ELCA Bishops Urge Congress to Oppose Budget Reconciliation
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- All 65 synod bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), plus the presiding bishop, are urging members of the U.S. Congress to oppose any attempt to move forward on the budget reconciliation measures the lawmakers are now considering. Earlier the ELCA announced that 52 bishops...
ELCA Allocates $675,000 to Aid Survivors of Disasters Worldwide
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) allocated $675,000 to help people affected by natural and human-made disasters around the world, according to Dr. Belletech Deressa, director for international development and disaster response, ELCA Global Mission. ELCA International Disaster Response sent $200,000 to Church World Service (CWS),...
ELCA Presiding Bishop's Statement on the Life of Rosa Parks
It is with a sense of great sadness that we acknowledge the passing of Rosa Parks, a courageous woman whose resolve focused our nation's attention on civil rights. It is my hope and prayer that as we remember Rosa Parks' life, her legacy might provide an occasion for us to...
Lutheran Pastor from New Orleans to Help Debut Television Program
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Patrick Keen, Bethlehem Lutheran Church, New Orleans, will be part of the first one-hour "New Morning" television program on the Hallmark Channel on Oct. 31. Keen, a pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), was interviewed days after Hurricane Katrina scattered his congregation...
Women of the ELCA Executive Board Welcomes, Adjusts, Changes
ROSEMONT, Ill. (ELCA) -- The executive board of Women the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the church's women's organization, met here Oct. 20-23 and welcomed a special unit, considered adjusting the time frame of its next major events and changed the way it will undertake anti-racism training. Most units...
Lutheran Men in Mission Takes First Steps in Three-Year Plans
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The first meeting of the Lutheran Men in Mission (LMM) board after the 2005 LMM Assembly and Gathering was a time of orientation and planning. Many of the board's four officers and nine regional representatives were new to their three-year positions when they met here Oct. 21-23....
Lutherans Continue Damage Assessment Following Hurricane Wilma
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Lutheran Disaster Response continues to assess damage and identify the immediate needs of people and communities just hours after Hurricane Wilma struck the southwestern coast of Florida on Oct 24. Lutheran Disaster Response is a ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and Lutheran Church-Missouri...
ELCA Publisher Cautiously Optimistic as 2005 Nears End
MINNEAPOLIS (ELCA) -- Augsburg Fortress, the publishing ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), is more than $1 million ahead of its 2005 sales forecast through September, the board of trustees learned when it met here Oct. 14-15. The news is a significant departure from past financial reports....
ELCA Announces Two Leadership Appointments
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- During its meeting here Oct. 20-23, the executive board of Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) appointed Linda Post Bushkofsky to serve another four-year term as executive director of Women of the ELCA beginning Aug. 1, 2006. The Rev. Charles S. Miller, executive for...
ELCA Presiding Bishop, LWF President Focuses on Ecumenism
SAO LEOPOLDO, Brazil (ELCA) -- Some people find it confusing that Lutherans are involved in many different "full communion" relationships, the Rev. Mark S. Hanson said in a panel discussion on ecumenism here Oct. 13. "I always say that's because our confessions call us to seek deeper unity in the...
ELCA Presiding Bishop, LWF President Visits Brazil
PORTO ALEGRE, Brazil (ELCA) -- In response to emerging fundamental, charismatic movements around the world today, Lutherans must remain secure in the fact that they also have an understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit, the Rev. Mark S. Hanson told leaders of the Igreja Evangelica de Confissao Luterana...
Lutherans Play 'Important Role' Says the President of Chile
SANTIAGO, Chile (ELCA) -- Lutherans have played an "important role" in sustaining humanitarian rights in Chile, particularly during a time of military dictatorship, Ricardo Lagos Escobar, president of Chile, told the Rev. Mark S. Hanson and leaders of Iglesia Evangelica Luterana en Chile (IELCH) (Evangelical Lutheran Church in Chile) and...
ELCA Grants $2 Million to Lutheran World Relief for Sri Lanka
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) awarded Lutheran World Relief (LWR) a $2 million grant to support rehabilitation and recovery work in Sri Lanka, one of the countries hardest hit by the December 2004 tsunami. LWR is the overseas relief and development ministry of the ELCA...
Lutheran Pastor Addresses International Radio Audience
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Debra Samuelson, a pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), will speak Oct. 16 on the "Day 1" radio program. Day 1 is broadcast across the United States and on radio stations in Canada, Nepal, Nigeria and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Samuelson is...
52 ELCA Synod Bishops Urge Congress To Stop Budget Reconciliation
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Saying they are "religious leaders seeking justice for millions of vulnerable and dispossessed people in our nation," 52 bishops representing synods of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) wrote to the U.S. Congress urging members to oppose attempts to move forward on budget reconciliation measures Congress...
ELCA Responds to Two World Disasters
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) allocated an initial $100,000 to assist relief efforts in the aftermath of an Oct. 8 earthquake in Pakistan and another $50,000 toward responses to flooding and mudslides in the wake of Hurricane Stan in Central America, according to Lita Brusick...
ELCA Bishops Hope for New Orleans Meeting; Executive Reappointed
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Conference of Bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) agreed to hold its spring 2006 meeting possibly in the New Orleans area to emphasize the church's call to speak and work against poverty, hunger and racism. Scheduling a meeting in the New Orleans-Mississippi Gulf...
Luther Institute to Host Conference on Aging, Awards Nov. 4-6
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Luther Institute will host a "Conference to Address the Issues of Aging in Lutheran Congregations" Nov. 4-6 in Arlington, Va. The conference will culminate the evening of Nov. 5 with the Institute's annual presentation of Wittenberg Awards and the morning of Nov. 6 with worship. The...
ELCA Bishops Urged to Consider Gifts of Large Membership Congregations
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Large-membership congregations in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) are "different" from other congregations and can be a valuable resource to the church at large. Most of the senior pastors of larger congregations want to be a vital part of the ELCA and are concerned about...
ELCA Members Help Monitor Elections in Liberia Oct. 11
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Five members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) are in Liberia to monitor elections Oct. 11 that the West African nation hopes will bring closure to 14 years of civil war. They are part of an international, ecumenical delegation assembled by the Liberian Council of...
