Weekly Blog Posts
The following blog posts are written by Bishop Jen Nagel, Synod staff members, and leaders from the Minneapolis Area Synod.
Can circles once again not be square?
By Bishop Ann Svennungsen When my mother died in 2012, we received several sympathy cards from women we didn’t know. They were all members with mom in Bible Study “circles.” Mom rarely missed her ALC/ELCA [...]
Icons: Reflect, respond, and rest
By Pastor Norma Malfatti Pastor Norma painting an icon Each Lent I spend time with a new icon. Growing up, icons weren't things we talked about in my church. They were images that my Roman [...]
The dusty and dry places
By Pastor Craig Pederson One of the gifts of Christian liturgies is that they incorporate words and phrases we are not likely to hear in everyday conversation. This week in the liturgical year, Ash Wednesday [...]
Grammys? Super Bowl? Whatever.
By Pastor John Hulden Council members from Bread of Life Deaf Lutheran Church (BOLD) and Woodlake Lutheran Church discuss what good meetings look like during the synod's Tool Kit event. I was in [...]
Free and unconditional
By Bishop Ann Svennungsen Grace and Vocation. Two words. And, yet, if you know them well, you’re probably a Lutheran. Much of Lutheran theology can be captured in these two words. (Though, if you were [...]
Look what I can do!
By Nicholas Tangen Two Sundays ago, I preached at Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church in East Bethel, one of the congregations participating in the Faith Practices & Neighboring Practices learning community. I’ve really enjoyed visiting the [...]
To share authentically
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 [...]
Do you believe in redemption?
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 [...]
Watch and witness
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 [...]
Playing football is a big gamble
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, [...]