ELCA Pastor Featured on 'Day 1' Radio, TV Broadcast
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Roy T. Lloyd, a pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), and also a senior manager for media relations for the American Bible Society, will be featured Oct. 6, Nov. 3, Dec. 1 and Dec. 29 on "Day 1," formerly known as "The...
Synod Bishop Grants Second ELCA Ordination Exception
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A candidate for ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) was ordained this month by a pastor other than a bishop -- the second time an ELCA seminary graduate was granted an exception to rules governing the ELCA's full communion relationship with the Episcopal Church....
ELCA Presiding Bishop Meets with Bush Security Advisor
ELCA PRESIDING BISHOP MEETS WITH BUSH SECURITY ADVISOR 02-224 JB CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), joined with other religious leaders to communicate concerns about the Middle East situation in a White House meeting Sept. 16 with Dr....
Paul Ranum Named Interim Bishop of Southwestern Minnesota
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Paul A. Ranum, Starbuck, Minn., will become interim bishop of the Southwestern Minnesota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), effective Nov. 1. Ranum was appointed by the synod council Sept. 13, and will serve until a new bishop is elected when the...
Task Force Refines Strategy for Lutheran Evangelism
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A task force of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) met here Sept. 5-8 to refine a draft document of a comprehensive strategy on evangelism for the church. Members of the task force spent the first day of the meeting reading and editing the document. They...
Communication Restored Following Wisconsin Tornado
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Telephone service in Ladysmith, Wis., was restored last week, helping residents and people responding to severe damage to the city's downtown area following a Sept. 3 tornado. The telephone service had been disrupted by a bolt of lighting that struck at the same time as the tornado....
Iraq Attack 'Wrong,' Say ELCA, Other Religious Leaders
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In a letter to President George W. Bush, 48 Christian church and church organization leaders say "it is wrong as well as detrimental to U.S. interests" for the United States to launch pre-emptive military action against Iraq for the purpose of toppling the regime of Saddam Hussein....
Wangerin to Resume Lutheran Vespers Tour Sept. 19
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Walt Wangerin Jr., speaker for Lutheran Vespers, the radio ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), plans to resume the "OutSpoken for Lutheran Vespers" tour through the Upper Midwest Sept. 19 -- but not on a bicycle. Wangerin has been hospitalized in Alexandria,...
ELCA Leaders Commemorate September 11 Anniversary
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- On the first anniversary of the September 11 terrorists attacks on the United States, the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), said he hoped citizens of the United States "will take this moment not to isolate ourselves from the...
Lutheran Vespers' Wangerin Injured in Bicycle Mishap
ALEXANDRIA, Minn. (ELCA) -- The Rev. Walt Wangerin Jr., speaker for Lutheran Vespers, suffered a fractured left hip and abrasions in a bicycle accident near here Sept. 9, during the "OutSpoken for Lutheran Vespers" bike tour. Lutheran Vespers is the radio ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)....
ELCA Presiding Bishop Attends Prayer Session with Bush
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), was among a group of 25 clergy who met with and prayed with President George W. Bush Sept. 6 at the White House. The off-the-record conversation was held at the start of...
James Steffy Interim President at ELCA's Muhlenberg College
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The board of trustees of Muhlenberg College, Allentown, Pa., named James B. Steffy interim president, effective Aug. 19. Muhlenberg College is one of 28 colleges and universities of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Steffy was vice president for administration and planning at Muhlenberg College before...
ELCA Awards 'In the City for Good' Grants Totaling $339,289
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The "In the City for Good" Fund Team of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) awarded 36 grants totaling $339,289 in 2002 to revitalize ELCA ministries in urban areas. Grants ranged from $750 for a Fine Arts Camp in Springfield, Ill., to $30,000 for an Urban...
ELCA Hosts 'That All May Worship' Conference September 28
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Two synods of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) plan to host a conference for the religion and disability program of the National Organization on Disability (NOD) Sept. 28 at Upper Arlington Lutheran Church, Mill Run Campus, Hilliard, Ohio. The "That All May Worship" conference is...
ELCA Prepares to Form Rural Ministry Alliance
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The rural ministry advisory committee of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Division for Outreach met here Aug. 23-25 and drew up preliminary plans for an alliance of the church's rural ministry interests. The ELCA Rural Ministry Alliance, to be organized next year, grew from several...
Randall Lee Elected to Direct ELCA's Ecumenical Efforts
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) elected the Rev. Randall R. Lee Sept. 3 to a four-year term as director of the ELCA Department for Ecumenical Affairs. Lee, 46, will also serve as an assistant to the ELCA presiding bishop. Lee is...
ELCA International Disaster Response Continues Worldwide
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- International Disaster Response of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) continues to provide funds for food, medicine, drinking water, emergency shelter and other materials for survivors of disasters in Afghanistan, Burundi, Madagascar and the Middle East. Coordinated by the ELCA Division for Global Mission, International Disaster...
Ralph Van Loon, LCA Worship, Church Architecture Leader, Dies
CHICAGO (ELCA) The Rev. Ralph R. Van Loon, coordinator for worship and church architecture, Division for Parish Services of the former Lutheran Church in America (LCA), and pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), died Aug. 24 at his home in Reno, Nev. Van Loon, 75, received hospice...
ELCA Presiding Bishop: U.S. War with Iraq Would Be 'Wrong'
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) said it would be wrong for the United States to seek to overthrow the regime of Saddam Hussein of Iraq with military action. "I do not believe such a war can be justified under the historic...
ELCA Presiding Bishop's Statement on Iraq Situation
ELCA PRESIDING BISHOP'S STATEMENT ON IRAQ SITUATION In recent days, leaders of the United States government have talked openly about the possibility of a pre-emptive strike against the government of Iraq and its leader, Saddam Hussein. As presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), I am deeply...
