Weekly Blog Posts
The following blog posts are written by Bishop Jen Nagel, Synod staff members, and leaders from the Minneapolis Area Synod.
In Search of Independence
By Bob Hulteen When I was little, my (much) older brother blew up my “little army men” with firecrackers. Mercilessly, he would throw some of the plastic soldiers into an empty can of Folgers with [...]
Incarnating Community
By Bishop Ann Svennungsen How important is it for a pastor to know how to form and lead a healthy community? In addition to teaching pastors how to preach, teach, and provide pastoral care, should [...]
What’s said in Leipzig, stays in … people’s memories for decades
By Bishop Ann Svennungsen I have a new resolution: “Each year, take at least one of group of synodical leaders on a week-long mission trip.” Just last Thursday, 16 of our synod’s rostered leaders returned [...]
At Pentecost, the answer is blowing in the wind
By Emilie Bouvier “Think of a time in which you powerfully experienced public space.” This is what I asked a room of faith leaders this week at the Peer Group Lunch and Learn I led [...]
Answer Is …
By Bishop Ann Svennungsen Hymns for $300: “If you cannot preach like Peter, and you cannot pray like Paul.” “What is ‘There is a Balm in Gilead’?” This was not your grandparents’ synod assembly. Instead [...]
What’s Essential?
By Rev. Deb Stehlin If you stop by the synod office this week, you’ll see stacks of boxes, file cabinets, and books shelves all over the place. We’re re-configuring our offices to make room for [...]
To Care is Human …
By Bob Hulteen The Metro Transit bus route 2 includes a long section of Franklin Avenue in Minneapolis, so I can pick up the bus just a block from my house and get dropped off [...]
A Variety of Gifts … for the Common Good
By Bishop Ann Svennungsen There are a varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. Just as the body is one and has many members, so it is with Christ. To each is given the manifestation [...]
Augies and Gusties and Norse, Oh My
By Rev. Craig Pederson At the change of each season, I relish the opportunity to return to the campus of my alma mater, Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter Minnesota. I have the privilege of [...]
Reveling in Real Presence
By Rev. Deb Stehlin I grew up in a faithful Catholic family. Being Catholic as an Augsburg student was never really an issue until one Sunday when the choir sang at a Lutheran worship service. [...]