ELCA Spanish-Language Ads To Air Nationally
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Spanish-language television and radio announcements, designed to create attention for Spanish-language congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), will air nationally April 30-May 13. The spots aired previously in March. The spots were created as part of the ELCA Identity Project, a multi-million-dollar advertising campaign,...
ELCA Publishing House Board Members Frustrated by DCM Actions
PHOENIX (ELCA) -- Members of the board of trustees of Augsburg Fortress, the publishing house of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), expressed frustration at two resolutions directed at the publishing house by the board of the ELCA Division for Congregational Ministries (DCM). The trustees did not take any...
ELCA Publishing House Reports Significant Financial Losses
PHOENIX (ELCA) -- Augsburg Fortress, the publishing house of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), finished 2000 with a net loss of $3.037 million, according to final audited financial figures presented to the publisher's board of trustees when it met here April 19-21. The Minneapolis-based publisher reported a $1.1...
ELCA Issues Study Guide on Genetics
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- "Genetics! Where Do We Stand as Christians?" is a 68-page study document produced by the Division for Church in Society of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Biological research into heredity and the composition of human DNA has raised a host of theological, ethical, legal and...
Hanson Re-elected Lutheran Bishop of Saint Paul, Minnesota
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson was elected April 21 to a second six-year term as bishop of the Saint Paul (Minn.) Area Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The election was held during the synod's assembly at Concordia College, St. Paul. On the third...
Last Elected Lutheran Bishop of Western Iowa
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Michael A. Last was elected April 21 to a six-year term as bishop of the Western Iowa Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The election was held during the synod's assembly at the Sioux City Convention Center, Sioux City, Iowa. On the...
Lutheran Bishop Delivers Peace Message to Israeli Ambassador
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Theodore F. Schneider, bishop of the Metropolitan Washington, D.C., Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), was among an ecumenical delegation who delivered a message calling for "mutual renunciation of violence in the Holy Land" April 23 to David Ivry, Israeli ambassador to...
Church Leaders Ask Bush to Remove U.S. Navy from Vieques
CHICAGO (ELCA) The Rev. H. George Anderson, presiding bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), and 10 other church leaders from across the country are urging President George W. Bush to put an end to U.S. military training on Vieques, an island east of Puerto Rico. In an April 18...
Income for ELCA World Hunger Appeal Surpasses Goal
CHICAGO (ELCA) The World Hunger Appeal of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) collected more than $15.86 million in 2000, surpassing the expected income goal of $14 million. While actual income for the 2000 ELCA World Hunger Appeal exceeded the projected income by $1.86 million, it decreased slightly from...
Asian Lutherans Discuss Challenges, Opportunities for 21st Century
BANGKOK, Thailand (ELCA) -- "We're here because we've been given a worldview of all God's creation and of God's people," the Rev. Paul T. Nakamura told opening worship participants at the second Asian Lutheran International Conference (ALIC) held here March 30- April 3. The Torrence, Calif., pastor reminded the nearly...
Lutheran-Roman Catholic Dialogue Begins Drafting New Statement
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The 10th round of talks in the United States between the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) began drafting a statement on "The Church as Koinonia of Salvation: Its Structures and Ministries" when representative teams from both churches met...
Lutheran Compass Center Struggles in Earthquake Aftermath
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Since 1920 the Lutheran Compass Center in Seattle's historic Pioneer Square district has provided for the basic needs and emergency care of transients and people without homes. A Feb. 28 earthquake did more than $2.5 million worth of damage to the center and made it unusable as...
Lutheran AIDS Network Hears Challenges, Conducts Business
ST. LOUIS (ELCA) -- The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has afflicted more than 34 million people with AIDS around the world. Members of the Lutheran AIDS Network (LANET) met here April 3-4 to elect its board of directors and to hear about challenges the syndrome has created in Africa and...
Lutheran Services in America Is Making Connections
ST. LOUIS (ELCA) -- The Lutheran Services in America (LSA) annual conference here April 4-7 celebrated the alliance's ability to make connections among millions of people, resources, social ministry organizations, congregations and God. The conference served as a transition point for LSA leadership. LSA's founding president and CEO, Joanne Negstad...
A Journey To Vieques: An Island Besieged
For 60 years bombs have cascaded from war planes sending clouds of dust and smoke toward nearby gardens, playgrounds, homes, schools and stores on Vieques, a small island east of Puerto Rico. Classroom activity has often been interrupted when children, crouched under their desks in fear, hear the thunder of...
Lutheran Men's Board Invests in Bibles
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The board of Lutheran Men in Mission (LMM) met here March 16-18 and committed the men's organization of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) to print $135,000 worth of Bibles containing personal and small group study materials. The "Serendipity Bible" is a key component of LMM's...
ELCA Council Supports Ethnic-Specific Strategies, Ministries
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) recommended two ethnic-specific ministry strategies for adoption by the 2001 ELCA Churchwide Assembly this summer. The council also requested that the church support the ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan/Palestine. The Church Council is...
ELCA's Dana College Sustains Storm Damage
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Several buildings on the campus of Dana College, Blair, Neb., were damaged April 7 by a storm with severe winds, said Robert Schmoll, executive vice president and chief financial officer. No injuries were reported. Dana College is one of 28 colleges and universities of the Evangelical Lutheran...
ELCA Council to Review Publishing 'Partnership,' Evaluates Commission
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will review the relationship between Augsburg Fortress Publishers and units of the church responsible for developing congregational resources. The council also affirmed the renewal of the mandate for the ELCA Commission for Women. The Church Council...
Capital University President Resigns to Pursue New Opportunities
COLUMBUS, Ohio (ELCA) -- Dr. Daniel A. Felicetti, the 13th president of Capital University, will leave the university effective May 20. Felicetti, who began his presidency in August 1999, plans to pursue other career interests. Capital University is one of 28 colleges and universities of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in...
