ELCA Takes Action to Address Food, Health Crisis in Zimbabwe
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The economic, political and social decline
in Zimbabwe has taken a disastrous toll on the country's food
supply and medical institutions, including four hospitals of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Zimbabwe (ELCZ). To help sustain
the services of the hospitals, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America (ELCA) is providing $600,000 to the ELCZ. The ELCA is
allocating another $330,000 for the purchase of 90 metric tons of
seed and fertilizer to help secure food...
Alton Zenker, Former Lutheran Bishop, Dies
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Alton Zenker, former bishop
of the Central/Southern Illinois Synod of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), died Nov. 12 at his home
in Hot Springs Village, Ark. He was 75.
A funeral service is planned for Nov. 19 at Immanuel
Lutheran Church, (Flatville) Thomasboro, Ill. Christ Lutheran
Church, Hot Springs Village, will hold a memorial service
on Nov. 24.
"He was a significant example of faithful ministry, an
articulate mentor on...
Lutherans Approach the Holiday Season with 'Good Gifts'
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA) is offering consumers the opportunity for one-stop
shopping this holiday season with exclusive gifts that not only
support the mission and ministry of the church but that are
designed to help change lives around the world and close to home.
"ELCA Good Gifts," the church's 2007-2009 giving catalog,
features 32 pages of gift ideas designed to end world hunger,
invest in future leadership, share the gospel, bring ...
Lutheran-Roman Catholic Dialogue Continues 'Hope of Eternal Life' Theme
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The U.S. Lutheran-Roman Catholic Dialogue
added to its current round of meetings on the topic of "Hope of
Eternal Life" a new study on the sacrament of the Eucharist. The
Oct. 10-14 session at St. Paul's College, Washington, D.C., was
the sixth of Round XI in the historic relationship between
Lutherans and Catholics that began 43 years ago at the end of the
Second Vatican Council.
Dialogue participants have explored beliefs and practices
related to eternal ...
ELCA's Grand View College Becomes Grand View University
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Trustees of Grand View College, Des
Moines, Iowa, voted Oct. 10 to change the institution's name to
Grand View University when its first graduate program received
final accreditation. The Master of Science in Innovative
Leadership program was accredited Oct. 29 and Grand View became a
university.
Grand View is one of 28 colleges and universities of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).
Kent L. Henning, president, Grand View University, held...
ELCA European American Lutheran Association Constituted
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Forty Lutherans of European descent met
here Oct. 30-Nov. 1, approved a constitution and bylaws for a
new European American Lutheran Association (EALA) of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), and elected
officers and a board for the new organization.
"The European American Lutheran Association is a group of
white Lutherans who seek to dismantle structures within the
ELCA that give privilege to white people and disadvantage
people of color," said...
ELCA Board of Pensions Told to 'Stay the Course'
MINNEAPOLIS (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America (ELCA) Board of Pensions trustees at their meeting here
Oct. 30-Nov. 2 discussed both the current economic situation and
health care issues.
Regarding pension investments, John G. Kapanke, president,
ELCA Board of Pensions, told the trustees, "It's very important
to keep our bearing ... to stay the course." He said the Board
always has taken a diversified, disciplined approach. Kapanke
cited the past 20 years a...
ELCA, ELCIC Bishops Prepare for Middle East Visit January 6-13
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Sixty of the 66 bishops of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the ELCA secretary, and five
of the six bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
(ELCIC), Winnipeg, plus spouses and staff will visit the Middle
East, Jan. 6-13, 2009. Participants will meet with Israeli,
Jordanian and Palestinian religious, community and political
leaders, visit congregations and schools, and sites of religious
significance.
The visit is the 2009 Bishop...
Worldwide Lutherans Commemorate Anniversary of Luther's Baptism in Eisleben
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The congregations of Lutherstadt Eisleben
are celebrating the 525th anniversary of Martin Luther's Baptism
Nov. 11, 2008, with a worldwide "Baptism Festival." Martin
Luther was born Nov. 10, 1483, in Eisleben, Germany. As was the
custom, Hans and Margarethe Luther brought their son the next day
to be baptized at St. Peter Church.
Martin Luther went on to become a monk, theologian,
university professor, church reformer and "father" of the
Protestant Reformat...
Augsburg Fortress Publishers Announces Changes in Business Model
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Augsburg Fortress, the publishing ministry
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA),
Minneapolis, announced Nov. 7 significant changes in its business
operations. The publisher will focus its ministry on its "two
most important callings"-- group-use materials for congregations,
such as faith formation and worship materials, and textbooks and
monographs for higher education, said Beth A. Lewis, Augsburg
Fortress president and chief executive officer.
