CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Stanley N. Olson was elected June 10 to a second six-year term as bishop of the Southwestern Minnesota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) during the synod's assembly at Gustavus Adolphus College, St. Peter, Minn.
On the assembly's third ballot Olson received 410 votes to 202 for the Rev. Randy S. Chrissis, Christ the King Lutheran Church, Hutchinson, Minn., and 71 votes for the Rev. Harvey L. Nelson, Zion Lutheran Church, Litchfield, Minn. A two-thirds majority was required for election on the second ballot and a simple majority on subsequent ballots.
On March 5, conference assemblies nominated a slate of six candidates for bishop. The Rev. Lee R. Harder, Our Savior's Lutheran Church, Lamberton, Minn., and the Rev. Allan E. Johnson, Augustana Lutheran Church, Gibbon, Minn., were also nominated. The Rev. Ron J. Freimark, Trinity Lutheran Church, Sleepy Eye, Minn., withdrew from the election before the first ballot.
The synod assembly designated the Rev. Darold H. Beekmann as "bishop emeritus." Beekmann served as the synod's first bishop until he became president of the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg, Pa. He is retiring this year from that position.
The ELCA was formed in 1988 from three Lutheran church bodies. The Rev. Charles D. Anderson succeeded Beekmann in 1990 and retired in 1994, when Olson was elected bishop.
Born in Eagle Grove, Iowa, Olson, 54, is a graduate of Waldorf College, Forest City, Iowa; St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minn.; Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minn.; and Yale University, where he earned a Ph.D. in New Testament.
Olson served as pastor of Our Savior's Lutheran Church, New Ulm, Minn., First Lutheran Church, Duluth, Minn., and Bethesda Lutheran Church, New Haven, Conn. He taught New Testament for four years at Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary, St. Paul, Minn.
Olson and his wife Nancy are the parents of two daughters -- Maren and Christa.
The Southwestern Minnesota Synod includes more than 138,000 Lutherans in 280 congregations across 29 Minnesota counties. Synod offices are in Redwood Falls.
EDITORS: The name "Darold H. Beekmann" is spelled correctly.
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John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html
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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.
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