MINNEAPOLIS (ELCA) -- The diversity of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America (ELCA) is well-represented by the Minneapolis Area and
Saint Paul Area Synods, said the Rev. Peter Rogness, bishop of the Saint
Paul Area synod and the Rev. Craig E. Johnson, bishop of the Minneapolis
Area Synod.
The churchwide assembly, the chief legislative authority of the
ELCA, is meeting here Aug. 17-23 at the Minneapolis Convention Center.
About 2,000 people are participating, including 1,045 ELCA voting
members. The theme for the biennial assembly is "God's work. Our hands."
"It is with great joy that I greet you from our church in the
Minneapolis and St. Paul area synods," Johnson said. "On behalf of the
167 congregations in the Minneapolis Area Synods and the 114
congregations in the St. Paul Area Synod and the 13 congregations in our
synods that are developing, I bring you a great welcome."
The two synods have worship services in Sudanese, Liberian, Laotian,
Ethiopian, Spanish, Swahili, American Sign Language, and Chinese every
Sunday, Johnson said.
"Lest we forget those with less exotic tastes, a Norwegian-speaking
congregation is a two-iron shot from this convention center," he added.
The Minneapolis and Saint Paul Area synods have more than 375,000
baptized members; the state of Minnesota has 975,000 baptized members.
"What that means is that every person that you meet on the street is
a fellow ELCA Lutheran," Johnson said. "That is why I have to be so nice
all the time and I beg that of you (while you are here)."
Rogness described the church as an orchestra that performs in
harmony.
"Harmony doesn't come easily," he said, "Sometimes its cacophony;
bad sound. The church has always played different, different notes."
The two host synods, in coordination with Tree Trust, also gave a
gift of 66 trees -- 65 in the names of the 65 ELCA synods and one in the
name of the church as a whole to continue efforts to make the 2009
Churchwide Assembly environmentally responsible, Johnson said.
Tree Trust is a non-profit organization in the Twin Cities Area
founded in 1976 to address the problems of loss of the urban tree canopy
because of Dutch Elm disease and the high unemployment and poverty rates
for youth and adults.
The trees will be planted in the fall of 2009.
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Information about the 2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly can be found at
http://www.elca.org/assembly on the Web.
Information on Tree Trust can be found at http://www.treetrust.org
on the Web.
* Carrie L. Draeger is a senior communication major with a concentration
in journalism at Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, Wash. This summer
she is an intern with the ELCA News Service.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news
ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog
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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.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
