Faith seeking hope By Craig Pederson “What gives you hope as you do this work?” That was the question we reflected upon to begin the most recent meeting of our synod’s Muslim Solidarity Task Force. This remarkable group of Christians and Muslims – both clergy and lay leaders – was formed as a result of [...]
By Bishop Ann Svennungsen It didn’t take long before tears came to his eyes. We were sitting at the pre-game lunch last Saturday before Homecoming at Concordia College in Moorhead. My table mate had come to watch his son play football. I told him about my work as a bishop in the region that includes [...]
By Eric Howard I was four years old when I became an American citizen. Those first few months were a lot to take in; I remember navigating feelings of confusion, fear, and doubt. I was an adoptee from Mexico with a new family in a new country having to learn a new language. It was [...]
By Meghan Olsen Biebighauser This past August, 25 elementary-aged students from three Minneapolis congregations came together to spend a week building community. Literally. Equipped with stacks of cardboard boxes, duct tape, markers, paper, and anything else they could get their hands on, the students carefully constructed an entire city on the floor of University Lutheran Church [...]
By Pastor Deb Stehlin As you might expect, I do I lot of thinking and reading and talking about evangelism. (I serve as director for evangelical mission.) It feels good to share what I learned in my work as a church planter. I continue to learn even more from my gifted colleagues. I read as [...]
By Bishop Ann Svennungsen From the beginning of my Reformation, I have asked God to send me neither dreams, nor visions, nor angels, but to give me the right understanding of God’s Word, the Holy Scriptures; for as long as I have God's Word, I know that I am walking in God’s way. (Martin Luther, [...]
By Emilie Bouvier Early in the 20th century, photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson complained, “The world is going to pieces and people like [Ansel] Adams and [Edward] Weston are photographing rocks!” In a desperate retort, Adams replied that a rock was more socially significant than a line of the unemployed. Now that’s a bit far perhaps, but [...]
By Pastor John Hulden It was 1970. The national convention for the American Lutheran Church (ALC) was in Minneapolis. (The ALC was one of the predecessor church bodies that formed the ELCA in 1988.) It was at that 1970 gathering that the ALC voted to ordain women. The fight was tough. At a worship service [...]
By Kris Bjorke We’ve hit the point in the baseball season where it’s getting really interesting. To say I’m a fan wouldn’t be totally true, but I do love to go to games, to hang out with friends and family, and to watch a play or two. Thankfully, the Twins seems to have a lot [...]
By Bishop Ann Svennungsen What a blessing it was to attend the 2019 Churchwide Assembly in Milwaukee! We worked hard on the decisions facing our church; we worshiped and studied scripture together; we celebrated and communed with people across the ELCA and around the globe. I will not soon forget the long procession during Friday’s [...]
