News

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In a move toward advancing sustainable theological education, the Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) approved July 11 a merger between Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary, Berkeley, Calif., and California Lutheran University, Thousand Oaks, Calif. The Church Council serves as the ELCA board of...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) provided $25,000 to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada in support of its outreach to survivors of severe storms and floods in Alberta, Canada. Three people died and more than 100,000 people were displaced from their homes after heavy rains...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- As this nation embarks on a celebration of Independence Day, the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), said the freedoms we celebrate today came with great sacrifice and continue to generate controversy. In a pastoral video message to the...

GETTYSBURG, Pa. (ELCA) -- Exactly 150 years ago on July 1, 1863, Union cavalry commander Gen. John Buford observed Confederate soldiers advancing on Gettysburg from the west. He surveyed the advance from the cupola of a Lutheran seminary building. Within a few hours the fields surrounding the seminary became a...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The leaders of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and The Episcopal Church released a joint statement that commends the U.S. Senate for passing comprehensive immigration reform. On June 27, the bill passed in the Senate by a vote of 68 to 32. “Lutherans and Episcopalians...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- For the first time, Lutherans and Anglicans in Canada are gathering in a joint assembly July 3-7 in Ottawa for worship, fellowship and to make important ministry decisions together -- an opportunity made possible through a formal relationship that began 12 years ago. In anticipation of the...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Camp Noah, a summer camp designed to raise hope for children impacted by disaster, is underway June 24-28 at University Lutheran Church in Norman, Okla. The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), plans to visit the camp June 28,...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In response to the humanitarian crisis in Syria, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is providing more than $540,000 to the Syriac Orthodox Church to support its outreach to people displaced from their homes but remain in Syria because of the violent conflict. According to news...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. H. Julian Gordy, the Rev. Ralph E. Jones, the Rev. Kurt F. Kusserow, the Rev. Lawrence R. Wohlrabe and the Rev. David B. Zellmer were re-elected this spring to serve six-year terms as synod bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. H. Julian Gordy...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Roger R. Gustafson, Olathe, Kan., was elected June 8 to a six-year term as bishop of the Central States Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Gustafson was elected on the fifth ballot during the synod’s assembly June 6-9 in Overland Park, Kan....

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. James S. Dunlop, Littlestown, Pa., was elected June 8 to a six-year term as bishop of the Lower Susquehanna Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Dunlop was elected on the fifth ballot during the synod’s assembly June 6-8 in Grantham, Pa. “I...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Tracie L. Bartholomew, Lawrenceville, N.J., was elected June 8 to a six-year term as bishop of the New Jersey Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Bartholomew was elected on the fifth ballot during the synod’s assembly June 6-8 in East Brunswick, N.J....

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Jessica R. Crist, the Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton and the Rev. Wayne N. Miller were re-elected this spring to serve second six-year terms as synod bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Crist, bishop of the ELCA Montana Synod, was re-elected on the...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Richard N. Hoyme, Chippewa Falls, Wis., was elected June 2 to a six-year term as bishop of the Northwest Synod of Wisconsin of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Hoyme was elected on the fifth ballot during the synod assembly June 1-2 in Eau...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. R. Guy Erwin was elected May 31 to a six- year term as bishop of the Southwest California Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) at the synod’s assembly May 30-June 1 in Woodland Hills, Calif. Erwin was elected on the sixth ballot...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Craig Alan Satterlee was elected May 21 to serve a six-year term as bishop of the North/West Lower Michigan Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). He was elected on the fifth ballot during the synod assembly May 19-21 in Lansing, Mich. “The...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Brian Kirby Unti, Renton, Wash., was elected May 18 to a six-year term as bishop of the Northwest Washington Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Unti was elected on the fourth ballot during the synod assembly May 16-18 in Lynnwood, Wash. “I...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Michael W. Rinehart and the Rev. David H. Brauer-Rieke were re-elected to serve second six-year terms as synod bishops in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Rinehart, bishop of the ELCA Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast Synod, was re-elected on the first ballot during the synod...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) has made worship resources available May 21 in response to recent severe storms across the Midwest. Through Lutheran Disaster Response, ELCA members and congregations are supporting tornado survivors in partnership with local Lutheran affiliates and ELCA synods. In a letter...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Robert G. Schaefer, Venice, Fla., was elected May 4 to a six-year term as bishop of the Florida-Bahamas Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Schaefer was elected on the sixth ballot during the synod assembly May 2-4 in Orlando, Fla. “I am...