...
Global Lutheran Communion Congratulates U.S. President-Elect
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, president of the
Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and presiding bishop of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and the Rev. Ishmael
Noko, LWF general secretary, sent a letter of congratulations
Nov. 5 to U.S. Senator Barack Obama, D-Ill., on his election to
become the 44th president of the United States.
Speaking of an "historic moment" for the country, Hanson and
Noko commended Obama's passionate commitment to overcoming
racial...
ELCA Develops Plan to Help Reconstruct Sichuan, China, after Earthquake
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA) has developed a $1.6 million plan to help reconstruct
areas of China's Sichuan Province devastated by an earthquake
that struck earlier this year. The earthquake killed 69,227
people, left an estimated 18,222 people missing and some five
million people homeless.
Long before the earthquake, the ELCA had been engaged in
ministry and accompaniment with Chinese Christians, particularly
in the cities of Chengdu an...
ELCA Presiding Bishop Appeals to President-Elect Obama
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA),
congratulated President-elect Barack Obama on his election and
appealed to him to establish priorities for his administration.
The presiding bishop wrote in a Nov. 5 public statement that
Scripture is clear about what should matter to Christians:
"hospitality to strangers, concern for people in poverty,
peacemaking and care for creation."
In the statement, Hanson w...
ELCA Radio Ministry Features Kathleen Kennedy Townsend
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, former
lieutenant governor of Maryland and the eldest child of
Ethel and Robert F. Kennedy, is the featured guest Nov.
9 on "Grace Matters," the radio ministry of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America. The Rev. Peter W. Marty, host
and senior pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church, Davenport,
Iowa, interviewed Townsend about the influences that
shaped her life of "human rights, civic responsibility
and Christian love."
"I think i...
Lutheran Communion Issues Pastoral Message on Global Financial Crisis
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The executive committee of the Lutheran
World Federation (LWF) issued a pastoral message on the global
financial crisis denouncing the collective failure of
responsibility and accountability on the part of governments,
financial institutions and business leaders, and urging LWF
member churches to stand in solidarity with the people most
affected. The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, LWF president and presiding
bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), chaired
th...
ELCA Presiding Bishop Says Church Must Be Heard in Complex Situations
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Faith-based organizations such as the
Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and its leaders must not relent
on their responsibility to agitate for multilateral solutions
that ensure fair and just lending and borrowing practices
globally, said the Rev. Mark S. Hanson. Hanson, presiding
bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), and LWF
president, made the remarks at an international consultation on
illegitimate debt Oct. 21-23 in Oslo, Norway.
"We must ...
ELCA Radio Ministry Features Head of John Deere
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Robert W. Lane, chairman and chief
executive officer, John Deere, Moline, Ill., is the featured
guest Oct. 26 on "Grace Matters," the radio ministry of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The Rev. Peter W.
Marty, host and senior pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church,
Davenport, Iowa, interviewed Lane on subjects ranging from
integrity to legacy.
"My grandparents and my parents were people of great
faith," Lane said. "I was taught fortunately throughout...
ELCA Presiding Bishop Speaks on the U.S. Presidential Election
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding
bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), expressed
a "high expectation for our public discourse" in the closing
weeks of the U.S. presidential campaign.
In an Oct. 16 pastoral letter issued to the ELCA,
Hanson wrote, "Instead of personal attacks, I appeal to the
McCain and Obama campaigns and related message groups to bear in
mind and recall for all of us the situations of our sisters and
brothers who will su...
Theaters, Channel to Show Historic Film about Lutherans, Civil Rights
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Special showings of "A Time for Burning"
in Nebraska and New York will coincide with its broadcast on
the Documentary Channel. "A Time for Burning" is a landmark
civil rights film featuring the struggles of Augustana Lutheran
Church, Omaha, Neb., in 1965, and its pastor, the Rev. L.
William Youngdahl.
The 58-minute black-and-white documentary, produced and
released in 1966 by Lutheran Film Associates, was reissued on
DVD in 2005 by Docurama Films. "A Time f...
Stewardship Tips for Congregations in a Time of Financial Crisis
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The fall is generally a time when many
congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA) invite members to make an annual financial pledge or
estimate of giving to the church. But given the current economic
downturn in the United States, some Lutherans may find it
difficult to remain steadfast in their giving as the Sunday
morning offering plate travels across the pew.
"Financial downturns create uncertainty and fear," said Ed
Kruse, ELCA di...
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