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Attention!
Attention, all E-News Weekly readers! Next week will be our last regular E-News Weekly until after Synod Assembly. In the two weeks prior to Synod Assembly, we will be sending out an abbreviated version of the E-News containing important Assembly-related information. After Assembly, the E-News Weekly will resume as before.
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"God's Work. Our Hands" Sunday
September 8, 2013, is "God's work. Our hands." Sunday,
an opportunity to celebrate our 25th anniversary as the ELCA. Please place that date on your congregation's calendar!
We are a church that rolls up our sleeves and gets to work. Whether it's cleaning up a neighborhood park, delivering meals or helping a child learn to read, let's join together for a dedicated day of service on Sept. 8 as 4 million members and nearly 10,000 congregations. You work every day to welcome your neighbors and make your community a better place. Now let's do it together as one church, freed in Jesus Christ to serve and love our neighbor.
Visit the ELCA website to order personalized T-shirts for your congregation to wear on "God's Work. Our Hands." Sunday, as well as bulletin inserts, flyers, and other resources to help promote the day. Check back later in May to download a "toolkit" to help your congregation plan for the day of service.
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Submit a Short Video for this Summer's ELCA Churchwide Assembly
Dear friends,
 The theme for the 2013 Churchwide Assembly this August is "Always being made new," which follows our church's 25th anniversary focus: We are a church that is deeply rooted and always being made new.
Again for this assembly, we invite congregations to submit short videos that will allow us to showcase their ministries in living out that theme. These videos should be 60-90 seconds long. In them we would like congregations to share what the theme "Deeply rooted in faith, and always being made new" means to them and how they live that statement in their continuing work.
The congregations may also wish to consider and address these related questions:
- In a rapidly changing culture, where is God leading and calling us as the ELCA?
- Where are we "showing up" as a church in your community?
Videos should be completed and available for posting to YouTube by June 30.
Many thanks to you for your assistance with this project. It will help to bring alive the theme of the Assembly and put a spotlight on the wonderful work of your congregations.
Pax,
Janice Rizzo
ELCA Public Relations-Member Engagement
8765 W. Higgins Road, Chicago, IL 60631
800-638-3522, ext. 2949
Janice.Rizzo@elca.org
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May 31, June 1 and 2, 2013
Chattanooga Convention Center
"Always Being Made New"
Be sure to check the
information for assembly preparation.
Voting members should start to read the agenda materials as they are posted in order to be informed and prepared for assembly.
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Sabbatical/Wellness Grant Awards
Four sabbatical grants and three wellness grants have been awarded to congregations in the Southeastern Synod on behalf of the rostered leaders for whom the grants were requested. These grants were made possible by funds received from Portico. The money was awarded to the Southeastern Synod for achievement of a 65% participation rate on the 2012 online health assessment. Additional applications can be submitted through September 1. Click here for information on the grants and an application.
We do not yet know if we achieved our goal of 65% participation in the 2013 health assessment but will share that information as soon as it is available. Our synod's achievement of that goal will enable us to fund additional sabbatical and wellness grants in 2014.
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Germany Trip - Breaking News!
Two spots have opened up for the Roots and Wings trip to visit our partner synod in Germany this summer. Please email Bill Alderfer if you are interested in going. Cost is $1900. |
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Synod Task Force for Abolition of the Death Penalty Seeks Your Assistance
 On June 2nd, 2012, The Southeastern Synod ELCA Synod Assembly adopted a resolution seeking the abolition of the death penalty in our 4 states territory of Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, and Tennessee.
