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Craig Satterlee elected bishop of ELCA North/West Lower Michigan Synod
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Craig Alan Satterlee was elected May 21
to serve a six-year term as bishop of the North/West Lower Michigan Synod
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). He was elected on
the fifth ballot during the synod assembly May 19-21 in Lansing, Mich.
“The church has done something bold by electing as bishop someone
who has a disability and is legally blind. The playbook hasn’t been
written yet, but the church and the world will take notice. This ...
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Brian Kirby Unti elected bishop of ELCA Northwest Washington Synod
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Brian Kirby Unti, Renton, Wash., was
elected May 18 to a six-year term as bishop of the Northwest Washington
Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Unti was
elected on the fourth ballot during the synod assembly May 16-18 in
Lynnwood, Wash.
“I am overwhelmed and humbled, and I look forward to the future with
great anticipation,” said Unti, who serves as pastor of St. Matthew
Lutheran Church in Renton.
Unti was elected on the...
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Two ELCA synod bishops re-elected for second terms
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Michael W. Rinehart and the Rev. David H.
Brauer-Rieke were re-elected to serve second six-year terms as synod
bishops in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).
Rinehart, bishop of the ELCA Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast Synod, was
re-elected on the first ballot during the synod assembly May 16-18 in
Navasota, Texas. He was first elected in 2007. Prior to becoming bishop
he served as pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in Conroe, Texas, from 1997
...
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ELCA offers prayers, worship resources for survivors of spring storms
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)
has made worship resources available May 21 in response to recent severe
storms across the Midwest. Through Lutheran Disaster Response, ELCA
members and congregations are supporting tornado survivors in partnership
with local Lutheran affiliates and ELCA synods.
In a letter to congregations the Rev. Michael K. Girlinghouse,
bishop of the ELCA Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod, asked members to pray for
affected communit...
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Robert Schaefer elected bishop of ELCA Florida-Bahamas Synod
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Robert G. Schaefer, Venice, Fla., was
elected May 4 to a six-year term as bishop of the Florida-Bahamas Synod
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Schaefer was
elected on the sixth ballot during the synod assembly May 2-4 in Orlando,
Fla.
“I am deeply grateful for the confidence that our assembly has
placed in me in this call to serve as their bishop,” said Schaefer, who
serves as lead pastor of Emmanuel Lutheran in Venice.
“I p...
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Rodger Prois elected bishop of ELCA Western Iowa Synod
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Rodger C. Prois, Storm Lake, Iowa, was
elected April 27 to a six-year term as bishop of the Western Iowa Synod
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Prois was elected
on the fifth ballot during the synod assembly April 26-28 in Sioux City,
Iowa.
Prois serves as interim pastor at St. Mark Lutheran in Sioux City,
Iowa, and New Life Lutheran in Sergeant Bluff, Iowa. He will be installed
as bishop Sept. 1 at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Ch...
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ELCA observes World Malaria Day with special campaign appeal
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In observance of World Malaria Day April 25, the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is emphasizing its
commitment to help bring an end to malaria-related deaths with a week-
long effort to raise $250,000 for the ELCA Malaria Campaign. The money
raised April 22-29 will help spur the ELCA’s anti-malaria efforts in
Uganda, where the disease is the leading cause of death among children
under the age of 5.
“Gifts given to the ELCA Malaria Campaign this w...
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ELCA leaders advocate for immigration reform in support of families
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America (ELCA) continues to advocate for comprehensive federal immigration
reform as the Senate Judiciary Committee holds hearings on legislation
that calls for reform. A bipartisan group of senators introduced a reform
bill April 17.
In anticipation of the Senate’s bill, Lutheran Immigration and
Refugee Service sponsored a leadership summit April 14-16 that brought
together 40 Lutheran leaders from across the country to Capi...
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ELCA leaders urge Obama to pursue diplomatic solutions in Syria
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In an April 12 letter to President Obama, leaders
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) urged the
administration and others in the international community to find new
avenues toward peace in Syria and strive to resolve the civil war there
through diplomacy.
In their letter, the ELCA presiding bishop and four synod bishops
offered their appreciation for Obama’s chosen “path of restraint,”
particularly as the bishops have heard louder calls in re...
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ELCA synod council makes decisions on key leadership positions
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The council of the South-Central Synod of
Wisconsin of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) met April
16 to make decisions and recommendations, in consultation with ELCA
Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson, regarding key synod leadership positions.
