Southestern Synod Logo
Southeastern Synod
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
God's work. Our hands. 


E-News Weekly
Issue: #257January 28, 2011
In This Issue
Get the Latest ELCA News
Response: What Do You Have To Say?
Catch the Spirit
If You Really Want to Help
Book of Faith Brief
Global Mission Opportunities
Upcoming Volunteer Disaster Response Training
African American Lutheran Assocation Assembly
Upcoming Events
Around the Synod
Quick Links
 
Get the Latest ELCA News

ELCA Launches LivingLutheran.Com for Sharing Stories and Conversation

 

LivingLutheran.com, a new website for members of
the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), offers a daily blend of stories and conversation about what it means to "live Lutheran."  Read more

 

********************************************************* 

ELCA News Feed

 

Click here to subscribe to the ELCA News Feed.  Subscribing to ELCA news will allow you to receive, by e-mail, up-to-date releases and postings regarding the news and events of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

 

                             ELCA1

*********************************************************

 

Join the ELCA e-Advocacy Network at www.elca.org/advocacy


The ELCA Washington Office works to engage Lutherans from an ethic of discipleship and willingness to speak for others as a matter of faith - that's YOU! Receive timely updates on legislation, learn when is the best time to contact your Member of Congress and get the latest grassroots news. To sign up, visit  www.elca.org/advocacy.

 

ELCA Washington Office Director for Advocacy, Andrew Ginzsler, will be our guest at this year's Synod Assembly, June 3-5, 2011 at the Renaissance Waverly Hotel, 2450 Galeria Parkway, Atlanta, GA.  

Response:  What Do You Have To Say?

BlaylockLast week Pastor Delmer Chilton invited blog entry contributions from others.  Here is what the Rev. Dr. Joy Blaylock from St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Mobile, AL had to say:

I recently filed my first "Rostered Leader Report" with the synod office. My mind swarmed with various ideas as I tried to answer, with some reasonable depth, the questions contained there: "as you reflect on the last year, what were the most significant developments, events, or accomplishments in your life and ministry?" Surprisingly, I found that I had space for only 125 words or less. How do you negotiate a trip to seminary, ordination, first call, and budding ministry with all its joys and sorrows in that space?

(Click here to read the rest on the synod blog.)

 

Other blogs:

Comments from Southeastern Synod Council Member Crystal Rowe on LivingLutheran.com, Discernment or decision?

Catch the Spirit

 

Catch the SpiritRegister Now! 

 

February 25 & 26, 2011

 

Redeemer Lutheran Church

Atlanta, GA

 

Join a gathering of ELCA church leaders who want to learn and grow.
 

The goal of this two day retreat experience is to empower church leaders in the areas of Evangelism and Leadership. This is done by an inspiring speaker, practical workshops, creative worship, and the fostering of connections between leaders with a common passion for growth and transformation in the church.


Take the time to re-equip yourself for leadership in your church home!

  

"God's Work Our Hands"

Turning dreams into action!

 

www.catchthespiritlutheran.org

If You Really Want to Help...

Help

Thanks to all who responded to our requests for help in last week's E-News.  Remember to:
  • Encourage your congregation to complete and submit Annual Congregational Reports.The deadline for report submission is February 15, 2011.
  • Take the ELCA Board of Pensions health assessment by April 30, 2011. 
  • Submit names for potential nominees for positions to be elected at the 2011 Synod Assembly. Click HERE for more information about these positions. DEADLINE for submission of biographical forms to be considered by the Nominating Committee: March 15, 2011.
For more information about the above, click here.

Other ways to help:  Synod Office Greeters and E-News Reporters
 

Volunteers are crucial to the mission of the Southeastern Synod. The Synod office is currently looking for volunteer Office Greeters to answer phone calls and welcome visitors to the synod office. Lay persons, clergy, and retired clergy have all been volunteer greeters in the past. Greeters may also perform additional office-related tasks, depending on their interests and skills.

 

Volunteer E-News Reporters are needed throughout the synod to submit short original articles for electronic publication in the synod's E-News. Articles about congregational and conference activities for the "Around the Synod" section of the E-News are especially useful.

 

Interested?  Click here to learn more.

Book of Faith Brief
Book of Faith
 
                                                   http://www.bookoffaith.org/
 


Looking for ways to help families develop biblical fluency and to spark faith-forming conversations at home?  Take a look at this brand new resource from Spark! 

Spark Family is the newest Spark resource designed to help families fit faith into everyday life! Designed for families with children in preschool through 4th grade, Spark Family is a quarterly subscription. Each issue comes alive with colorful images from the award-winning Spark Story Bible and engaging activities for the whole family! With 48 pages of activities, Spark Family is a great resource to keep in the car, carry along as you run errands throughout the day, or leave on the kitchen table for conversation starters during dinner.  An annual subscription is under $10 per year.  Bulk discounts are available for congregational purchase. 