The Resolution directed the formation of a task force to develop informational material regarding the death penalty for distribution to synod congregations, clergy, and lay leaders. A website is now operational (though a work in progress!) providing a variety of information related to the issue of the death penalty. As more information is added to the site, the goal is that it will offer education, inspiration, and support for congregations as well as clergy and lay leaders to work for a moratorium and eventual abolition of the death penalty in the 4 state territory of the Southeastern Synod. The website provides factual information with regard to the death penalty, (take the quiz!) as well as a scriptural/ theological and societal basis for seeking its abolition. The website also provides assistance to those who wish to take action to work for the abolition of the death penalty in one or more of our 4 state synod territory. As the website IS a work in progress, your comments and suggestions about the site, and how it can best serve you, are encouraged and appreciated. If you have written an op ed article, letter to the editor, letter to your state legislator, preached a sermon message, led a bible study, or have a personal story focused on abolishing the death penalty, we would very much like to include your work as a part of our website. Please direct comments, written material, and suggestions to the Rev. Randy Palm. We are very much aware of the reality that sincere people of faith do not always agree on how God's children are called to respond to very difficult societal issues such as the death penalty. Regardless of whether you agree or disagree with the position taken by the website regarding the death penalty, it is our hope and prayer that the information provided by the site will serve to stimulate and encourage prayerful discernment and dialog, so that we can speak WITH and not AT one another. Take care and God Bless, Pastor Randy Palm, Member of Death Penalty Task Force |
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Trinity Lutheran Seminary Names New President: The Rev. Dr. Rick Barger
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Harriet and Rick Barger
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The Trinity Lutheran Seminary Board of Directors approved the nomination of the Rev. Dr. Rick Barger as the next president of Trinity Lutheran Seminary during its meeting on May 6. A board-appointed Presidential Search Committee had submitted his name for approval following an extensive search this spring. Barger, who will begin his term on September 1, 2013, is a 1989 graduate of Trinity and currently serves as the lead pastor at Epiphany Lutheran Church in Suwanee, Georgia. He succeeds the Rev. Dr. Mark R. Ramseth, who retired in January after 12 years of service. Dr. Thomas E. Ludwig, a former Trinity board member and professor of psychology at Hope College in Holland, Mich., has been serving as interim president since February 1....
Click here for more about the Rev. Dr. Rick Barger.
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Holy Trinity Montessori Sunday
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The Rev. Kevin Strickland and children from Holy Trinity Montessori School
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 | | From left to right: Kate Riley, Carol Cottingham, Bishop Gordy, the Rev. Kevin Strickland, and Matthew Helou |
Last Sunday, Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Nashville, TN held a special Sunday service for the children of Holy Trinity Montessori School. During the service, Matthew Helou (far right) presented a check of $3,726 to Bishop Gordy from the "Holy Trinity Buys a Farm" project. Instead of raising enough to buy one farm, the children of Holy Trinity and Holy Trinity Montessori School collected enough to provide animals and supplies for five farms through ELCA Good Gifts. |
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Pastor Jeff P. Crim to be Ordained and Installed at Ascension Lutheran Church
From The Chattanoogan
 The Rev. Jeff P. Crim of Ascension Lutheran Church will be officially ordained and installed as the permanent pastor of Ascension Lutheran Church during the Ascension Day Service on Thursday, May 9, at 7 p.m. The Rev. H. Julian Gordy, the Bishop of the Southeastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will officiate.
Although he was raised in the Lutheran tradition, Mr. Crim later joined the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) where he became a Recorded Minister of the Gospel.....
Read more about Pastor Crim in The Chattanoogan here.
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Come Serve with LVC Atlanta!
 | | LVC ATLANTA 2013 |
Trying to decide what to do with your life? Trying to decide what to do next year? The Lutheran Volunteer Corps may be able to help! LVC is seeking applicants, 21 years or older, to live and work in Atlanta for one full year.
Lutheran Volunteers live in community, live simply, and work for justice as part of a year of fulltime service. The Atlanta LVC community still has vacancies for the 2013-2014 volunteer year. So spend a year getting to know who you are and where your strengths meet the needs of your community; spend a year working for justice, building relationships, discovering new parts of this great city, and just having fun!
Interested in knowing more? Contact Ami Hernandez, the Atlanta Regional Director, by email or by calling 404-591-7054. You can also learn more about LVC here. |
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Historic Evangelism Weekend
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St. Stephen's International Festival
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Spring Jazz Vespers at Rock of Ages
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26th Southeastern Synod Women of the ELCA Convention
 You are invited to attend the 26th annual Southeastern Synod Women of the ELCA Convention on September 20-22, 2013! Take a leisurely trip to the beautiful town of Natchez, MS on the Mississippi River. Tour the historic homes; walk the River Walk; taste the foods of the south. You wiill have the opportunity to serve others in this community, as we have a bold theme, Boldly Respond With Love. We will worship together in a beautiful, historic church, follow up with an old-fashioned ice-cream social, and so much more. Each congregation, inter-congregational, or special unit of the Southeastern Synod is entitled to one delegate. Early Bird Registration begins June 1. Click here for more information.
