News

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The summer 2002 edition of MOSAIC, the video magazine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), focuses on the church and weddings in today's culture. The program, "Weddings as Worship: Helping Couples Understand," is available June 1. The program examines how the church's expectations for weddings...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Effective May 22, the Rev. Jonathan P. Strandjord will serve as acting director of the Division for Ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Strandjord, 49, assumes the role in addition to his current duties as director for theological education. The Rev. Mark S. Hanson,...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Details of services for the Rev. Will L. Herzfeld, a former Lutheran presiding bishop, pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), and civil rights and community activist, have been announced. Herzfeld, 64, died at a local hospital May 9 of cerebral malaria, which he contracted...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Public television stations are beginning to schedule broadcast times for a one-hour documentary on the demise of a rural Minnesota congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). "Delafield" is also producer Mark Brodin's examination of American farming communities. Founded in the 1870s by Norwegian settlers...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Will L. Herzfeld, presiding bishop of the former Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC), civil rights activist, ecumenist and pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), died May 9 at a local hospital. At the time of his death, Herzfeld, 64, Chicago, was...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Will L. Herzfeld, presiding bishop of the former Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC), civil rights activist, ecumenist and pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), died May 9 at a local hospital. At the time of his death, Herzfeld, 64, Chicago, was...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is engaged in studies to answer specific questions about homosexuality and to develop a social statement on sexuality. A 13- member Task Force for ELCA Studies on Sexuality assembled here May 3-5 for its first meeting. "This is a group...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A three-year study of 400 congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) revealed that up to one third devote a significant amount of their time and budget to local social ministry activities but are restrained from doing more by limited budgets and volunteer staff. The...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The number of refugees admitted to the United States should be increased to at least 90,000 in 2003, said the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) in a May 7 letter to President George W. Bush. Hanson's letter noted...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Lutheran Men in Mission (LMM) will take aim at three targets in the coming years. The LMM board decided the men's ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will underscore its Bible program, men's health issues and getting young men involved in the church. LMM's...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Peter Strommen was re-elected May 3 to a six-year term as bishop of the Northeastern Minnesota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The election took place at the synod assembly May 3-5 in Duluth, Minn. Strommen, 55, has been serving as bishop...

ROSEMONT, Ill. (ELCA) -- Initial interviews are expected to begin in June for the position of president and chief executive officer of Augsburg Fortress, the Minneapolis-based publishing house of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The report was made at the publisher's board of trustees meeting here and at...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), is the author of a new book, "Faithful Yet Changing: The Church in Challenging Times." The book presents Hanson's vision for the ELCA. Augsburg Fortress, the Minneapolis-based publishing house of the ELCA,...

Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia The Rev. H. George Anderson, former presiding bishop of the ELCA, Prospect Heights, Ill. Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lansdale, Pa. May 21 Lutheran Seminary Program in the Southwest, Austin, Texas The Rev. Roger A. Paynter, First Baptist Church, Austin, and adjunct professor of pastoral ministry,...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Lutherans took part in an "ecumenical convoy" April 25 that brought food, medical supplies and support to residents of Jenin, a town in the West Bank. Six thousand people are left homeless as a result of a "fierce 10-day battle earlier this month" between Israelis and Palestinians...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The eight seminaries of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) report 1,211 students seeking a master of divinity (M.Div.) degree during the 2001-2002 academic year. After several years of declining enrollment, the number of students preparing to become ELCA pastors has leveled off in the past...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. David G. Mullen was elected to a six- year term as bishop of the Sierra Pacific Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) at the synod assembly in Fresno, Calif., April 25-27. Mullen will succeed the Rev. Robert W. Mattheis, who announced in...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Dennis J. Johnson was named interim president of Gustavus Adolphus College effective June 11. Gustavus Adolphus, St. Peter, Minn., is one of 28 colleges and universities of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Johnson serves as the bishop's associate for the ELCA Minneapolis Area...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Dr. Richard Guarasci was named president of Wagner College effective June 1. Wagner, Staten Island, N.Y., is one of 28 colleges and universities of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). For the past five years Guarasci has been serving as Wagner's provost and senior vice president...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The 5.13 million members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) have supported family farmers and urban ministries in the United States, and focused on health, education and community development overseas. One way members have done that is by supporting Vision for Mission, an annual offering...