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ELCA World Hunger Leaders Passionate About Ending Hunger, Poverty
 At the ELCA World Hunger Leadership Gathering on July 11-14 in Des Moines, Iowa, more than 70 hunger leaders from across the ELCA's 65 synods met to share ideas and discuss ways to increase their capacity in helping to eradicate hunger and poverty. Under the theme "Loves and Fishes: Multiplying for Mission", participants attended sessions geared toward enhancing the hunger advocacy efforts already being carried out by leaders in their congregations and neighborhoods. "ELCA World Hunger leaders are often on the forefront of inspiring, engaging, leading and truly multiplying those efforts," said Mikka McCracken, program director for ELCA World Hunger constituent engagement and interpretation. "We are so thankful for their tireless work and vision." Click here to read more about the Leadership Gathering on the ELCA website. |
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Register for Leadership Convocation
 | | The Rev. Dr. Clayton Schmit |
Registration for the 2013 Southeastern Synod Professional Leaders Convocation is open! The Leadership Convocation is a yearly gathering for the rostered leaders and church professionals of the Southeastern Synod. This year's Leadership Convocation will carry on the long-standing tradition of stimulating presentations, inspiring worship, Sabbath, and fellowship for leaders. The Rev. Dr. Clayton Schmit, Provost of the School of Theology at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary, will serve as our keynote speaker. The Convocation will be held September 24 to 26 at the Lutheridge Conference Center in Arden, NC. Click here to register. Visit our website for the agenda.
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"God's Work. Our Hands." Sunday
 September 8, 2013 is "God's Work. Our Hands." Sunday. Visit the ELCA website for bulletin inserts, flyers, and other resources to help promote the day. You can order personalized T-shirts for your congregation to wear through OldLutheran.Com. |
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The 2013 Churchwide Assembly will meet August 12-17, 2013 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh, PA. For those not attending, live streaming video will be available for some of the proceedings. For more information, read the press release on the ELCA website.
ELCA congregations and members are invited to join in the 25 Days of Prayer leading up to the Assembly. 25 Days of Prayer draws on the rich Scriptures that will ground the work of the Assembly and invites the entire church into communal conversation and prayer for faithful discernment of the ELCA and Assembly voting members.
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Communion Sets Available
Congregations can purchase 4-piece communion sets which will be used at the 2013 Churchwide Assembly. The vessels were designed and are being produced at the Pittsburgh Glass Center, a nonprofit, public-access school, gallery and state-of-the-art glass studio on Penn Avenue in Pittsburgh's East End. They must be picked up on-site at the close of the Assembly. Visit this link for more information.
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Installation of the Windsor-Petersons
On Sunday, June 30, the Reverend Jason Peterson and the Reverend Andrea Windsor-Peterson were installed as pastors of Advent Lutheran Church in Augusta, GA. Pictured, from left to right, is The Rev. Jason Peterson, The Rev. Andrea Windsor-Peterson, Assistant to the Bishop Darrel Peterson, The Rev. Paulwyn Boliek, and The Rev. David Hart. Click here to read more about this husband and wife pastoral team in The Augusta Chronicle. |
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LVC Highlight - Climb for Peace with Justice with Trey Fouché
 | | From left to right: LVC Regional Director Ami Hernandez, LVC alumnus Trey Fouché, and Redeemer member and LVC Board member Nathan Miller participated in a special recognition for LVC on June 23, 2013. |
Lutheran Volunteer Corps alumnus Trey Fouché visited Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in Atlanta, GA on Sunday, June 23 and participated in a special LVC recognition. In August, he will climb Mt. Ranier to benefit LVC. He shares his passion for LVC in the Redeemer July Newsletter. "I learned so much from my housing community and work community. I immersed myself into a culture of social justice and faith. From this experience, my faith, work, and life have been significantly influenced. I now teach in an outdoor program that includes an immersion experience to teach skill development and community building. My faith is strongly centered on service." Click here to read more about Trey Fouché and here to learn more about Climbing for Peace with Justice with LVC!
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9th Annual Oktoberfest!
