ELCA Presiding Bishop Calls on U.S. to Support Resolution on Settlements
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), joined by 12 leaders of Christian churches and organizations, urged the Obama administration to support a resolution submitted to the U.N. Security Council which calls on Israel to stop illegal construction of...
John Kapanke, ELCA Board of Pensions Leader, to Retire Sept. 30
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- John G. Kapanke, president and chief executive officer of the Board of Pensions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), announced Feb. 1 that he will retire when his current term ends Sept. 30. More: http://www.elca.org/News/Releases.asp?a=4705 For information contact: John Brooks, (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org http://www.elca.org/news...
ELCA Missionaries From Egypt Arrive Safely in Istanbul
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Ten Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) missionaries arrived safely in Istanbul, Turkey, Feb. 1, after they left Cairo, Egypt on a chartered flight provided by the U.S. Department of State. More: http://www.elca.org/News/Releases.asp?a=4706 For information contact: John Brooks, (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org http://www.elca.org/news Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/elcanews Twitter: http://twitter.com/elcanews
ELCA Presiding Bishop Asks for Prayers for Peaceful Solution in Egypt
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) has called upon members of the ELCA "to pray for an end to the violence and for a peaceful solution that will benefit all people living in Egypt." More: http://www.elca.org/News/Releases.asp?a=4704 For information contact: John Brooks, (773)...
Court Dismisses, Maintains Lawsuit Claims Involving ELCA, Augsburg Fortress
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A federal judge dismissed significant claims against the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and Augsburg Fortress Publishers contained in a lawsuit filed in April 2010. The lawsuit was filed by four plaintiffs in response to the 2009 termination of a defined benefit pension plan of Augsburg...
ELCA Synod Bishop Addresses Bullying in YouTube Video
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A synod bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) has posted a video essay on YouTube in which he urges church members to stand with young people who are "victimized, brutalized or bullied." More: http://www.elca.org/News/Releases.asp?a=4701 For information contact: John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org...
ELCA Launches LivingLutheran.Com for Sharing Stories and Conversation
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- LivingLutheran.com, a new website for members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), offers a daily blend of stories and conversation about what it means to "live Lutheran." More: http://www.elca.org/News/Releases.asp?a=4702 For information contact: John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org http://www.elca.org/news Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/elcanews Twitter: http://twitter.com/elcanews
ELCA Council Hears Financial, Redesign Updates, Elects New Member
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) heard updates on churchwide finances and a redesign of the churchwide organization in a special conference call meeting Jan. 14. The council also elected a new member to fill an unexpired term. More: http://www.elca.org/News/Releases.asp?a=4700 For more...
ELCA, Board of Pensions Respond to Lawsuit on Annuity Payment Reductions
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The churchwide organization of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the ELCA Board of Pensions responded publicly to a Dec. 3 lawsuit filed against them in a Minnesota state court by four plaintiffs. The plaintiffs claim the ELCA Board of Pensions acted improperly to reduce...
ELCA Continues Long-Term Relief Effort in Haiti
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) continues to be actively engaged in Haiti, concentrating its efforts on a multiyear rebuilding effort there one year after a devastating earthquake struck. The church's efforts include meeting human needs by providing food, water, temporary shelter and medical supplies while...
Floyd Schoenhals, Bishop of ELCA Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod, to Retire Feb. 1
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Floyd M. Schoenhals, bishop of the Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), Tulsa, Okla., announced to the synod he will retire Feb. 1 for health reasons. Schoenhals, 70, had previously told the synod that he planned to retire July 1, one...
ELCA, Episcopal Church Mark 10th Anniversary of Full Communion
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Ten years ago this week, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and The Episcopal Church launched a relationship of shared mission and ministry in a worship service and ceremony at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. More: http://www.elca.org/News/Releases.asp?a=4694 For information contact: John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958...
ELCA Presiding Bishop Addresses Coptic Church Bombing In Egypt
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), assured the bishop of the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Los Angeles of the ELCA's "heartfelt desire" to stand in solidarity with Coptic Christians in the United States and the world in the...
Paul Egertson, Former ELCA Synod Bishop, Professor and Advocate, Dies
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Dr. Paul W. Egertson, a former synod bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), college professor and advocate for full inclusion of people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender in the life of the ELCA, died Jan. 5 after suffering a heart...
ELCA, LCMS Leaders Continue Talks on Cooperative Ministries
BALTIMORE (ELCA) -- Leaders of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod heard reports from executives of three agencies they cooperatively share and continued theological discussions related to the future of cooperative Lutheran ministries. Both reported similar developments in their church bodies, including reorganization of...
ELCA Members Total 15 in 112th Congress
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Fifteen members of the 112th U.S. Congress are members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), including three in the U.S. Senate and 12 in the U.S. House of Representatives, according to staff with the Lutheran advocacy offices in Washington. More: http://www.elca.org/News/Releases.asp?a=4692 For information contact: John...
South Carolina ELCA Congregation's Christmas Eve Worship on TV, Web
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Christmas Eve service at Incarnation Lutheran Church, an Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) congregation in Columbia, S.C., will be televised locally and carried on the Web, thanks to anonymous benefactors financing the broadcast. More: http://www.elca.org/News/Releases.asp?a=4691 For information contact: John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org...
ELCA Task Force to Suggest Recommendations for Church's Future
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A task force of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), which has engaged the church's membership in an extensive conversation about the denomination's future, will soon begin preparing its report and recommendations to the ELCA Church Council. The council is expected to transmit to the 2011...
Rebecca Larson Appointed Deputy General Secretary for ACT Alliance
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The ACT Alliance this week announced the appointment of the Rev. Dr. Rebecca S. Larson as deputy general secretary, effective March 1, 2011. Since 2002 Larson has served as executive director of the Church in Society program unit of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). More:...
ELCA Synod Bishop to Participate in Bethlehem Prayer Service
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A synod bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will present a short meditation on the Gospel of Luke in a joint prayer service Dec. 18 that will include worshipers assembled in Washington, D.C., and in Bethlehem, the town where Jesus was born. More: http://www.elca.org/News/Releases.asp?a=4688...
