Lutherans Count 69.5 Million Members Worldwide, 66 Million In LWF
GENEVA (ELCA) -- A one-year increase of 3.63 million Christians among member churches of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) put the total LWF membership at 65,927,334 in 2004, according to the latest statistical data from the LWF. LWF member churches around the world had 62.3 million members in 2003 and...
LWF President Urges LWF Member Churches To Share Resources
ABUJA, Nigeria (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, president of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and presiding bishop of the Chicago-based Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), appealed to LWF member churches worldwide to share resources for the continued "growing together" of the Lutheran communion. Hanson is leading an...
"Davey And Goliath" Story, Activity Books Now Available
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Story and activity books about Davey Hansen and his talking dog, Goliath, are now available for children around the world. Scholastic Inc., the world's largest distributor of children's books, published two hardcover storybooks and two activity paperbacks about "Davey and Goliath," a property of the Evangelical Lutheran...
Lutherans Value Teamwork On 'Souper Bowl Sunday'
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Like the NFL's New England Patriots on "Super Bowl Sunday" Feb. 6, members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) have found that effective teamwork can yield winning results in a challenge of a different kind. For the last 16 years, the ELCA and other faith...
LWF President, General Secretary Visit Churches In West Africa
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A high-level delegation of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) led by the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and LWF president, and the Rev. Ishmael Noko, LWF general secretary, is visiting Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone, Feb. 10-17. The delegation...
The Rev. Edgar Brown, Longtime Lutheran Worship Leader, Dies
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Edgar S. Brown, 82, retired pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and longtime worship leader in ELCA predecessor church bodies, died Feb. 6 in Selinsgrove, Pa., where he resided. A Communion service in his memory is planned for 11 a.m., Feb. 12...
Lutherans Continue Their Response To Domestic Disasters
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR), a ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, continues to help survivors recover from four hurricanes that struck the Caribbean, eastern and southern parts of the United States last year, and it continues to organize recovery...
ELCA Presiding Bishop Appeals To President Of El Salvador
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and president of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), is appealing to the president of El Salvador to investigate a raid and death of a security guard at the Salvadoran Lutheran University, San...
Lutherans Commit To Long-Term Tsunami Disaster Response
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- For the next five to 10 years, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will work with its "companion" Lutheran churches in India, restoring and rebuilding tsunami-struck communities in India. The Dec. 26 tsunami claimed more than 200,000 lives in several coastal countries of the Indian Ocean....
ELCA Members Contribute $2.5 Million For Tsunami Relief
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) have contributed more than $2.5 million to support relief efforts in southern Asia, after a Dec. 26 tsunami claimed more than 200,000 lives in several coastal countries of the Indian Ocean. "Our church has responded abundantly to the...
ELCA Seminary Lecture Series To Examine 'Practical Theology'
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Such theological ideas as creation, sin and redemption struggle to find meaning in the 21st century. The 2005 Hein-Fry Lecture Series, "Practical Theology in the Life of the Christian," will explore how Christians shape and reshape their understandings of traditional theological categories. The eight seminaries of the...
Augsburg College Hosts 2005 Nobel Peace Prize Forum Feb. 11-12
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The 17th Annual Nobel Peace Prize Forum, Feb. 11-12 at Augsburg College, Minneapolis, will feature a series of speakers who will focus on human rights issues named by Shirin Ebadi, 2003 Nobel Peace Prize recipient. These issues include loss of dignity, deprivation of legal rights, starvation, famine,...
'Grace Matters' New Name For ELCA Radio Ministry
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- On Feb. 13, 2005, the radio ministry for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will introduce its audience to a new name, "Grace Matters," and welcome a new host, the Rev. Peter W. Marty. Grace Matters replaces "Lutheran Vespers" -- the name for the ELCA's radio...
Thrivent Financial For Lutherans Chairman John Gilbert To Retire
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- John O. Gilbert announced Jan. 14 that he plans to retire as chairman of the board of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans on July 31, at the end of his membership on the board. The announcement set a leadership transition plan in motion that has been in place...
Rev. Morris Zumbrun, Former ELCA, LCA Synod Bishop, Dies
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Morris G. Zumbrun, former bishop of the Delaware-Maryland Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the Maryland Synod of the Lutheran Church in America (LCA), died Jan. 20 following a long illness. Zumbrun, 82, resided in Westminster, Md. A memorial service for...
ELCA Youth Ministry Workers Gather For 2005 'Extravaganza'
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) who work to further the mission of youth and family ministries of the church will gather for the ninth annual "Extravaganza" Feb. 4-7. The conference, which will draw more than 800 paid and volunteer youth leaders from across...
ELCA Bishops Comment On Sexuality Studies Task Force Report
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Many of the 65 synod bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) wrote letters to professional church leaders, issued public statements or news releases in the wake of the Jan. 13 release of the long-awaited ELCA Studies on Sexuality task force report and recommendations. While...
ELCA Members Contribute $1 Million Toward Tsunami Relief
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Through the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) International Disaster Response, members of the ELCA have contributed more than $1 million to support relief efforts in southern Asia, after a tsunami claimed thousands of lives in several coastal countries of the Indian Ocean last month. Contributions to...
ELCA Studies Lutheran Legacy In Education
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The 5 million members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) can spend much of this year studying their "legacy in education." A 16-member Task Force on Education developed the study materials, "Our Calling in Education: A Lutheran Study," as one of the early stages in...
ELCA Staff Visit Tsunami-Hit India, Thailand
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Staff of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) churchwide organization are assessing needs for short-term relief and long-term community building first-hand as they visit tsunami-struck areas of India, Jan. 13-20, and Thailand, Jan. 20-22. In response to a special invitation from the United Evangelical Lutheran Church...
