ELCA Youth Gathering Raises More Than $1 Million
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The 2006 Youth Gathering of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) offered about 40,000 Lutheran youth and adults the opportunity to participate in a variety of stewardship programs. The gathering took place in two back-to-back events in San Antonio, Texas. Some 15,000 young people, chaperones and...
New Jersey Bishop, Denomination Leaders Address Welfare Reform
WASHINGTON, D.C. (ELCA) -- The Rev. E. Roy Riley Jr., bishop of the New Jersey Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), Hamilton Square, testified July 19 before the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee about the outcomes of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA)...
ELCA Offers Resources for Possible Flu Pandemic
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Domestic Disaster Response of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) has prepared resources for congregations in event of a flu pandemic. Although avian flu is currently limited to fowl and is only occasionally transmitted to people in close contact with infected birds, infectious disease experts indicate...
Staff of ELCA-supported center in Lebanon lose homes
by Katherine R. Hinck*, ELCA News Service The homes of three staff members of the Contact and Resource Center (CRC), Beirut, Lebanon, were destroyed as a result of air and artillery strikes in Lebanon. CRC, an institution that provides support for people with disabilities, is financially supported by the Evangelical...
Carbon monoxide caused death of retired ELCA pastor
by Frank Imhoff, ELCA News Service An autopsy confirmed July 17 that the Rev. Walter J. Vierling, 91, a retired pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), Pearisburg, Va., died July 14 of carbon monoxide poisoning, according to The Roanoke (Va.) Times newspaper. Vierling was staying in a...
'Servant Life' Projects Highlight ELCA Youth Gathering
SAN ANTONIO, Texas (ELCA) -- Participants in the 2006 Youth Gathering of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) logged tens of thousands of hours in service to this city and other parts of Texas. A key piece of the Youth Gathering was the "Servant Life: As A Way of...
ELCA Disaster Response to distribute funds for Middle East, Indonesia
by Katherine R. Hinck*, ELCA News Service International Disaster Response (IDR) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Global Mission is distributing funds to provide aid for the Middle East and the Indonesian island of Java. According to a July 17 IDR announcement, the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah...
ELCA Presiding Bishop Addresses Middle East Crisis
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In a July 17 pastoral letter to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) regarding the Middle East conflict and escalating military action that has now expanded into Lebanon, the ELCA presiding bishop said he will continue to call on the international community and the U.S. administration...
ELCA Pastor's Death at Roanoke College is Under Investigation
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Walter J. Vierling, 91, a retired pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), Pearisburg, Va., died July 14 while attending "Power in the Spirit," an annual conference sponsored by the ELCA Virginia Synod, at Roanoke College, Salem, Va. His death is being investigated...
ELCA Presiding Bishop Urges Lutheran Youth to 'Speak the Truth'
SAN ANTONIO, Texas (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), encouraged participants in the 2006 ELCA Youth Gathering to "speak the truth" as God's witnesses in the world. Hanson carried the theme throughout his sermon at the concluding worship service...
International speakers, performers highlight ELCA Youth Gathering
by John R. Brooks, ELCA News Service Participants in the Youth Gathering of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) were treated to an international evening featuring speakers from Guatemala and Sudan, a dance troupe from Ramallah, and a popular Christian rock band from Australia. The gathering is taking place...
ELCA College Experiences Carbon Monoxide Leak, One Death
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A carbon monoxide leak early July 14 in a dormitory at Roanoke College, Salem, Va., caused almost 100 visitors to be treated at Roanoke-Salem area hospitals. One death was reported, but carbon monoxide poisoning may or may not have been the cause. Roanoke is one of 28...
Lutheran Youth Organization Delegates Act on Resolutions
SAN ANTONIO, Texas (ELCA) -- More than 300 delegates attending the Lutheran Youth Organization (LYO) convention here acted on a series of proposals, addressing such issues as Lutheran unity, prayer, peacemaking, advocacy, the ONE campaign, the conflict in Darfur, immigration and world hunger. The delegates met July 9-12 at the...
LYO Convention Delegates Elect Officers, Board for 2006-2009
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS (ELCA) -- Delegates attending the Lutheran Youth Organization (LYO) convention here July 9-12 elected a team that will lead the youth of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) until the organization's next convention in 2009. LYO represents the high-school-age members of the ELCA. More than 300...
Lutheran Youth Organization Greeted by Variety of Supporters
SAN ANTONIO, Texas (ELCA) -- More than 300 delegates attending the Seventh Triennial Convention of the Lutheran Youth Organization (LYO) here July 9-12 heard a variety of greetings from partners and friends from throughout the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC). LYO...
Suzanne Gibson Wise elected chair of Lutheran Services in America
by Katherine R. Hinck*, ELCA News Service Suzanne Gibson Wise, president and chief executive officer, Lutheran Family Services in the Carolinas, Raleigh, N.C., was elected chair of the Board of Directors of Lutheran Services in America (LSA) during the 2006 LSA Annual Conference April 26-28. LSA, one of the largest...
Tranquebar Mission Restored After 300 Years of Lutheran Ministry in India
TARANGAMBADI, India (ELCA) -- Thousands of Tamil people joined international guests and Lutheran church leaders July 8-9 here at the Tranquebar Mission on the southeast coast of India, where German missionaries Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg and Heinrich Pluetschau arrived July 9, 1706. The Tamil Evangelical Lutheran Church (TELC) marked the 300th anniversary...
Lutheran Disaster Response reports continued recovery efforts
by Katherine R. Hinck*, ELCA News Service In the Northeast United States, communities continue flood recovery efforts. Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR), a ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and Lutheran Church- Missouri Synod, also reported that several Lutheran congregations in Maryland and the Washington, D.C., area were affected...
ELCA Youth Gathering Offers Life-Changing Experiences
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS (ELCA) -- Throughout the 2006 Youth Gathering of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), high-school-age participants have had a variety of life-changing experiences, said Heidi Hagstrom, director of the ELCA Youth Gathering. More than 15,000 youth and adults gathered July 5-9 to participate in events at...
Bishop of ELCA Rocky Mountain Synod calls for "common good" on immigration
by Melissa Ramirez Cooper, ELCA News Service As Colorado legislators meet in a special session that started July 6 to debate immigration policy, the Rev. Allan C. Bjornberg, bishop of the Rocky Mountain Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, issued a statement calling on state legislators to "resist...