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National Women's Health Week
 May 12 through 18 is National Women's Health Week! This year's theme, "It's Your Time", was chosen to empower women and make health a top priority. Connie Pearson, chair of the Southeastern Synod's Health Ministries Task Force, encourages women to make National Women's Health Week "your time" to positively impact their physical and mental health. Click here to read more about the unique health concerns facing women throughout the United States and becoming a beacon of hope for women and girls beyond the doors of your church. |
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World Refugee Day - June 20
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Each year on June 20th, organizations and communities around the world celebrate World Refugee Day. World Refugee Day was established by the United Nations to honor the courage, strength, and determination of women, men, and children who are forced to flee their homes under threat of persecution, conflict, and violence. Throughout the month of May and into June, the Southeastern Synod E-News Weekly will feature resources and opportunities for you and your congregation to support refugees in your communities.
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 Refugee Headlines: Each Wednesday, President and CEO of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service Linda Hartke will share refugee-related headlines from around the world on her blog. Whether it be covering conflicts fueling refugee crises, conditions in refugee camps, or stories of successful resettlement in America, Hartke will strive to provide access to all the most important and breaking refugee-related news in one place. Click here to view this week's headlines, including stories from Syria, Haiti, and Iowa.
Presiding Bishop Hanson Speaks Up for Refugees:
In March, the ELCA Presiding Bishop Hanson sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Speaker of the House Boehner, urging them to protect refugees. He writes, "Congregations of the ELCA and Lutheran social ministry organizations work in partnership with Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services (LIRS) to welcome refugees the United States has chosen to provide safe haven." Click here to read the rest of his letter on the LIRS website.
"The Ellis Island of the South": Refugee Resettlement in Clarkston, GA: Some call Clarkston the "Ellis Island of the
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Lutherans packing rice at the Clarkston Community Center
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South". In this small city, located 11 miles northeast of Atlanta, immigrants and refugees from over 60 countries live and work together. Since 2007, over 16,000 refugees have arrived in Georgia, with more than 2,300 settling in Clarkston. This influx of people from all over the world has transformed Clarkston from a sleepy Southern city to one of the most diverse communities in the United States. Clarkston's kaleidoscopic community has become a telling example of the joys and frustrations of refugee resettlement....
Click here to read more about refugee resettlement in Clarkston on our synod blog.
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Resources, Retreats, & Learning Opportunities
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The Body of Christ and Mental Illness
 Mental illness and its various manifestations have dominated the news in recent months ranging from the Newtown, CT. killings to the politicization of actress Ashley Judd's previous struggle with depression to the suicide of Pastor Rick Warren's son, Matthew. The May/June issue of the Journal of Lutheran Ethics focuses on mental illness in the light of the ELCA's new Social Message, The Body of Christ and Mental Illness. View this issue on the ELCA's website.
Journal of Lutheran Ethics (JLE) is a free, bi-monthly online publication living out the Lutheran tradition of addressing social issues theologically, using the resources of historical, theological, and ethical tradition, biblical interpretation, and social sciences. Click here to learn more.
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Archival Survey - Spring 2013
 | | Crumley Archives |
The Spring 2013 issue of the Archival Survey, the publication of the James R. Crumley Jr. Archives, is now available by clicking here. Please take a few moments to read through this latest issue of news and happenings related to your archives housed at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary. The history and heritage of our Lutheran church in the Southeast and Caribbean is important. Let's work to preserve it!
