International Audience to Attend ELCA Global Mission Event in La Crosse
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Drawing guests from Russia and Tanzania to Japan and Peru, the 2008 Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Global Mission Event (GME) will be held July 17-20 at the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse. The GME's theme, "God's Work, Our Hands," will be explored through stories, worship...
ELCA Bishop Calls for Prayer, Action Concerning Domestic Disasters
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), asked the 4.8 million-member church to join him in "prayer and action" for people facing adversity this spring after tornadoes and floods struck the central United States and the humanitarian crisis following...
ELCA Presiding Bishop Visits Lutherans in Kenya, Emphasizes Unity
NAIROBI, Kenya (ELCA) -- Two leaders of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) met with about 20 leaders and staff of the two Kenyan Lutheran churches here June 18, emphasizing the importance of unity and cooperation among all Lutherans in the country. The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop, Evangelical Lutheran...
Lutherans Support Relief Efforts in Colombia, Costa Rica
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is providing emergency disaster relief with its companion Lutheran churches in Colombia and Costa Rica after an earthquake and a tropical storm struck the two countries respectively. Members of the ELCA and Evangelical Lutheran Church of Colombia (Iglesia Evangelica Luterana...
Rwandan Lutheran Pastor Updates Status of Mumeya Hospital
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Rebuilding a nation divided by civil war and genocide has been a 14-year struggle for the people of Rwanda. The Rev. John Rutsindintwarane, general secretary, Lutheran Church of Rwanda (LCR), outlined progress of a planned hospital in the rural community of Mumeya, Rwanda, and the training that...
Two ELCA Congregations Earn Accessibility Awards
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Hope Lutheran Church, Fargo, N.D., and Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Askov, Minn., are the winners of the 2008 Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Disability Ministries Accessibility Awards. This award is given annually to one or more congregations of the ELCA that demonstrate outstanding care and concern for...
Salt Lake City to Host Women of the ELCA Gathering and Convention July 8-13
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Seventh Triennial Gathering of Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will bring together approximately 1,900 women July 10-13 at the Salt Palace Convention Center, Salt Lake City. The event theme, "Come to the Waters," focuses on the celebration of Baptism through Bible study,...
ELCA Plans for Relief Efforts in China Following May 12 Earthquake
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Peter K. Shen, consultant on China, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Global Mission, returned recently from a trip to Taiwan and southwest China, May 19 to June 1, in which church partners in both China and Taiwan discussed options for ELCA involvement in relief...
Lutheran Disaster Response Issues Statement on Midwest Flooding
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR) has issued a June 13 statement regarding recent and current flooding in several Midwest states -- Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska and Wisconsin. LDR is a collaborative ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. Here...
ELCA Northeastern Iowa Synod postpones its assembly due to flooding
by Frank Imhoff, ELCA News Service The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Northeastern Iowa Synod has postponed its synod assembly due to flooding along area rivers. The assembly was to be held June 13-15 at Wartburg College, Waverly, Iowa. The announcement to the synod's clergy and other voting members...
ELCA Small Town, Rural Ministry Alliance to hold annual meeting July 16-19
by Luke Tatge*, ELCA News Service The Small Town and Rural (STaR) Ministry Alliance of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will hold its annual gathering July 16-19 at Midland Lutheran College, Fremont, Neb. "The annual gathering provides a place where participants hear, witness and learn about concrete models...
ELCA Presiding Bishop, Other Religious Leaders, Meet with Obama
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) was among more than 30 national Christian leaders who met here June 10 with U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), the presumptive Democratic nominee for president. Hanson was invited by Obama's staff to...
Jonathan Beyer to Become ELCA Executive for Information Technology July 1
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Christina Jackson-Skelton, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) treasurer, announced May 30 that Jonathan Beyer, vice president for information technology operations and infrastructure, Incisent Technologies, will become executive director for ELCA Information Technology (IT) on July 1. Beyer will succeed LaRue Unglaube, who headed IT beginning in...
ELCA Synod Bishops Visit Immigration Detention Centers
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Seven synod bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) visited prisons and detention centers where people seeking asylum, refuge or who have entered the United States without documentation are being held while the U.S. government decides whether or not to deport them. "Immigrants being detained...
Jerge re-elected bishop of the ELCA Upstate New York Synod
by Frank Imhoff, ELCA News Service The Rev. Marie C. Jerge was elected June 9 to a second six-year term as bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Upstate New York Synod during the synod's assembly June 8-10 in Rochester, N.Y. Jerge was re-elected on the assembly's second...
Mark Narum Elected Bishop of ELCA Western North Dakota Synod
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark E. Narum, Prairie Lutheran Parish, was elected June 7 to a six-year term as bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Western North Dakota Synod. Prairie Lutheran Parish consists of four North Dakota congregations: Faith Lutheran Church, Palermo; Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Ross;...
James Arends Elected Bishop of ELCA La Crosse Area Synod
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. James A. Arends, Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, La Crescent, Minn., was elected June 7 to a six-year term as bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) La Crosse (Wis.) Area Synod at the synod assembly June 5-7 at Luther College, Decorah, Iowa....
Rossing Fund Awards to Nine Students from ELCA Colleges
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Nine students attending colleges and universities of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will receive scholarships in the amounts of $10,000, $5,000 or $3,000 for the 2008-09 school year from the ELCA Foundation through the Rossing Fund for Physics Education Endowment. The endowment was set up...
Lutherans Address Disaster Preparedness for Low-Income Communities
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Communities in the United States and around the world are banding together to offer relief after the many natural disasters witnessed in the first part of 2008. But for many low-income communities, recovery after disaster presents its own challenges. "Low-income communities are already under assault" before a...
ELCA, Episcopal Church Presiding Bishops Urge Prayers for Peace in Sudan
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In a June 5 joint statement, the presiding bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the Episcopal Church urged U.S. citizens to pray for peace in Sudan, and they called for "strong action" from the international community to restore stability there. The Rev. Mark...
