Southeastern Synod
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
God's work. Our hands. E-News Weekly |
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Issue: #301 |
January 4, 2012 | |
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| "The Word Became Flesh..." | | |
 by the Rev Thomas E Clark
Ascension Lutheran Church, Jackson, MS
The gospel lesson for Christmas morning (John 1:1-14), unlike the one we had for Christmas Eve, was not your usual Christmas story. The lesson from John is "the morning-after" lesson, the one that tries to make sense of it all after the sun has risen, the angels and shepherds gone and all the hushed wonder of the night before is turning into a blur.
All the build-up to Christmas is now deflating. Soon, we'll begin the slide into the anti-climatic feel we get after something long-anticipated is past, to be replaced by after-Christmas sales, returns of wrong-sized clothing, and dread of preparing income tax returns.
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Nominations Sought for 2012 Assembly Elections | |
Bio Forms Due March 15
The Southeastern Synod Nominating Committee is currently seeking potential nominees for several positions to be elected at the 2012 Synod Assembly. Positions for which nominees are needed include:
2013 Churchwide Assembly Voting Members:
3 Clergy (both males and females)
1 Lay male person of color or primary language other than English
1 Youth (under age 18)
1 Young adult lay person (ages 18-30)
3 Other lay persons, (so that the total is half male and half female)
Synod Council:
1 Young adult, 2-year term (male or female, ages 18-30)
2 At-large lay persons, 2-year term (gender designation to be determined)
The Committee's goal is to nominate two to four persons for each position. The Committee will consider individual skills and qualifications, as well as the Synod's inclusivity goals. These goals address the balance between lay persons and pastors, gender, status as a youth or young adult, and racial/ethnic background. Achieving some geographical diversity of nominees will also be a factor in the Nominating Committee's decisions.
Click HERE for more information about these positions.
DEADLINE for submission of biographical forms to be considered by the Nominating Committee: March 15, 2012. |
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Campus Ministry Board Development and Fundraising Workshop | | |
 It's not too late to attend!
When: This Saturday, January 7, 2012
8:30 AM-3:00 PM
Where: St Luke Lutheran Church
3264 Northside Parkway NW
Atlanta, GA 30327-2245
Call for details (404) 237-4413 Click here for a brochure |
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MLK Commemoration Service | | |
Welcoming God's Many Faces with an Open Heart
The Southeastern Synod's commemoration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. will take place on Sunday, January 15, 2012 at Emmanuel Lutheran Church, 3050 Cascade Rd SW Atlanta, GA 30311. We will gather at 3:30 pm for a service of Word and Sacrament.
The preacher will be the Rev. Ruben Duran, who serves as Director for New Congregational Development in the Congregational and Synodical Mission unit of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
 The Martin Luther King, Jr. Annual Commemorative Service is the hallmark of the King Holiday Observance. The service endeavors to empower Lutherans to engage in volunteer service in tribute to the work and life of Dr. King. It is a day "ON" not a day "OFF."
You are invited to bring rice and pots and pans to the service in preparation for our MLK Lutheran Day of Service which takes place the next day, Monday, January 16 at Clarkston Community Center at 3701 College Ave, Clarkston, GA from 9am to 1pm.
For more information, please visit http://mlklutherandayofservice.eventbrite.com/ or contact:
Dr. Everett Flanigan, ELCA Southeastern Synod
eflanigan@elca-ses.org
Malisha Brown, Lutheran Theological Center
mrb.consultants@gmail.com
Pastor Beverly Shaw, Emmanuel Lutheran Church
bbshaw1@comcast.net |
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Ski Retreats at Lutheridge | | |
January 13-16 (Friday-Monday), 20-22, 27-29, February 3-5, 17-19, and 10-12 (Friday-Sunday)
 Enjoy a weekend of fellowship, faith-building, and SKIING! Let Lutheridge do all the work of coordinating ski rentals and lift tickets and enjoy our group rate discount! They will also supply group-building games, an evening campfire, and youth-friendly worship. Come on Friday evening, enjoy an early breakfast and spend all day Saturday on the slopes. End the day with supper, fun, and worship and have a good breakfast on Sunday before traveling home. Adults must accompany and supervise youth. Groups are responsible for transportation to and from ski slopes. Lutheridge guests ski at Wolf Ridge.
Contact Lutheridge to set up your reservations today!! 828-684-2361
Leader for Lutheridge: Kara Ridenhour, Lutheridge LEAP Coordinator (kridenhour@llmi.org)
Base rate and housing for Lutheridge: Whisnant - $115; Lakeside Cabins - $125
Base rate includes lodging for two nights, three meals, and some program costs.
