Zoom: November 5, 2021, 10:00–11:30am MST. Register at bit.ly/BCFNMeeting. View a PDF for the event and an info PDF about the organization.
Clergy and volunteers are invited to attend to learn why and how the faith community can make a big difference for military-connected Arizonans.
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Enjoy Thanksgiving afternoon in the cool crisp pines of Prescott with good food and good company. Make Camp ALOMA a part of your holiday tradition this year.
Mark your calendars to enjoy thanksgiving dinner at Camp ALOMA! Thursday, November 25, 12:00pm dinner, 2:00pm worship service. Donations accepted. RSVP 928-778-1690 or office@campaloma.com.
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A worship resource for Veterans Day is available in PDF and Word formats and includes several prayers and hymn suggestions that may be incorporated in worship on the Sunday closest to Veterans Day, Nov. 11.
Congregation resources for Veterans Day and care for veterans can be found on ELCA.org.
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The Lutheran movement has a distinctive voice. The world has been saved and redeemed through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and it’s not our effort but God’s. And it’s a gift! Bishop Eaton encourages us to revisit the small catechism this Reformation Day and recall the Lutheran exposition of the gospel.
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In this post we share a vide of the online benefit for ELCA World Hunger, where Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton and guidebook author and travel TV host Rick Steves celebrate World Food Day! Steves interviews people on the ground who do the dynamic work of fighting hunger around the world. If you'd like to give a gift, visit ELCA.org/EndHunger.
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The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Foundation today announced the relaunch of its Endowment Fund Pooled Trust — also known as Fund A — under a new name, the Ministry Growth Fund, which better represents the foundation's goals for the future.
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Can seasonal members vote in our annual meeting? Can I hold an electronic meeting? Where do I find the ELCA model constitution? How do I revise our congregation constitution?
Join ELCA Secretary Deacon Sue Rothmeyer and Pastor David Brandfass for a Zoom workshop on congregation constitutions. All congregational leaders are invited: Thursday, 12/2/2021, 5-6:15 pm MST, 6-7:15 pm PST. Click here to register by 11/29/2021.
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After fielding back-to-back complaints about masks in church—one regarding a fellow parishioner who had shirked a mask during a recent service and the other wondering whether our congregation had changed its policy from “strongly recommended” to “required,” because “everyone” was wearing them—I realized something surprising: Leading a church is harder now, in 2021, than it was in 2020, during the worst of the coronavirus pandemic.
Last year, state and diocesan mandates meant I could throw up my hands and respond, “Sorry, not up to me.” And anyway, the answer was, for the most part, a straightforward “no”—no, we can’t gather for services, and no, we can’t sing. Now it is up to me, the rector of St. David’s Episcopal Church in Richmond, Virginia, and I am struggling to find a way forward. Read the full article in The Atlantic.
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The October 2021 issue of Living Lutheran focuses on Intergenerational Ministry, with several articles and perspectives on the topic. The primary article shares many resources, including an interview with Linda Staats of the Generosity Project, as well as photos from the Grand Canyon Synod.
View the article online or in its magazine format, and find the study guide here.
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