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Stewardship Resources Newsletter
 Each week, Luther Seminary's Center for Stewardship Leaders sends out a newsletter full of reflections and resources for engaging in stewardship. In this week's newsletter, learn practical ways to jump-start your congregation's stewardship by promoting online giving on your website. You'll also find examples of congregations that have effectively made online giving a focal point of their websites. For ongoing stewardship resources that your congregation can use, click here to subscribe. |
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The Lutheran Experience: Lutheran Colleges and Universities
 A Lutheran college experience is rooted in faith. At our Lutheran colleges and universities, discussions of faith and values are more than a part of a classroom education. They're a part of everyday life in college. A recent survey of our alumni shows that:
- 73% benefited from opportunities for spiritual development in college
- 75% indicated that it is important in current life and career to integrate faith or spirituality in life
- 54% learned more about their faith during their college years
- 75% received a scholarship or grant to attend college.
Find out more. Read about our campuses, see what our alumni have to say, and assist high school students in your congregation with finding a place that will take care of their bodies, minds, and souls.
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Learning Opportunities
Heaven, Hell...and Purgatory?: June 10-12 at Loyola University Maryland. Click here for more.
 The Book of Revelations and American Apocalyptic: July 9-12, 2013, at Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg. Click here for more.
 Theological Dialog at Gettysburg: July 28-August 3, 2013 at the Lay School of Theology at Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg. Click here.
 Stewardship with Adults Under 40--Possibilities Abound: July 29-31, 2013 at Luther Seminary. Click here.
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Raise Your Voice - Opportunities for Advocacy
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To learn more about the ELCA's approach to advocacy and important issues for 2013, visit the ELCA website.
Involving Congregations in Advocacy Now (ICAN): Involving Congregations in Advocacy Now (ICAN) is an ELCA guide to developing an advocacy ministry in your congregation. ICAN is an online resource for people who are interested in addressing through advocacy the needs of those persons in our society who live in poverty or experience various forms of oppression. Click here to learn more or to download ICAN for your congregation!
 Senate Immigration Reform Bill - LIRS Analysis: The Senate Judiciary Committee has held several hearings on S. 744, the comprehensive immigration reform bill introduced on April 17, to deepen their understanding of the legislation. Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) has been carefully studying the bill and judging how it aligns with their principles for immigration reform. The LIRS analysis of S. 744 is now available on their comprehensive immigration reform website, examining everything from the bill's roadmap to citizenship to its refugee provisions. The month of May will be a critical time for senators on the Judiciary Committee to hear from their constituents. Visit the LIRS website to get prepared to stand for welcome in the months ahead.
Help End Global Food Insecurity: Congress is now considering reforms to food assistance policies that would make poverty-development assistance programs more effective in strengthening local agricultural systems and increasing food security for families. Click here to urge Congress to maintain poverty-focused development assistance that supports people like Miguel, a sustainable farmer in Chiapas, Mexico.
Voice What's Important To You!: The advocacy ministries of our church want to hear from you now! Your responses to the short four-question ELCA National Advocacy Priorities survey greatly help the church facilitate this active and growing network of Lutherans speaking out for policy that advances the common good and reflects your commitments to serve and love our neighbor. Get started now!
 Bread For the World National Gathering: The theme of the National Gathering is "A Place at the Table," matching the theme of the 2013 Offering of Letters and the new feature-length documentary about the persistence of hunger in America--and the achievable solution. The National Gathering will take place on June 8-11, 2013 in Washington, DC. Click here for more information.
 E-Advocacy-Take Action Now!: Become a part of the ELCA advocacy effort by signing up for the e-Advocacy network.
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Share Your Story
What is God up to in your congregation or community? Share it with us so we can share it with others! Are you looking to spread the word about an upcoming event or opportunity for ministry? The E-News Weekly is open for congregations to share news, stories, photos, announcements and more. Send your stories to Michelle Angalet. Michelle can also be reached at (404) 589-1977, ext. 235. Submissions are due Mondays by 5 pm. The Synod E-News Weekly (usually) goes out on Wednesdays.
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Ordinations & Installations
May 9: The Rev. Jeff Crim will be ordained in the ELCA and installed as pastor in one service at 7 pm at Ascension Lutheran Church, Chattanooga, TN.