**Rates do not include ski costs.**
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A Time to Listen: The ELCA & HIV and AIDS | | |
 Simpsonwood Retreat Center
January 27-28, 2012
Click here for a brochure
Application for Participants
Deadline for Application: January 9, 2012
Visit the webpage on the ELCA Strategy on HIV and AIDS. |
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Attention: Rostered Leaders in the Southeastern Synod | | |
Dear Colleagues in Ministry,
During the season of Epiphany we talk about light shining in darkness. One of the ways we shine the light is by taking a good look at the recent record of our congregational ministries. Although we all know that numbers and statistics don't tell the whole story of our life together, they do help us to shine a light on what we're doing well and where we need to improve.
This is why the Constitution of the Southeastern Synod includes the requirement that the pastor "shall keep accurate parochial records . . . . and shall submit a summary of such statistics annually to this synod" (Constitution of the Southeastern Synod, S14.03).
Submitting these statistics is easy. You will soon receive in the mail the Congregational Report form for the year ending Dec. 31, 2011. You will then have the option of filling it out by hand or going online with the password provided and filing electronically. If you have any questions about this, our synod staff will be happy to assist you.
The Congregational Report is due by February 15, 2012. It is important that the form be submitted by the deadline because these statistics are used to determine our voting strength at Churchwide Assembly, as well as for other important purposes.
Thank you in advance for your efforts in this regard.
H. Julian Gordy
Bishop
ELCA-Southeastern Synod |
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Around the Synod | | |
Ready to Serve
article by the Rev Tiffany Hall McClung, Interim Pastor
Peace Lutheran Church, Memphis, TN
Sunday, December 25, Peace Lutheran in Memphis had a new lector.
After service on Sunday, December 18, 8th grader Amadou announced that he wanted "to read sometime." Well, Ms. Ethel, who schedules the scripture readers for each week jumped all over that! After church, she pulled up the lectionary, writing down the next week's scriptures for Amadou so that he could practice during the week. (I don't know who was on the schedule for the upcoming week, but Ethel decided they could wait!)
A few months ago, Amadou showed up for worship for the first time. He brought his brother, Quintarius, with him. Quintarius is in the 7th grade and we all just call him Q. At first, I thought because their great-aunt and great grandmother (by unofficial adoption, not genetics) are members of the church, they had been brought to church by them. It took a couple of months before I knew their story, overhearing a conversation among members in which they were marveling at the fact that these boys had been out "roaming the neighborhood" one Sunday morning and decided to come into church.
Within a couple of weeks, they were bringing friends with them. Some Sundays these friends have been practically dragged out of bed to walk the three or four blocks down to the church. When they all show up, we have a group of seven young boys, all walking in ready to serve. They fight over who gets to light the candles or carry the cross and when they aren't the one serving, they are in the first pew whispering instructions to those who are. They want to be members of the church and participate in every way possible. Though they wear me out during the Sunday School hour confirmation class I teach, that class is a highlight of my week.
 Most of our members are older and there aren't many of us at Peace. The last ELCA congregation remaining within the city limits of Memphis is located in a neighborhood where you are just as likely to see a drug deal on the corner as a family walking their dog. However, Peace Lutheran Church has a history of being intentionally open to everyone. As their interim, I continue to be amazed by this "small yet mighty" group of folks, 50% Caucasian and 50% African-American where Ph.D- holding professors sit next to those who never graduated high school. Into this environment walked these boys who have been embraced, loved, and challenged by long-time Lutherans.
Amadou read the lessons beautifully on Christmas day and each of us held our breaths with anticipation and in support of him. On Christmas Eve, "the boys" - Amadu, Q, Jaylon, Jonathon, Trent, Nicholas, and Marcio - helped with our Lessons and Carols service and then received one gift from a list of three wishes that they were invited to write down. The Church Council wanted to make sure that they receive at least one thing they desire for Christmas this year. Amadou wanted a Bible...can you guess what he got?
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Feliz Navidad and Muchas Gracias to all those individuals and congregations who donated Christmas gifts and money to Pastor Lydia Villanueva and her family and foster children. |
| View the entire Synod Calendar | | |
January 13 & 14
Synod Council Meeting, Messiah, Montgomery, AL
January 15
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration, Emmanual, Atlanta, GA
January 16
Synod office closed, MLK observance
Remember to mark your calendars now for these 2012 events
February 3 & 4
Talking Together as Christians Cross Culturally, Nashville, TN
May 1 & 2
Southeastern Synod Pre-Retirement Seminar, Location TBA
June 1, 2 & 3
Southeastern Synod Assembly, Renaissance Waverly Hotel, Atlanta, GA
June 17-22
Affirm, Berry College, Rome, GA
September 24-27
2012 Southeastern Synod Leadership Convo, Lutheridge, Arden, NC
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ELCA-Southeastern Synod
100 Edgewood Ave. NE, Suite 1600
Atlanta, GA 30303
404-589-1977
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