For more information, visit www.augsburgfortress.org/sparkfamily.  If your congregation has not received a complimentary copy, you may contact Adam Woolhouse, at [email protected] or at 1-800-426-0115 ext. 498.  Adam is the Congregational Resource Representative for the Southeastern Synod at Augsburg Fortress.  If you aren't familiar with Spark resources, why not take a moment to look at them at www.activatefaith.org right now?
Spark
Blessings,
Your Book of Faith advocates
 
Pastor John Rossing                         
Christ the King, Dalton, GA
706-278-3979
[email protected]              
                         
Michelle Angalet, Associate in Ministry
Good Shepherd, Woodstock, GA
770-924-7286
[email protected]

 

 

Global Mission Opportunities

ANNUAL SOUTHEASTERN SYNOD TRIP TO GUATEMALA

MAY 21-28, 2011

SIX SPACES OPEN!!!

 
Our Southeastern Synod has a companion relationship with the Iglesia Luterana Agustina de Guatemala (ILAG), founded by Padre Horacio Castillo and his family. This year, ILAG celebrates 20 years as a Lutheran presence in Guatemala, and our synod has walked with these brothers and sisters for many of those years.  We have learned much from each other, and we continue to share our resources and our passion for mission and ministry, with reciprocity, mutuality, and respect.  
 
Guatemala

 

One of the best tools for cultivating this relationship is an annual trip by a delegation of people from our synod.  Each year, the pastoral team of ILAG develops an itinerary that offers rich engagement with the land and the people of Guatemala - as well as a thorough immersion into the ministries of the ILAG in that region.  IDEAL for the adventurer, this annual excursion promises to both inspire and challenge all who participate.
 


This year's trip, from May 21-28, will be no exception.  Traveling by van, by boat, and by foot, the Southeastern Synod group will go from the ILAG Lutheran Center in Guatemala to the rural villages of Chumila Ixila II and Community El Porvenir de los Martires. 
 
While in these villages, the delegation will stay with families, share meals, engage with the children, worship together, and learn about all the joys and the struggles of everyday life.  Healthcare activities will also be included, as well as extended opportunities for prayer and conversation.  A visit to Antigua Guatemala and to Pacaya Volcano will be included in this trip as well. 
 
The cost for the trip, including airfare, will be between $1,200 - $1,500, depending on the number of people in the delegation.  To reserve your spot, or for more information, please contact Pastor Nancy Christensen at [email protected], AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!

 

 

 

*******************************************************************************

Global Missions Committee Needs Your Help

 

As the group tasked with helping foster and form relationships with our six Companion Synods, the Global Missions Committee requests that congregations planning international missions trips for this year provide us with the dates, location, and information about the trip. We encourage individual congregations to pursue relationships with international partners, both from our Companion Synods and other locations. Knowing the exact time and location of the trip will help us be able to lift up the work of our congregations in prayer and when possible, connect trips with some of the projects the Southeastern Synod supports abroad. In addition, it will help us put individuals and congregations looking for possible mission trips in contact with already established trips in other congregations throughout the Synod. Please send information to Kyle Cristofalo, one of the staff liaisons to the Global Missions Committee, at [email protected].

 

 

Upcoming Volunteer Disaster Response Training

 

The Synod Disaster Response Task Force announces upcoming training for new synod disaster response coordinators throughout the synod!

Synod Volunteer Disaster Response Coordinator

Training Event

March 17-19, 2011

 

Cedars of Lebanon State Park, Lebanon, TN

328 Cedar Forest Rd.
Lebanon ,TN 37090

Cedars of Lebanon State Park is located approximately 31 miles east of Nashville.

 

If you are aware of someone in your area who would like to serve as a volunteer disaster response coordinator, please have them contact the task force chair, Pastor Morgan Gordy at [email protected] to register.

African American Lutheran Association Assembly

AALA Assembly 

 

Visit the AALA website for more information and to register:

 

http://www.aala-national.com/AALA-Assembly-Registration2011.html

Upcoming Events

 

FEBRUARY 6, 7 & 8, 2011

Newberry College Jazz Band Tour

 

Coming soon to a Lutheran Church near you!  Newberry College Jazz Big Band.  Bring your family and friends for an exciting evening of your favorite music.