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LTCA Spotlight
| Lutheran Heritage and Polity: Foundations and Practices
On June 10 through 15, the Lutheran Theological Center in Atlanta will offer a course on Lutheran Heritage and Polity. The course will examine the theological grounding of the polity of the Lutheran Church, exploring central teachings about the church historically, denominational identity and contemporary practices in the ELCA. It will also touch upon biblical and theological foundations for public worship and members' private devotion.
This course is designed to satisfy academic requirements in Lutheran heritage and theology for persons preparing for rostered ministry in the ELCA, and also to provide an introduction for ministers from other denominations seeking a call or standing in the ELCA.
The teaching team:
The Reverend H. Julian Gordy, Bishop
The Reverend Delmer Chilton, D. Min.
Dr. Everett Flanigan
Click here for more information about the course. To learn more about the LTCA, visit the website here. ***** |
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SES Young Adult & Youth Ministry Spotlight
Affirm Registration Still Open!
 | | Affirm Video 2013 |
We have plenty of room at Affirm, a discipleship and leadership camp for youth in grades 6th-12th on June 17-21 at Berry College in Rome, GA. If you haven't signed up yet or have youth that are considering attending, please
click here for more details and the forms. Cost is $375.00
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Novus Way Ministries
Spotlight
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Summer Camp
Space is still available for summer camp! Don't miss out on a fantastic summer at Lutheridge, Lutherock, or Luther Springs! Staff have been hired and are excited to meet your camper. You can also still sign up for our payment plans.
Scholarships are still available for those requiring financial assistance. Through the generosity of donors, we are able to provide the faith-camp experience to many. We do not want a camper not to be able to come to camp because of finances.
Visit our website to learn more about program opportunities available for youth of all ages. We are looking forward to seeing you soon!
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LSG Spotlight
Thank You to Epiphany Lutheran Church
LSG's May Connections features a shoutout to Epiphany Lutheran Church in Conyers, GA! Epiphany made Easter a little brighter for some children in foster care this year by providing them with outfits for Easter Sunday. These gifts brought smiles to the faces of nearly 200 youngsters in foster care, not to mention the foster parents who got to share in their excitement. One beaming foster mother told an LSG case manager that her son Marcus had received several compliments for his outfit on Easter Sunday.
Click here to read this and other stories from Connections, LSG's monthly newsletter!
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Living Lutheran Spotlight
Saying Yes to
the Call
As children of God, we are a blessed and loved people. In Saying Yes to the Call, Doris H. Williams reflects on Jesus' call to love one another just as he loves us. She shares stories from her childhood on the Montgomery bus boycott, caring for the hungry, and tipping well at restaurants. These stories "shaped her humanity" and fostered her desire to say yes to God's call and give enthusiastically to others. Click here to read more.
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The Lutheran Spotlight
Music for Seasons
The ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson expresses his gratitude to God for poets, hymn writers, and singers. "Music," he writes, "renews our hope and our resolve to work for justice and peace....Music, poetry, and dance remind us that God's relationship with humankind in Christ is so much more than an intellectual experience." Click here to read more.
Excerpts from
The Lutheran
are available on their website. To read the issue in its entirety, consider purchasing a one-year online subscription for only $11.95.
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The Update
A complicated debate and legislative process lies ahead for comprehensive immigration reform. In this week's The Update, Bishop Julian Gordy reflects on Rep. Goodlatte and Rep. Gowdy's recent announcement that the House of Representatives is preparing to introduce a series of smaller bills that focus on separate pieces of the immigration system.
Lisa Sharon Harper urges faith communities to continue sharing their values with members of Congress during the "mark-up" process. Brittney Nystrom reminds us that each congressional vote impacts the real lives of refugees, asylum seekers, migrants and their families and communities.
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Who to Contact
Do you have a question or a comment for a member of the synod staff, but aren't sure who to contact? Check out our regularly updated contact page on the synod website.
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Synod Calendar
Coming Up... | |
May 10 Synod Assembly Resolutions Deadline May 11 Talking Together Cross-Culturally Birmingham, AL May 19 Charter Service for Nativity, Bethlehem, GA May 27 Memorial Day Synod Office Closed May 31-June 2 Synod Assembly May 29-June 5 Synod Office Closed for Assembly View the entire synod calendar
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