Tag: Community
Nourishing community and cultivating joy in Federal Way, Wash.
Light of Grace Lutheran Church’s story If you visit the Saturday-morning farmers market in Federal Way, Wash., you might see Kay (Kyong Yon) Mattingly smiling and dancing with her friends from Dasom Bi-Cultural Cooperation, a ministry of Light of Grace Lutheran Church. The ministry hosts a booth with a variety of Korean goods for sale, but the members also seek to bring joy to those around them – and create it for themselves. About midway between Seattle and Tacoma, Federal Way has a large population of Korean immigrants, and services to this community are limited. Given the aging population, demand…
A Short Tour of Community Gardens
Our garden at home has finally started yielding its bounty, which means we have more tomatoes than we know what to do with and are engaged in constant battle with rabbits to preserve our harvest. Now is the season when we get to enjoy the fruits of our time spent planting and preparing the soil, with fresh bites from the garden in every meal. It’s a reminder of the growing season and of nature’s wonders. The fresh veggies making their way from my yard to my plate has had me thinking more about community gardens recently, especially with the rising…
Introducing “A Declaration of the ELCA to the Muslim Community”
By Professor Mark Swanson On March 31st, the ELCA Church Council adopted “A Declaration of the ELCA to the Muslim Community,” uplifting our commitment to friendship and solidarity with our Muslim neighbors. The idea that the ELCA should develop “A Declaration to the Muslim Community” has been around for some time, especially since the Reformation commemorations of 2017, when there was renewed focus in a variety of forums on Luther’s attitudes toward the religious Other. After the adoption at the 2019 ELCA Churchwide Assembly of “A Declaration of Inter-Religious Commitment,” the Lutheran-Muslim Consultative Panel began in earnest to discuss the…
OMNIA: Striving Towards Beloved Community
By Dr. Shanta Premawardhana More than 50 years ago, Dr. Mary Nelson (founder of Bethel New Life in the westside of Chicago) marched with Dr. Martin Luther King and gospel singer Mahalia Jackson in Chicago. For several decades, Dr. Nelson was a faculty member of OMNIA Institute’s predecessor organization SCUPE (Seminary Consortium for Urban Pastoral Education) and she continues as an Advisory Board member of the OMNIA Institute for Contextual Leadership. In an OMNIA podcast, Dr. Nelson talked about the Beloved Community as God’s vision for the city. It is that same vision that animated the founders of SCUPE to…