ELCA Funds 10 Proposals for Domestic 'MAPP' Projects
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Office of the Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) approved grants totaling $900,000 for 10 domestic ministries. The projects, intended to provide direct assistance to people living in poverty, are part of the ELCA's emphasis on Ministries Among People in Poverty (MAPP). The...
Statement of ELCA Presiding Bishop on Augusta Victoria Hospital
STATEMENT OF ELCA PRESIDING BISHOP ON AUGUSTA VICTORIA HOSPITAL We are saddened by the deaths and injuries of so many people, both Palestinian and Israeli, in clashes prompted largely by the dispute over the future status of Jerusalem. We call on all sides to end the fighting. We urge Israeli...
Lutherans Protest Israeli Forces' Intrusion at Jerusalem Hospital
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) expressed the church's "strongest objection" to the entry of Israeli forces September 29 on to the property of Augusta Victoria Hospital (AVH), located on the Mount of Olives in East Jerusalem, during clashes between Israeli forces...
New Columnists Join 'The Lutheran,' Other Columnists to Leave
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Lutheran, the magazine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), announced this month that Dr. Marva J. Dawn, Vancouver, Wash., will be one of its columnists, replacing the column written by the Rev. Walter J. Wangerin, Valparaiso, Ind., longtime columnist for the magazine. Dawn, a...
ELCA Colleges and Universities Rank among U.S. Best
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Colleges and universities of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) rank among the best in the United States, according to U.S. News and World Report's 2001 edition of "America's Best Colleges," issued Sept. 11. When compared with other public and private institutions, 26 of the ELCA's...
Lutherans Contribute to Relief Efforts in Indonesia
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- International Disaster Response of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) provided $18,000 this month to support relief efforts in Indonesia after a series of sectarian clashes between Christians and Muslims. Riots there have caused thousands of residents to flee their homes. Violence in Ambon has prevailed...
ELCA Fund for Leaders in Mission Awards First Eight Scholarships
CHICAGO (ELCA) The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) awarded more than $52,000 in scholarships to provide full tuition for eight women and men studying at ELCA seminaries. The ELCA's Fund for Leaders in Mission handed out its first scholarships here Sept. 27. "Support for the preparation of leaders has...
Franciscan Friars Present Christian Unity Award to Lutheran Scholar
GARRISON, N.Y. -- The Paul Wattson Christian Unity Award will be presented to the Rev. John F. Hotchkin, STD, and Dr. George A. Lindbeck by the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement. The awards ceremony will take place at noon Oct. 27 at the Interreligious Center Chapel in New York. Lindbeck,...
ELCA Board Commits To Discussions on 'Sexual Minority' Issues
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- An Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) board committed itself to discussions regarding "sexual minority" people and the ordained ministry, and it said it will gather information on how sexual minority people are included in the ministries and institutions the board represents. The board for the ELCA's...
Namibian Pastor Describes Challenge of AIDS in African Nation
PHILADELPHIA (ELCA) -- Imagine being the manager of religious broadcasts for a national broadcast service where it is predicted one-half of your listeners will be dead within 10 years. That's one-half of a nation of 1.6 million persons, many of them Lutherans. Forecasts project "a dramatically high death toll from...
Human Cloning to Be Topic for Lutherans October 13-15
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Human cloning and related ethical issues will be the topics of six primary papers exploring current and anticipated technological developments from a faith-based perspective. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Division for Church in Society sponsors a one-time consultation on human cloning at the Ramada Plaza...
ELCA Churchwide Leaders Dialogue with People in Poverty
MILWAUKEE (ELCA) Leaders of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's (ELCA) churchwide organization met in retreat here Sept 11-12. They spent much of their time in dialogue with people living in poverty and with leaders in ELCA congregations who work to create hope and improve inner city neighborhoods. The retreat...
St. Olaf College Names Thomforde President
NORTHFIELD, Minn. -- The St. Olaf College Board of Regents named the Rev. Christopher M. Thomforde, current president of Bethany College, as its 10th president, succeeding Dr. Mark U. Edwards, Jr. Thomforde's appointment was announced here Sept. 12. St. Olaf College and Bethany College, Lindsborg, Kan., are higher education institutions...
Lutherans Continue Relief Work Following Summer Disasters
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Lutherans continue to serve disaster survivors following this summer's flooding in northwestern Minnesota and eastern North Dakota, and devastating tornadoes that struck Granite Falls, Minn., according to the Rev. Gilbert B. Furst in a September progress report on relief efforts. Furst is director for Lutheran Disaster Response...
The Simba Circle -- Changing the Lives of African American Boys
Strawberry Point, Iowa (ELCA) -- "Too Black, too strong!" was the daily chant of about 150 African American boys and men from 22 cities across the United States who came here to participate in a two-week program, The Simba Circle. Sponsored by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Division...
ELCA Congregations and Ministries Are 'Engaging Tough Issues'
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- "Engaging Tough Issues" is a training event the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will host Oct. 6-8 at the Atchison Heritage Conference Center, Atchison, Kan. Three different workshop tracks -- two in English and one in Spanish -- will address "talking about tough issues, organizing and...
Lutheran Congregations Honor People Living with Mental Illness
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In October, congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS) are asked to light a candle and say a prayer honoring or remembering people who live with mental illness, said the Rev. Lisa T. Cleaver, director for disability ministries and...
ELCA Awards 'In the City for Good' Grants for 2000
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) awarded $493,957 in grants to 38 urban ministry initiatives that demonstrate a potential for transforming lives, congregations and communities in U.S. cities. The "In the City for Good" fund team selected the projects from 93 proposals it received in the...
ELCA Bishop, Church Leaders Affirm, Criticize Jerusalem Peace Effort
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Leaders of North American Roman Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox Churches -- including the Rev. H. George Anderson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) -- urged President Clinton to promote sharing of Jerusalem between Israelis and Palestinians and among Jews, Christians and Muslims in...
Lutherans Respond to Vatican Document and Letter
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) said Sept. 8 that he is "disappointed" that 35 years of ecumenical dialogue between Lutherans and Roman Catholics apparently were not considered when the Vatican issued a document earlier this week and sent a letter in June to...