In an April 17 letter to members of the synod Eric Peterson, chair
of the synod’s council and synod vice president, first expressed
gratitude “for the tremendous outpouring of prayers” for Maureen
Mengelt’s...
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ELCA offers worship resources in response to Boston Marathon bombings
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)
has made available prayer and worship resources in response to the April
15 explosions during the Boston Marathon. The resources are at
http://www.ELCA.org/Growing-In-Faith/Worship.aspx.
The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop, offered the
following prayer:
“Oh God, in Jesus name we renounce the forces of evil and the
disruptive power of violence. With all those who suffer, we cry out for
mercy an...
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ELCA concludes its earthquake-relief efforts in Haiti
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)
has concluded its relief and recovery efforts in Haiti following the
January 2010 earthquake - the most powerful to strike Haiti in more than
200 years.
Nearly 250,000 people were killed, 300,000 injured and more than 1
million people were left homeless as a result of the earthquake. Through
Lutheran Disaster Response, ELCA members responded by donating more than
$12.5 million dollars to support relief efforts,...
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ELCA council authorizes advisory council on theological education
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Acknowledging a climate of new institutional
mergers and collaborations between seminaries and universities, new
technologies and degree program designs, economic challenges facing
students and educational providers, the Church Council of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) authorized the formation of an advisory
council to address in a holistic way issues on theological education,
leadership development, candidacy, call and rostered leaders.
Th...
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ELCA synod continues prayer for Mengelt family, announces acting bishop
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Leaders of the South-Central Synod of Wisconsin of
the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) sent a letter April 11
to pastors, members and congregations of the synod with continued
expressions of sorrow and sympathy for the family of Maureen Mengelt, who
died April 7 when she was struck by the vehicle of the Rev. Bruce H.
Burnside, bishop of the synod, who was arrested and charged
with “vehicular homicide while intoxicated.”
“We pray that God will com...
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ELCA offers prayers for family, friends of pedestrian killed in Wisconsin
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America (ELCA) are extending prayers for the family and friends of a
pedestrian killed April 7 in Sun Prairie, Wis., and for the Rev. Bruce H.
Burnside, bishop of the ELCA South-Central Synod of Wisconsin. Reports
indicate that Burnside’s vehicle hit the pedestrian. He was arrested and
taken into custody.
“We offer our prayers for the woman who lost her life in this
tragedy. Nothing can undo this terrible accident...
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2013 Easter Message From ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In his 2013 Easter Message, the Rev. Mark S.
Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA), shares the promise of forgiveness and reconciliation with the
more than 4-million members of this church.
The full text of the presiding bishop’s message follows:
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
Easter. It is about more than an open tomb. It is the good news of the
risen Christ who opens lives.
Think about Jesus' friends aft...
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ELCA renews relationships with Malagasy, Malawi Lutherans
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Leaders of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America (ELCA) and the Malagasy Lutheran Church signed a partnership
agreement designed to strengthen the relationship “in a new time.” The
signing took place March 13 at the Malagasy church offices in
Antananarivo, Madagascar.
The agreement “is a strong foundation built upon the past but we
sign it for the future,” said the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding
bishop, during the signing. “It is a document that refl...
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ELCA members journey to southern Africa for malaria campaign
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Embarking on a “journey of listening and
learning,” a group of Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)
members will travel March 16-25 to southern Africa to visit Lutheran
companion churches working to help contain the deadly disease of malaria.
“This is not just about going on a trip but entering into a long
term relationship that will change all of us,” said the Rev. Philip
Knutson, an ELCA regional representative in southern Africa. “What people
need...
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New pope has ties to Lutherans, says ELCA presiding bishop
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In response to the election today of Cardinal
Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina as the new pope, the Rev. Mark S.
Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA), said he is “encouraged that Pope Francis has worked with
Lutherans in Argentina.”
Meeting with Lutheran church leaders in Madagascar, Hanson said
that “as we approach the commemoration of the 500th (observance) of the
Lutheran Reformation, we share a deep commitment to...
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ELCA bishops discuss a distinctive Lutheran witness in the world
ITASCA, Ill (ELCA) -- Recognizing the rapidly changing landscape of
religion, society and the world the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), said the ELCA is in
a “kairos” moment and that members can make a compelling “Lutheran
witness in our culture today.”
At the ELCA Conference of Bishops meeting here Feb. 28-March 5,
Hanson framed his report around questions ELCA members and congregations
are frequently asking. “Often t...
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