 On Saturday, September 28th, join Holy Trinity Lutheran Church (525 Sneed Road, Nashville, TN 37221) for the 9th Annual Oktoberfest! From 12 P.M. to 4 P.M., come for games, face and pumpkin painting, German music, and more! A German meal of brats, hot dogs, and potato salad will be available for $5.00. Other activities include a silent auction, a pumpkin, mum, and bake sale, and a German potato salad cook-off! Click here for a flyer to share. |
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Organist Position at Grace Lutheran
This position is part-time, 15+ hours per week. Requirements include two services per Sunday, accompanist for Chancel Choir rehearsal on Wednesday evenings and liturgical choir on Thursday evenings, rehearsing with special music during the church year and summers. Organist shall be available for funerals and weddings, along with special services such as Lent, Advent, Christmas Eve, and a Music Festival held in November. Liturgical background is a plus, but not required. Must be a strong leader of hymns from the organ and piano. Bachelor's degree in Music is preferred. We have an 8 rank, Moeller organ.
Position must be filled by October 1. Please send resume to Paula Smith at graceortn_aim@comcast.net or Grace Lutheran Church, 131 W. Gettysburg Ave, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Questions? Email Paula or call 865-483-3787. |
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The Text This Week
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Jenée Woodard
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f you're not already familiar with "The Text This Week" ( textweek.com), check it out! This popular resource for clergy and lay leaders contains daily-updated preaching and worship helps based on the lectionary. The woman behind it all, Jenée Woodard, recently visited the Southeastern Synod Office to meet our staff. How did she happen to end up here? Jenée traveled to Atlanta to spend a week with her best friend from college and our Administrative Liaison for Leadership, Associate in Ministry Jeanette Burgess. Jenée, though not Lutheran herself, attended Augustana College in Sioux Falls, SD (ya, sure, ya betcha!) and was thrilled to meet her "first real Lutheran bishop". For more on this creative woman and her brainchild, click here.
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Beth Birkholz to Preach on 'Day 1'
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The Rev. Beth Birkholz
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The Rev. Beth Birkholz, associate pastor of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Marietta, GA, is the featured speaker July 28 with host Peter Wallace on "Day 1", the nationally syndicated ecumenical radio program also accessible online at Day1.org. Birkholz's "Day 1" sermon for the 10th Sunday of Pentecost, based on Jesus' teaching on prayer in Luke 11:1-3, is entitled "Do It Yourself." Click here to read more about The Rev. Beth Birkholz.
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Green Task Force Seeks Members
 Interested in thinking more about how we as a church are called to care for creation? The Southeastern Synod is looking for individuals to serve on a Green Team Task Force. This task force is being formed as the result of a resolution titled Regarding Energy Stewardship which was passed by the 2013 Synod Assembly. Interested individuals should contact the Rev. Ed Wolff via email or at (423) 833-8932. Pr. Wolff serves as Synod Council representative from Conference 6, the Life Together Conference. Conference 6 sponsored the Regarding Energy Stewardship Resolution. Appointments to the task force will be made by Synod Council at its September 2013 meeting. The number of task force members is limited by our constitution and bylaws. Click here for more information about how task force members are chosen. |
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Funding Requests Now Being Accepted
Deadline: September 30
The Southeastern Synod's Budget and Finance Committee is now accepting proposals for funding in the 2015-16 Ministry Funding Plan. Agencies, institutions, and other groups who wish to request synodical funding are invited to submit their requests online using the following link: 2015-16 Funding Request.
Funding for committees and task forces is approved on a different cycle and requires a different form. The most recent Synod Assembly approved lump sum funding for committees and task forces during the 2014-15 fiscal year. The Synod Council will allocate the approved total among the different groups, based on recommendations from the Budget and Finance Committee. Committee and Task Force chairpersons should submit their funding request from the 2014-15 fiscal year, using the online form located at: Committee/TF Funding for 2014-15.
The deadline for submission of funding requests is Monday, September 30, 2013. Anyone unable to submit a funding request electronically may obtain a paper copy of the necessary forms by contacting the Synod Office (404-589-1977).
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Roots, Wings, and Relationships
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The Rev. Susan Montgomery
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This July, a group of more than 20 teens and adults traveled to Germany to visit congregations in the Evangelical Lutheran Church Bavaria-Schawben (ELKB), our companion synod in Schwaben, a region of Bavaria. In "Roots, Wings, and Relationships," The Rev. Dr. Susan Montgomery (Christus Victor, Ocean Springs, MS) shares stories from the trip and reflects on partnership and faith in the United States, Germany, and around the world. She writes, "The faithful Christians of Germany....have had a tough row to hoe, but despite the challenges they remain faithful, enthusiastic, and buoyant when it comes to the present and to the future. They understand that God is with them every step of the way..."
