1999 ELCA Assembly to Convene in Denver Aug. 16-22
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Voting members to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Churchwide Assembly Aug. 16-22 in Denver are expected to act on proposed full communion agreements with two Protestant churches, consider a proposed social statement on economic life and elect a new editor for The Lutheran, the magazine...
Lutheran Congregations Link to ELCA Home Page
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- More than 1,540 congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) have web sites linked to the ELCA home page, said Sonia Gestes, Internet technician, ELCA Department for Information Technology. The ELCA web site on the Internet was launched in May 1995, and almost immediately congregations...
4,000 Lutheran Youth Form Huge Work Party
SEATTLE (ELCA) -- Four thousand visitors came to the Western States Youth Gathering of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) here and participated in a huge work party throughout the Puget Sound area of Washington state -- from Bellingham to Seattle, Tacoma and Aberdeen. The ELCA's Western States Youth...
Wartburg Seminary Faculty Supports Full Communion Proposal
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The faculty of Wartburg Theological Seminary, Dubuque, Iowa, added its support for a proposal the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is considering that outlines a relationship of "full communion" with The Episcopal Church. Wartburg is one of eight seminaries of the ELCA. "Called to Common Mission:...
Arab and Middle Eastern Lutherans Meet in Assembly
BROOKLYN, NY (ELCA) -- The Association of Lutherans of Arab and Middle Eastern Heritage (ALAMEH) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) met in assembly here July 9-11. ALAMEH was created for the "mission and ministry of witness and service with and among persons of = Arab and Middle...
Bishop of Jordan Addresses U.S. Arab and Middle Eastern Lutherans
BROOKLYN, N.Y. (ELCA) -- The Christian Bible says "the Holy Spirit was poured out upon all nations in Jerusalem. Everyone here goes back to that first church," the Rev. Munib A. Younan, bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan (ELCJ), told the Association of Lutherans of = Arab and...
Miller Nominated Editor of 'The Lutheran'
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. David L. Miller has been nominated to a four-year term as the next editor of The Lutheran, magazine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The magazine's advisory committee, acting as a search committee, initiated Miller's nomination on July 13. The committee interviewed several...
Membership Remained Stable for ELCA Congregations in 1998
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- With a total of 5,178,225 baptized members in 10,862 congregations, the membership of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) remained stable, decreasing in 1998 about one-tenth of a percent. That figure represented a decline of 6,830 baptized members from 5,185,055 in 1997, according to the Rev....
Lutherans Continue Disaster Relief Operations in Four States
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In 90 minutes three inches of rain fell July 9 in Las Vegas, an area that typically receives four inches of rain a year, said Johanna Olson, assistant for Domestic Disaster Response of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR), a ministry of...
Felicetti Named President for Capital University
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Dr. Daniel A. Felicetti, 57, Indianapolis, has been named 13th president of Capital University, Columbus, Ohio. Capital is one of 28 colleges and universities of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Since 1989 Felicetti has been president of Marian College, Indianapolis, a Franciscan Roman Catholic liberal arts...
ELCA Campaigns to 'Turn Around Congregations'
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In an effort to revitalize and renew congregations, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Division for Outreach (DO) and Division for Congregational Ministries (DCM) are implementing "Turn Around Congregations," a pilot program beginning in five of the ELCA's 65 synods. "Congregations that are willing and wanting...
Income for ELCA Congregations Exceeded $2 Billion in 1998
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Income for the 10,862 congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) in 1998 exceeded $2 billion for the second year in a row. The 1998 total of $2,120,307,630 was up $113,354,246 or 5.64 percent from 1997, the Rev. Lowell G. Almen, ELCA secretary, reported in...
Lutherans Lead Rally for Fair Farm Prices
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America were among more than 850 participants and leaders of a July 9 rally at the Sweetgrass entry point on the U.S.-Canadian border to protest subsidized Canadian commodity prices and domination by large agribusiness corporations. The Rev. Mark R. Ramseth,...
Bloomquist Begins Lutheran World Federation Assignment
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Karen L. Bloomquist, director for studies in the Division for Church in Society of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), begins a one-year assignment on Aug. 1 as study secretary for church and society issues in the Department for Theology and Studies of the...
ELCA Women Affirm Stronger Families, Deal with Resolutions
ST. LOUIS (ELCA) -- Delegates to the Fourth Triennial Convention of Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) adopted a series of resolutions to uphold healthier families, support efforts to minimize spouse abuse and address various other issues. The convention met here July 8-11 at the America's Center....
ELCA Women Experience 'Convention Without Walls'
ST. LOUIS (ELCA) -- There were several opportunities for the 4,000 participants in the Fourth Triennial Convention of Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) to explore the organization's new three-year theme, "Live God's Justice," in nearby congregations and communities through "Convention Without Walls" programs. The convention met...
ELCA Women Conclude Convention with Call to 'Sow Seeds'
ST. LOUIS (ELCA) Spreading the gospel is like planting seeds -- some seeds take root, some don't -- and it takes time for rooted seeds to develop, just as it takes time for God's Word to take root in people, especially children, said the Rev. H. George Anderson, presiding bishop...
ELCA Women Call for Attention to Deafness, Disabilities
ST. LOUIS (ELCA) Through a series of resolutions, delegates of the Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Fourth Triennial Convention called on the church to be more attentive to people who are deaf or disabled. The convention met here July 8-11 at the America's Center. The organization's...
ELCA Women Adopt Anti-Racism Amendment, Resolutions
ST. LOUIS (ELCA) Delegates of the Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) 1999 convention asked the organization to "claim an anti-racist identity." The convention adopted a series of resolutions related to its anti-racism effort -- a priority already determined by its executive board for the organization's work...
ELCA Women Are Similar, Different from Commission for Women
ST. LOUIS (ELCA) Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the ELCA Commission for Women are similar, yet have unique roles in the larger church, said Joanne Chadwick, executive director for the Commission for Women, greeting participants at the Fourth Triennial Convention of Women of the ELCA....