 

Sunday, February 6, 2011   4:00PMjazz band

Trinity Lutheran Church

1826 Killian Hill Road

Lilburn, GA  30047-2532

(770) 972-4418

 

 

Monday, February 7, 2011   7:00PM 

Christ Our Shepherd Lutheran Church

101 North Peachtree Parkway

Peachtree City, GA  30269 

(770) 487-8717

 

 

Tuesday, February 8, 2011  7:00PM

Messiah Lutheran Church

6900 Kingston Pike

Knoxville, TN  37919-5714

(865) 588-9753

 

 

Can't make it?  Jazz Outreach events are planned for February 7 at Adairsville High School, Adairsville, GA; February 8 at the Univerisity of Tennessee in Knoxville, TN; and February 9 at Broome High School in Spartanburg, SC.  Call 803-321-5633 for details.

 

 

FEBRUARY 10, 2011

The St. Olaf Choir  

 

The St. Olaf Choir from St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN will be performing in Memphis on their upcoming national tour. They will perform at St. John's Episcopal Church, 3245 Central Ave., Memphis, TN on Thursday, February 10th at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at www.stolaftickets.com or by calling 1-800-363-5487.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AROUND THE SYNOD

 

Snapshots of the week

 

U.S. Congressman John Lewis greets members of the Southeastern Synod following the Martin Luther King Celebration service, Sunday, January 16 at Redeemer Lutheran Church, Atlanta, GA.

 

Lewis2Lewis              

 

******************************************************************************************

 

In the news...

 

St. James Lutheran 200th Celebration Begins


Published: 11:29 AM, 01/18/2011
Source: The Greeneville Sun
By Lisa Warren, Staff Writer, Greeneville Sun 

 

church 

St. James Lutheran Church hosted a special community concert and hymn-sing on Sunday afternoon as part of its 200th anniversary celebration.


Located in the St. James community of southern Greene County, the church was founded in 1811 by a group of Greene and Cocke county residents.


Pastor Michael L. Jannett welcomed the sizable crowd for Sunday's musical event, which was the first in a series of planned bicentennial activities for the church. 

 

The hymn festival featured organ and piano performances by Dr. David Hendricksen, director of music for First Presbyterian Church of Greeneville. 

 

According to the event's program, "Hymn festivals have been part of the heritage of the Lutheran Church for several centuries. 

 

"Since the majority of the population at the time of the Reformation could not read or write, the denomination's founder Martin Luther and other reformers used hymns during services "to sing the Gospel into the hearts of the people," the program explained.

 

Hendricksen

David Hendricksen

Among the songs that Hendricksen performed during the concert included: "Grand JeU" and "Basse ed Dessus de Trompette," both selections from Livre d'Orgue, by French composer Louis Nicolas Clerambault.

 

Other performances included four settings of "A Mighty Fortress," by Johann Sebastian Bach, Dietrich Buxtehude, Johann Nikolaus Hanff and Helmut Walcha.

 

Hendricksen also performed the hymns "Gather Us In," "Blessed Assurance," "Praise to the Lord, the Almighty," and "A Mighty Fortress," in which he was also joined in singing from those in attendance. Hendricksen was also joined in three performances by vocalist Jennifer Barnett, director of education and community partnerships for the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra.

 

A coloratura soprano, Barnett beautifully sang: "O Divine Redeemer," by Charles Gounod; "Ich Folge dir Gleichfalls," from St. John Passion by J.S. Bach, and "Alleluia," by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. 

A Greeneville native, Barnett said she "grew up" in St. James Lutheran Church, where her parents, Dan and Pat Barnett, still attend.

 

A 1996 graduate of Greeneville High School, Barnett received her undergraduate degree from Emory & Henry College and her master's degree in voice from Indiana University. 

 

Sunday's inaugural event to celebrate the church's bicentennial will be followed by other planned special events this year, including:

  • In March, a performance of an original play, written and directed by Carolyn Gregg, which depicts the history of St. James Lutheran Church; 
  • On April 16, a concert by the Berea College Choir, under the direction of Dr. Stephen Bolster, and 
  • In September, a visit from H. Julian Gordy, Bishop of the Southeastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. 

The public is invited to attend all of the planned events.

 

******************************************************************************************************

  

quilt

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured left:  Ladies of St. James, Greeneville, TN, with the "Bicentenial Quilt," dedicated the day of the concert.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Synod Calendar
Jan 31-Feb 1  Transition Pastors Gathering
Feb 5             Leadership Program for Musicians
Feb 8-9          First Call Retreat
Feb 12           Conference 4 (Magi) meeting, Trinity, Lilburn, GA
Feb 25-26      Catch the Spirit
Feb 25-27      SESLYO Assembly 


    
View the entire Synod Calendar
Share this e-news with a friend

Do you know someone who might enjoy receiving news from the Southeastern Synod?  Please forward a copy of this E-News and invite them to join the group!
  
 ELCA-Southeastern Synod 
100 Edgewood Ave. NE, Suite 1600
Atlanta, GA 30303
404-589-1977
Join Our Mailing List