Click here to read more on our synod blog. We invite you to join in the ongoing conversation about faith and partnership by leaving a comment!
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VBS in the Southeastern Synod
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Keep the VBS Photos Coming!
 Over the last few weeks we have been asking congregations to share their summer VBS experiences with us. Several have and we have shared those experiences in our E-News and on our website. We would like to hear from several more! In the meantime, here are two VBS articles to help us reflect on this church tradition. Like so much else in the church, VBS offerings are changing. If you would like to connect with other congregations who are rethinking VBS and what it looks like your setting, contact Michelle Angalet.
The State of Vacation Bible School: This study from the Barna Group examines the state of Vacation Bible School in Protestant churches throughout the U.S. Click here to learn more about VBS then and now, along with the shared characteristics of many churches that offer VBS programs during the summer.
 Bible Stories to Skip: This Living Lutheran article ponders the top 10 Bible stories you should probably leave out of your vacation Bible school program. Although these stories have value, truth, and importance as the word of God, they might not be the best choice for VBS stories. Click here to read more.
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Resources, Retreats, & Learning Opportunities
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Faith and Protection for Refugees
On December 12-13, 2012, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees' office held the fifth Dialogue on Protection Challenges. The theme "Faith and Protection" highlighted the important role that faith-based organizations and religious communities play in protecting asylum-seekers, refugees, the internally displaced and stateless people. Out of the dialogue emerged statements on caring for refugees from multiple faith perspectives, along with "Welcoming the Stranger: An Affirmation for Faith Leaders." Click here to learn more about the Dialogue and for resources on ways that local faith communities can protect vulnerable people around the world. |
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Creation Justice Ministries
 Creation Justice Ministries is an outgrowth of the National Council of Churches' Eco-Justice Programs, which has educated, organized, and advocated for the healing and defense of God's Creation since 1983. Eco-justice includes all ministries designed to heal and defend creation, working to assure justice for all of creation and the human beings who live in it. CJM offers resources on biodiversity, environmental health, water, wilderness, and more. CJM also provides activist toolboxes for strategies that congregations can use to contact their representatives. Click here for more. |
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Interim Ministry for Today's Church
Join us for Interim Ministry for Today's Church
August 5-7, 2013
Trinity Lutheran Church,
Hixson, TN
Click here for more information and a registration form.
Registration deadline is July 30.
This event is sponsored by the Southeastern Synod.
It fulfills the synod's minimal requirements for interim ministry and earns participants 1.7 CEUs.
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Domestic Hunger Grants Available
 The 2014 Domestic Hunger Grants application and criteria can be obtained online at the ELCA website, along with stories of previous grant recipients. Please contact Joe Young via email or Ms. Johnnie Thompson at 800-638-3522 ext. 2693 with any questions concerning the Domestic Hunger Grant process. |
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More Learning Opportunities
 Stewardship with Adults Under 40 Possibilities Abound: July 29-31, 2013 at Luther Seminary. Click here.
 Prophetic Renewal: A Conference on Starting or Renewing Your Church: August 6-9, 2013 at Courtyard By Marriott Conference Center, Decatur, GA. 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.
 Peace Not Walls Action Alert: Each month, Peace Not Walls sends out action alerts on the third Thursday. These action alerts focus on different issues related to negotiating a just and lasting resolution to the Palestinian Israel conflict. July's Third Thursday Action Alert includes a called to the United States to help stop Displacement and Demolition in "Firing Zone 918", in Area C of the West Bank. Click here to download this alert and read more.
Launch a Ministry of Advocacy: The ELCA's "That We May Speak...Our Ministry of Action" is a step-by-step guide to help congregations choose an issue and begin a ministry of advocacy. The study helps congregations gain insight and understanding about advocacy, develop a plan of action, and launch (or improve) a ministry of advocacy. The entire guide is available on the ELCA website.
 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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Did You Know?
The ELCA 2013 Churchwide Assembly will use Ipads and other similar tablets in place of written materials for voting members. Only 15 voting members requested paper materials rather than an electronic tablet. In being mindful of our call to care for creation, it is estimated that use of electronic tablets will save over 500,000 pieces of paper.
