News

Following the “Act Now: Unite to End Racism” rally in Washington, D.C., the Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), has issued a statement on racism, recommitting this church “to work for racial justice and inclusion, to work against white privilege, and to be a church that truly welcomes all.”

In her Easter message, the ELCA presiding bishop reminds us that Jesus’ crucifixion is the death of our death.

Entering its fifth scheduled year, the ELCA's first comprehensive campaign, Always Being Made New: The Campaign for the ELCA, is celebrating $144 million in cash gifts and gift commitments, representing 73 percent of the five-year, $198 million goal by Jan. 31, 2019.

Addressing recent efforts in Jerusalem to confiscate church lands and tax church properties, the Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton, ELCA presiding bishop, along with leaders from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Armenian Church of America and The Episcopal Church, have sent a letter of support to the heads of churches at the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.

Meeting under the theme “To Claim and Test Our Heritage,” the ELCA Conference of Bishops engaged in discussions around two key priorities for this church: congregational vitality and leadership. The conference, which met here March 1-6, is an advisory body of the ELCA that includes 65 synod bishops, the presiding bishop and the secretary.

The ELCA Conference of Bishops has approved the following statement of support for the March for OurLives on March 24.

Today, I join our partner church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL), in expressing solidarity with the churches in Jerusalem to defend their properties and protect the Christian presence in the Holy Land.

In partnership with Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton’s Leadership Initiative, the seven seminaries of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will launch a combined effort to encourage new candidates for ministry in the ELCA.

Today, I renew my call to all of us as Christians to recognize our neighbors as made in the image of God, and to our nation's elected leaders: Enact policies that provide a pathway to citizenship for undocumented young people who arrived in the U.S. as children, known as Dreamers, and do so without harming other vulnerable immigrants.

In commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., the Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), will join ecumenical and inter-religious partners for Act Now: Unite to End Racism April 3-5 in Washington, D.C. The focus of the three-day event will be a rally April 4 on the National Mall.

The Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), and leaders from The Episcopal Church, the Anglican Church of Canada, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada have prepared a series of Lent devotions titled “Set Free By Truth.”

I am very disappointed and disturbed by the remarks that President Donald Trump is reported to have said yesterday – and confirmed by others who were present – in the context of a discussion about immigration. Regardless of the context, references of that kind have no place in our civil...

In her Christmas message, the Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton, presiding bishop of the ELCA, reminds us that Advent is a time to be present and still, to be aware of the promise to come.

The Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton, presiding bishop of the ELCA, has issued the following statement in response to the decision to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

The Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) met at The Lutheran Center in Chicago, Nov. 9-12. The council, which serves as the ELCA’s board of directors, focused on the goals of ELCA Future Directions 2025 and the church’s priorities around congregational vitality and leadership.

In honor of Veterans Day, the Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), calls the church to prayer and action in support of our military, veterans and their families

The Reverend Rudolph P.F. Ressmeyer, D.D., of Oviedo, Florida passed away on October 6, 2017 of natural causes at the age of 93.

In light of recent public events and conversation, it is important to remember the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) rejects all forms of hatred or discrimination. This includes employment discrimination against the transgender community, as stated in "Gender Identity Discrimination," a policy resolution that was adopted by the 2013 ELCA Churchwide Assembly.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), stands against all forms of hatred and discrimination. The church believes that cultural, ethnic and racial differences should be seen and celebrated as what God intends them to be—blessings rather than means of oppression and discrimination.

The Rev. Mark N. Wilhelm has been named executive director of the Network of ELCA Colleges and Universities.