News

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), appealed to U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell to insist that the government of Madagascar "take verifiable steps to ensure a free and fair election process." Hanson made the request of the...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Samuel J. Roth, former president of Evangelical Lutherans in Mission (ELIM) and retired pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), died Feb. 20 following complications resulting from heart bypass surgery. Roth, 74, was serving as interim pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Town and...

CHICAGO (ELCA) The board of the Division for Congregational Ministries (DCM) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) named a "blue ribbon" task force to develop a comprehensive strategy on evangelism and approved "Principles for Worship" for the ELCA when it met here Feb. 15-17. The 2001 ELCA Churchwide...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the United Methodist Church (UMC) both accept two sacraments -- Baptism and the Lord's Supper. Members of the Lutheran-United Methodist dialogue met Feb. 14-17 in Orlando, Fla., and "found significant agreement among the churches' histories and doctrinal teachings" on...

CHICAGO (ELCA) Augsburg Fortress, the publishing house of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), has introduced a Web- based congregational ministry resource designed to help members and non-members live out their faith anywhere they have access to the Internet. The resource, "ReadyClickGrow," was introduced in January. It was developed...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR), a ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS), continues to help survivors recover from acts of terrorism, tornadoes, tropical storms and other disasters across the United States. Response to a disaster is often carried out by...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Two pilot programs of a new television version of "The Protestant Hour" will be broadcast March 3 and March 24 on the Hallmark Channel's "America at Worship" Sunday morning programming block. The pilot programs include the name "Day One," which will become the new name for The...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Lutheran Palestinians working for peace and reconciliation in the Middle East are not featured in most international news reports, according to the Rev. Munib A. Younan, bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan (and Palestine). In a Feb. 6 interview, Younan said most media outlets portray...

ROSEMONT, Ill. (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop and chief ecumenical officer of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), gathered staff of the ELCA Department for Ecumenical Affairs and 15 advisors here Feb. 8-9 to discuss the church's ecumenical priorities for the next 10 years. Hanson...

WASHINGTON, D.C. (ELCA) -- School shootings, incidents of police brutality, domestic violence and child abuse consistently made headlines in 2001. In response to these acts of violence the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) brought together nearly 200 adult and youth participants for an intense training event here Jan. 18-19...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In June 2001, two faith-based providers of insurance and financial services -- Aid Association for Lutherans (AAL), based in Appleton, Wis., and Lutheran Brotherhood (LB), based in Minneapolis -- announced plans to merge. In September the AAL board of directors and LB general convention approved the merger...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A video conference addressing issues related to peace in the Middle East is scheduled for Feb. 19. The conference, produced by the Episcopal Church's Office of Communication, was originally scheduled last fall but postponed after the September 11 terrorist attacks until this month. Leaders of the Evangelical...

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (ELCA) -- California Lutheran University, one of 28 colleges and universities of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), inaugurated the Segerhammar Center for Faith and Culture here Feb. 6. Named for the Rev. Carl W. Segerhammar, a founder of the university and well-known Lutheran leader, and...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- As part of a four-year study process to develop a social statement on health and health care, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is hosting a series of hearings across the United States. The hearings are to begin collecting reactions to "Health, Healing and Health Care,"...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- As the New England Patriots of the National Football League claimed victory on "Super Bowl Sunday" Feb. 3, thousands of Lutherans also made the "winning touchdown" in a challenge of a different kind. Members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) participated in "Souper Bowl of...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is becoming more involved in ethical discussions involving science and technology, said Dr. Grace Wolf-Chase, research astronomer, Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum, and research scientist, University of Chicago. "Being 'science literate' enhances the credibility of the church," said Wolf-Chase, a...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The president and chair of Lutheran Services in America (LSA) expressed their pleasure that James Towey will head the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. Jill Schumann, LSA president and CEO, Baltimore, and the Rev. Nelson C. Meyer, LSA chair and president of Lutheran Social...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Members of Iglesia Evangelica Luterana Unida (United Evangelical Lutheran Church) (IELU), Buenos Aires, Argentina, are calling on the 5.13 million-member Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) to accompany them as they face "a disaster situation not caused by natural catastrophe" but by "a catastrophe of an economic...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Lutheran Vespers, the radio ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), is putting plans in place aimed at increasing listener participation and building an endowment that will assure adequate finances for the ministry's future. The Rev. Walt Wangerin Jr., an ELCA pastor and Lutheran Vespers...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Thirty-two Lutheran ethicists explored economic globalization from several perspectives Jan. 9-11 in Canada at the Rosemary Heights Retreat Centre, Surrey, British Columbia. Speakers opened conversations around a 28-page publication of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) -- "Engaging Economic Globalization as a Communion: An LWF Working Paper." The...