DENVER (ELCA)-- Representatives from the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) brought greetings to the 1999 Churchwide Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and thanked the ELCA for its partnership.
The churchwide assembly, the chief legislative authority of the ELCA, met here Aug. 16-22 at the Colorado Convention Center. There were more than 2,500 people participating, including 1,038 ELCA voting members. The theme for the biennial assembly is "Making Christ Known: Hope for a New Century."
"God calls us to use our hearts, hands and lives to help others," said Ralston H. Deffenbaugh Jr., LIRS president, New York.
Deffenbaugh thanked the ELCA and all who "help to make this witness to our God whose mercy does not stop at our borders." He listed uprooted people, immigrants and asylum-seekers as those LIRS serves.
"All people are God's creatures. We have a responsibility to the dignity of all," Deffenbaugh said.
More than 1,600 Kosovar refugees have been resettled in the United States through the efforts of LIRS, he said, adding that he is "overwhelmed" with requests to help Kosovars.
This year LIRS celebrates its 60th anniversary. Lutherans have helped more than 275,000 people "make a new start," Deffenbaugh said. After living in the United States for six months, 97 percent of refugees are employed and "making a contribution," he said.
Deffenbaugh announced the upcoming move of the LIRS headquarters from New York to Baltimore.
The Rev. Ishmael Noko, LWF general secretary, brought greetings from the federation's 128 member churches in 70 countries.
Noko thanked the ELCA for "quality cooperation, partnership and support. "We have walked together," he said, adding that the ELCA has provided strong leadership on the international level.
Noting the ELCA's recent approval of full communion with the Moravian Church in America and The Episcopal Church, and those who may not agree with the decision, Noko said, "It's a time for healing. I hope that this church is big enough, that there is enough space for this to happen. Your sister churches are with you at all times."
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html
- - -
About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
