Purdue researcher, Lutheran wins World Food Prize
by Carrie Draeger, ELCA News Service* Dr. Gebisa Ejeta, a professor of agronomy at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind., was named the recipient of the World Food Prize for his research on sorghum plants in his native Africa. Considered the Nobel Prize of Agriculture, the prize is given to people...
ELCA Video Contest Submissions Close, Judges Named
CHICAGO (ELCA) - Creators submitted 224 videos hoping to win the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's (ELCA) "God's work. Our hands." video contest. "I'm blown away by the diversity of the entries," said Scott Hendrickson, director of marketing, public relations and creative services, ELCA Communication Services. "(The video contest) is...
Iowa Lutheran Changes Lives Two Wheels at a Time
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Lucy Thomas is a bike peddler. The 64-year-old Iowan collects and repairs old bicycles and helmets. Then she donates them to refugee families being resettled in the state. The bikes provide a way for them to get around other than by bus or their own two feet....
ELCA colleges, universities join Yellow Ribbon program
by Frank Imhoff, ELCA News Service The 28 colleges and universities of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) are taking part in a program of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to help military veterans pay tuition. Under the Yellow Ribbon GI Education Enhancement Program degree-granting institutions in the...
ELCA Deaconess Community Celebrates 125 Years
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- What started as seven German deaconesses serving a Philadelphia hospital has grown to a flourishing ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The ELCA Deaconess Community will mark 125 years of service to the church with a celebration July 18-19 in Atlanta. The celebration will...
ELCA Pastor Returns to Work after Liver Transplant
CHICAGO (ELCA) - The Rev. Charles A. Axness doesn't know who his new liver came from, but he's grateful. "I don't know if that person was male or female; black, white or bronze," he wrote in a recent newsletter to his congregation, First Lutheran Church, Fremont, Neb. "Someone made a...
Religious leaders convene at Faith Leader Summit on Health Care
by Jodi Deike, ELCA News Service Representatives of nearly 30 religious organizations gathered July 7 in Washington D.C. for a "Faith Leader Summit on Health Care." The summit kicked off a collective effort to build support among Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Hindu leaders for comprehensive reform of the U.S. health...
ELCA Churchwide Assembly to Consider 144 Memorials from Synods
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Comprehensive immigration reform, Israel and Palestine, Lutheran Disaster Response, and fuller participation in church leadership are topics of memorials recommended for specific discussion at the 2009 Churchwide Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The recommendations were made by a 15-member memorials committee appointed by...
ELCA seminary awarded $325,000 grant
by Carrie Draeger, ELCA News Service* A $325,000 grant from the Henry Luce Foundation, New York City, to the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia (LTSP), will help the seminary continue its Asian initiative and the Asian Theological Summer Institute. LTSP is one of eight seminaries of the Evangelical Lutheran Church...
Lutherans, Methodists Share Worship, Leaders; Await New Possibilities
CLYDE, Kan. (ELCA) -- The Rev. Anita Strommen is a Lutheran pastor. Her congregation is United Methodist. The pairing reflects a growing effort by some Christian denominations to share ministry resources as never before, including clergy. "The congregation worried at first about having a pastor that wasn't Methodist," said Strommen,...
Worship, Bible Study Leaders for ELCA Churchwide Assembly Named
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Preachers, presiding ministers and Bible study leaders chosen for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's (ECLA) Churchwide Assembly in Minneapolis this August come from diverse backgrounds. The preachers, presiders and Bible study leaders were chosen by the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop. The Rev. Jennifer...
ELCA Presiding Bishop Emphasizes Unity in Message to Church Leaders
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) expressed "heartfelt commitment" to the unity of the ELCA and "deep confidence" that unity will not be lost because of decisions that will be made at the 2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly. The Rev. Mark S. Hanson...
ELCA Seminary Measuring Effect of McCormick Decision to 'Disengage'
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC) asked a special finance task force to assess the impact of a decision by the board of neighboring McCormick Theological Seminary. McCormick will initiate a process to "disengage" from a real estate arrangement with LSTC as early as June...
ELCA Pastor, Others Speak Out on Health Care Reform
WASHINGTON (ELCA) - During the Fourth of July congressional recess, a faith-based ad campaign will launch nationally to address the need for health care reform. The campaign includes airing radio ads featuring local pastors June 30 to July 4 in Arkansas, Colorado, Louisiana, Nebraska and North Carolina, as well as...
ELCA Presiding Bishop Leads Bible Study at ELCIC National Convention
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), led a Bible study at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada's (ELCIC) Biennial National Convention June 27. The ELCIC is Canada's largest Lutheran denomination with 162,100 baptized members in 611 congregations. The...
ELCA Provides Funds to Support Humanitarian Efforts in Pakistan
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) provided $75,000 in humanitarian relief June 26 to help meet the needs of people in northern Pakistan. In the past few weeks military and insurgent actions have driven an estimated 3.5 million people away from their homes in the Swat...
ELCA's St. Olaf College awarded for energy efficiency
by Carrie Draeger, ELCA News Service St. Olaf College was named Minnesota's second most energy efficient business by Xcel Energy. The public utility company recognized 10 companies and organizations for their efforts to conserve energy. St. Olaf, located in Northfield, Minn., is one of 28 colleges and universities of the...
Lutherans Study Genetics in Preparation for Social Statement
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is studying genetics in preparation for a social statement. The church has developed nine social statements in its 21-year history. Genetics is a broad and new topic that can be very intimidating, according to Dr. Per Anderson, professor of religion,...
37,000 Lutherans Heading to ELCA Youth Gathering in New Orleans
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Tens of thousands of teenagers will converge on New Orleans for the Youth Gathering of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), a triennial event for the high school-age members of the 4.7 million-member church, and to work alongside those who build, teach and live in the...
Kansas Lutherans Say Home is Where God's Heart is Visible
HOME, Kan. (ELCA) -- Jesus is present wherever two or three are gathered in his name, according to the Gospel of Matthew. Friedens Lutheran Church draws four. Members meet weekly for Saturday night worship. At a recent service they belted out "What a Friend We Have in Jesus" and other...
