Category: Protestant

This past Sunday, across many Christian traditions, the season of Advent began. This season begins with apocalypse, revelation. Contrary to the popular and colloquial use of the term apocalypse, it does not mean “end of the world.”  Quite literally, apocalypse means revelation, pulling [the curtain] away. When a play begins there is an apocalypse – the curtain is drawn, and the show is revealed. When I was a child, every morning was apocalyptic; my mother would pull the covers off me, my day began exposed to the chilling reality of a new day.   The entrance to the sanctuary of St….

ELCA World Hunger is excited to announce the addition of a new staff member, Everdith Landrau. Read more about her below!  Hi everyone, my name is Everdith Landrau, also known as Evie, and I am delighted to join the ELCA World Hunger as Director of Networking and Engagement.  I am a native of San Juan, Puerto Rio by way of Manhattan (Spanish Harlem), New York.  I am an ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament with the Presbyterian Church, (USA).  My grandmother fostered the love of service early on in my childhood.  Growing up in an urban setting both in Puerto Rico and Spanish Harlem exposed me…

These prompts are provided for worship leaders as they prepare the prayers of intercession for weekly worship. The prompts are prepared by several leaders in the ELCA and reflect current world and national events. You are encouraged to adapt and add other concerns for your local context, including staying informed of events and concerns in your synod. Intercession prompts: For rebuilding and recovery work following tornadoes in the southern United States… For families grieving children killed in a school bombing in northern Afghanistan… For an end to continued war in Ukraine… For an end to gun violence in our nation……

Join us in Sensing Advent: Practicing God’s justice in embodied community Advent Pilgrimage in Palestine is a four-week virtual pilgrimage from the ELCA’s Peace Not Walls, Young Adult Ministry, Arab and Middle Eastern ministry, and ALAMEH featuring young adult voices from the ELCA and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land. In Palestine and around the world, Advent is a time to prepare for Christmas—not only in our hearts and minds, but in embodied traditions that involve all our senses. Decorations, food, music, and gifts can not only express the rich cultural diversity of the church and connect…

ALAMEH (Association of Lutherans of Arab and Middle Eastern Heritage) issued a statement on Iran, please find it linked below. ALAMEH Statement on Iran ELCA Blogs

These prompts are provided for worship leaders as they prepare the prayers of intercession for weekly worship. The prompts are prepared by several leaders in the ELCA and reflect current world and national events. You are encouraged to adapt and add other concerns for your local context, including staying informed of events and concerns in your synod. Intercession prompts: For those mourning loss of life, home, and livelihood in the aftermath of the recent earthquake in Indonesia… For the loved ones of those killed and for others who were injured in the shooting at Club Q in Colorado Springs on…

Mary Houck, Decatur, GA Warm-up Question Name a favorite celebrity or a public figure you admire. How much do you know about them and what they stand for?  Should famous people be held accountable for what they believe personally? For example, can you listen to someone’s music, read their book, or watch them in a movie, even if you know their values are different from yours? Are You Awake? Public figures, from social media influencers to celebrities to politicians, talk about how “woke” they are.  The term has developed more layers of meaning in the past few years. For example,…

Today’s blog post comes from DeAnna Quietwater Noriega.   DeAnna Quietwater Noriega is half Apache and a quarter Chippewa. She is the mother of three, two daughters and an adopted blind son. She was the eldest of five children in a close–knit American Indian family. As a result of congenital glaucoma, she became totally blind at the age of eight. DeAnna was mainstreamed in public schools in Texas, Michigan, and California. She completed a bachelor’s degree in social science and did a year toward a master’s in social work at California State University Stanislaus. While attending college, she taught independent…

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.   U.N. | ARIZONA | CALIFORNIA | COLORADO  | MINNESOTA | NEW MEXICO | OHIO | PENNSYLVANIA | TEXAS | WASHINGTON | WISCONSIN |   U.N. Lutheran Office for World Community (LOWC), United Nations, New York, N.Y. – ELCA.org/lowc Christine Mangale, Director Women’s Human Rights Advocacy Training The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in partnership with the World Council of Churches, Finn Church Aid, and Norwegian Church Aid held…

These prompts are provided for worship leaders as they prepare the prayers of intercession for weekly worship. The prompts are prepared by several leaders in the ELCA and reflect current world and national events. You are encouraged to adapt and add other concerns for your local context, including staying informed of events and concerns in your synod. Feedback invited We would especially value your feedback regarding how these prompts for the prayers of intercession are used in your context by your responding to a brief survey.https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/M6HNQT6 The survey will close on November 23, 2022. Thank you!  Intercession prompts: For worship…