Click here for more information about the 2013 Churchwide Assembly.
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Share Your Story
Is God doing exciting work in your congregation or ministry that you would like to share with the rest of the synod? 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
August 9: David Parr will be ordained at Reformation Lutheran Church in Greeneville, TN at 6 pm. Reception to follow.
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LSG Spotlight
Angelica at
the Prom!
When Angelica and Heather met at Lutheran Services og Georgia's office in Atlanta on a Saturday in late April, they became fast friends. They were both participants in LSG's FACES program, which helps individuals with developmental, intellectual, or physical disabilities thrive in their communities. They were both in high school. And, most importantly, they both loved to dance. During the couple of hours that they stayed at LSG's office, they rocked out to '70s music, showing off their dance moves. So it was no wonder when Heather began to talk about her plans to go dancing at the prom a week later. Angelica said that she had never been to prom before, and that gave Heather an idea: why don't they both go to the dance?...
Click here to read about Heather and Angelica dancing the night away at prom!
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Living Lutheran Spotlight
A Garden that
When Mark Trinklein first started attending St. Andrew Lutheran Church, an ELCA congregation in Racine, Wis., he saw something special in the congregation's sprawling lawn. "It was an onion farm, and then the church bought the land," Mark shares. The congregation used the two acres as a yard, but Mark envisioned something different. "It was wonderful soil. I told them we should put up a garden."
Since then, St. Andrew Lutheran's Church modest onion garden has grown into a two acre garden and orchard that serves the local community. Click here to read more!
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NovusWay Ministries Spotlight
Songs to Sing at Lutheridge:
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Michael Glasgow
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Sept. 6-8, 2013
This is a retreat for church choirs of all sizes as well as individuals who like to sing in a choir to learn from an excellent choral clinician. Come and gather in the mountains with others who share the love of choral music. Five selections of music will be rehearsed throughout the weekend so choirs can leave with 5 prepared anthems. Workshops and a reading session will also be part of the weekend.
Michael Glasgow, director of Music at North Raleigh United Methodist Church is the program's clinician. Michael's energetic style has been described as "infectious" and "contagious" bringing insight and passion to his composing and direction. Michael will help participants in both technique and expression. Click to learn more about Michael Glasgow or Songs to Sing at Lutheridge.
Rate: $190 per person
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The Lutheran
Love Grows Where Swedes Planted
Eight years ago, the council of First Lutheran Church, St. Paul, Minn., posed a question: "Does love live here?"
To find an answer, the congregation offered Sunday morning breakfast conversations, not only for members but for people in the neighborhood. As attendance grew, the breakfasts morphed into the current Thursday evening meal and Love Grows Here Wellness Center. Practicing love allowed First to reach out to diverse community members. Now, this Swedish-American congregation of two and three generations ago offers church space for meetings of Hmong elders learning English, a farmer's market-style food giveaway, and more. Click here to read this remarkable story of love growing in Minnesota.
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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Malaria Campaign Spotlight
Malawi: Small Loans Make A Difference
"In the past before I had my small business, there was a frequent prevalence of malaria in this house," says Maria, who has three children. Through a small loan funded by the ELCA Malaria Campaign, Maria has started a baking business that provides the income needed to treat malaria in her family and the resources to help prevent future cases. Click here for Maria's story.
If you'd like to learn more about the Southeastern Synod's role in ending malaria, contact Jonathan Trapp, Chair of the synod's Hunger, Justice, and Poverty taskforce, via email.
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The Update
A complicated debate and legislative process lies ahead for comprehensive immigration reform. Here to decipher the headlines for you every Monday is The Update, a weekly blog series whose panel of experts will analyze how recent events affect the prospects for real reform. This week's panelists answer the question, "Given the most recent developments, are we getting any closer to immigration reform?" Click to read their answers in Spanish or in English.
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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 | |
August 5-7
Interim Ministry for Today's Church
August 10-11
SESLYO Board Meeting
August 12-18
2013 ELCA Churchwide Assembly
August 21-25
ILAG Consultation in Guatemala City
September 6-7
Synod Council Meeting
September 24-26
Southeastern Synod Leadership Convocation at Lutheridge
View the entire synod calendar
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