By Maya Bryant This past Saturday, I sat down in the lounge of Salem Evangelical’s basement at 9:30 a.m. for a monthly Faith Practices & Neighboring Practices cohort meeting. During said meeting, we had the opportunity to take time for contemplation on our faith journeys and how they have shaped us and how we see [...]
By Emilie Bouvier “But even more, all types of conniving methods are still being used to prevent Negroes from becoming registered voters. The denial of this sacred right is a tragic betrayal of the highest mandates of our democratic tradition. And so our most urgent request to the president of the United States and every [...]
By Bishop Ann Svennungsen What images and metaphors do you use to describe your congregation? Scripture provides a few: the body of Christ, the flock of the good shepherd, the vine and the branches. At our recent Bishops Academy, Bishop Kurt Kusserow invited us to think more deeply about the metaphors we use – especially [...]
By Bob Hulteen I wasn’t watching the Monday Night Football game last night, … because I had already lost this season’s office Fantasy Football championship a day earlier. But, while finishing up a late supper, my social media feeds exploded with people calling for prayer for a player I had never heard of before: Damar [...]
By Pastor Norma Malfatti The Christmas tree at Rockefeller Plaza These infamous words from A Muppet Christmas Carol have been part of my Christmas morning since not long after the movie came out. Before that it was Scrooged with Bill Murray. Watching modern versions of “A Christmas Carol” is a tradition that has grounded [...]
By Eric Howard What life experiences have defined your leadership? For me, it has been my work at the synod. Monday, August 6, 2018, was my first day as executive assistant to the bishop. At the time, it was opaque how administrative work could become a call to leadership. Navigating office challenges during the pandemic [...]
By Pastor Craig Pederson In this Advent season of waiting, preparing, and making paths straight, I’ve been thinking about the kind of paths that will be needed for our churches to experience the Christ child this year. With the persistent and varied challenges we’ve faced in recent years, we’ve got some “road work” to do [...]
Oops! The link in the 11/29/22 e-news might have taken you here. If you're looking for Jack's blog, go here. But if you haven't read John's post from last week yet, you should! ---- By Pastor John Hulden Teenagers are amazing. In my 35+ years of trying to be a pastor, it is a good [...]
By Bob Hulteen Region 3 of the ELCA (the nine synods of Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota – or what Pastor John Hulden calls “the ‘otas”) pulls together the bishops’ staffs once a year for a three-day retreat to share information and talk about policies and programs that could be improved throughout the region. [...]
By Jack Hurbanis Being present in rooms with the people who have power and make decisions in our communities is one of the foundational pieces of community organizing. Whether those are elected officials, business and nonprofit executives, or religious leaders, showing up is key to ensure their decision-making power is used in the interest of [...]
