CHICAGO – The Rev. William T. Tesch, Sioux Falls, S.D., was elected June 9 to serve a six-year term as bishop of the Northwestern Minnesota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The election took place during the synod assembly, held June 7-9 at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minn.
Tesch was elected on the fifth ballot, with 265 votes. The Rev. Genelle Netland, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Bemidji, Minn., received 161.
The bishop-elect has served as director for evangelical mission with the ELCA South Dakota Synod since 2009. He served as assistant to the synod bishop from 2007 to 2009, as pastor of Messiah New Hope Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls, S.D., from 1992 to 2007, and as pastor of St. Peter Lutheran Church in Madison, S.D. from 1989 to 1992.
Tesch received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin in Madison in 1984 and a Master of Divinity from Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minn., in 1989. Luther is one of seven ELCA seminaries.
Tesch will be installed Sept. 8 in Moorhead.
The Rev. Lawrence R. Wohlrabe has served as bishop since 2007 and will retire Aug. 31.
Information about the ELCA Northwestern Minnesota Synod is available at nwmnsynod.org/.
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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
