Tag: November

Warm-up Question What is your favorite holiday? Share some of the reasons why you prefer that celebration. Holiday Origin Stories Every year we celebrate a number of holidays. Some are national in origin, which is why Independence Day is on July 4th in the United States of America, September 16th in Mexico, and June 26th in Madagascar. Others have deep religious meaning, like Christmas, Easter, and Halloween, though each of those holidays now have many secular elements as well. Too often, we only tell one part of the holiday’s origin story. Take, for instance, the celebration of Christmas. Of course,…

Following are updates shared from submissions of the Lutheran Office for World Community and state public policy offices (sppos) in the ELCA Advocacy Network this month. Full list and map of sppos available. UN | COLORADO | OHIO | PENNSYLVANIA | TEXAS | WISCONSIN Lutheran Office for World Community, United Nations, New York, N.Y. – ELCA.org/lowc Christine Mangale, Director UN General Assembly Third Committee: The UN General Assembly Third Committee, which focuses on Social, Humanitarian and Cultural issues, meets Oct. 3 through Nov. 22. Recently, the LOWC Director hosted a small delegation in advance of their attending meetings from LWF…

Warm-up Question What is your favorite building? Do you like it because of the architecture? Because of a memory that occurred there? Because of the feelings inspired by the space? Something else? Who Is Displaced? This summer, there was a fire in the electrical room at Christ Lutheran Church in Baltimore, MD. Fortunately, no one was injured. Smoke damage occurred from classrooms to worship spaces to fellowship halls. Major renovations and utility upgrades are underway that cost millions of dollars. There are still major utility wires running through every floor and most spaces. From the bathrooms to the sanctuary, it’s…

Warm-up Question What is a small action you can take that makes a big difference in your, or someone else’s, life? Give a Little Bit People–especially young people–often want to make positive difference in their community. Whether relieving hunger or ensuring civil rights or others, people often seek positive change. Sometimes the job is so big that the change seems unlikely, if not downright impossible. There is so much hunger and inequality that making those positive differences appears too much for us. The weight of the world, and the distance from here to the change we want for the world,…

In the United States, November is Native American Heritage Month. Racial Justice Ministries would like to elevate the voices and work of our Indigenous siblings by bringing attention to the multitude of events by the ELCA’s Indigenous Ministries and Tribal Relations. A full list of offerings for this month can be found here, but there are three events that we would especially like to highlight: Toward Truth and Healing: How Churches Face Accountability for their Indian Boarding Schools Sunday, November 10, 2024 – ONLINE 7 – 8:30 p.m. Central time Hosted by the Quaker Church’s Friends Peace Teams, Vance Blackfox…

Warm-up Question What are some of the easiest things for you to remember? This might be something like information on a certain school subject, pop culture trivia, or peoples’ names. Why do you think you remember these things so easily? Practicing Remembering There’s a glut of information online about memory improvement. Some articles, like this one, detail the value of certain games to increase your brain’s health. At other times, phone applications promise a boost in your capacity to remember information. Websites like Quizlet offer resources to reinforce data memorization for school or work.  Everyone, it seems, knows that memory…

Leslie Weber, Chesapeake, VA Warm-up Question What makes a thing valuable? What makes a person valuable? Mattering According to Dr. Gordon Flett, “mattering is a ‘core, universal human need,’ a necessary component for well-being.” Mattering is more than feeling like you belong or having good self-esteem, it is about feeling valued by others and believing that you add value to the lives of those around you. Research shows all kinds of benefits for people who feel like they matter,  which lead to better relationships with themselves and with others. A “lack of mattering is associated with burnout, self-criticism, anxiety, depression,…

There is no Faith Lens posting this week Now thank we all our God with hearts and hands and voices, who wondrous things has done, in whom this world rejoices; who, from our mother’s arms, has blest us on our way with countless gifts of love and still is ours today. All praise and thanks to God the Father now be given the Son and Spirit blest, who reign in highest heaven, the one eternal God, who earth and heaven adore for thus it was is now, and shall be evermore. (Evangelical Lutheran Worship, 839)       ELCA Blogs

Issue 90 of Administration Matters Who would steal from us? Misappropriation of church funds can engender a crisis of confidence in your congregation, so proper handling of donations is a critical responsibility. Keep a would-be thief out of the collection plate by developing the financial controls needed to prevent theft and embezzlement in your congregation. >More Supporting our leaders with financial, emotional, physical and pumpkin spice benefits Portico seeks to support its plan members’ whole-person health and well-being with benefit options for every season of life — including pumpkin spice season. This fall a dietician at one of Portico’s partner…

In the United States, November is Native American Heritage Month. Racial Justice Ministries would like to elevate the voices and work of our Indigenous siblings by bringing attention to the multitude of events by the ELCA’s Indigenous Ministries and Tribal Relations. A full list of offerings for this month can be found here, but there are two events that we would especially like to highlight: Vine Deloria Jr. Theological Symposium In 2013, the Annual American Indian and Alaska Native Symposium at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago was renamed in honor of Vine Deloria Jr., an alum of Augustana…