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 Issue #442                                                           June 18, 2015
            WE ARE CHURCH                  

Worship Jubilee 2015 "Called to be a Living Voice" 

July 19-23, 2015-Atlanta, GA

 

How is God calling the church today? And to what are Christians called? These fundamental questions will be taken up by those who come to Atlanta in 2015, gathering as worshiping people: those who make music, those who preside and preach, those active in worship ministries in their communities, those simply curious, and all who seek the ongoing renewal of worship for the sake of the gospel and for the life of the world. Worship and music practitioners are invited to gather in Atlanta this summer, to listen to one another, to join our voices in worship and song, and to be renewed in our calling to be God's living voice today.  Hear from voices like Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton, Bishop Guy Erwin, Maggie Dawn, Nadia Bolz-Weber, Godron Lathrop, Agape, Jonathan Rundman, James Abbington, Tony Alonso, and more. Please register before June 27.  For more information and registration go to www.livingvoice2015.org. For scholarship information, contact Ms. Holly Liersch at the Southeastern Synod office at 404-589-1977.

Einig and Luetgers Selected for Leadership Opportunity

 

Jack Einig

Congratulations to Jack Einig from Christ the King Lutheran Church, Peachtree Corners, GA and Lauren Luetgers from Cross of Life Lutheran Church, Roswell, GA who were selected by their peers on the Youth Core Leadership Team to participate in a two year term of leadership development and faith formation.

Lauren Luetgers

 

It is the goal of the Youth Core Leadership Team to invest in young leaders so that they may, in turn, invest in others. As a member of the Youth Core Leadership Team, Jack and Lauren will each serve as a youth representative of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in their congregation, in the Southeastern Synod, and may be asked to serve as a resource person for leaders in the ELCA. 

 

Please pray for Jack and Lauren as they embark on this phase of ministry.

                              WE ARE LUTHERAN                   

 ELCA National Youth Gathering

July 15 -19,2015

Detroit, MI 

Click here to read the latest edition of gNews.


 

Visit the Gathering website.

Kimberly D. Peterson, Recipient of ELCA 

Fund for Leaders Scholarship

 

Ms. Kimberly D. Peterson, a member of Hope Lutheran Church in Ellijay, Georgia, who is slated to begin study for a Master of Divinity degree at Trinity Lutheran Seminary in Columbus, Ohio in the fall, has been awarded a full-tuition scholarship by the ELCA Foundation's Fund for Leaders.               

Peterson lives in Jasper, Georgia and currently teaches Latin at the Pace Academy in Atlanta. She graduated in 2002 from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota with a B.A. in Classical Studies along with minors in chemistry and Greek. In 2004 she earned a masters degree in Classical Education from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.

                 

The ELCA Fund for Leaders is a merit-based scholarship program focused on "attracting men and women of tremendous promise to become pastors and rostered lay leaders to study at ELCA seminaries."

                

A life-long Lutheran, Peterson was raised in Gig Harbor, Washington.  It was during her time at Concordia College Peterson said, "that I really began to understand the idea of vocation - the sense of calling that God has for each of us as members of the body of Christ."

                

Peterson completes her work at Pace Academy this summer after leading two tour groups of middle school students from the school to Greece.


The June, 2015 issue is available here.
                         WE ARE CHURCH TOGETHER                  

Lutheran Services in Tennessee Expands Garden Program

 

For five summers Lutheran Services in Tennessee has been providing individual raised-bed gardens for individuals and families living in public housing in Nashville. In 2015 they were able to expand to a second community in Murfreesboro. This year they have 44 gardens and almost 50 gardeners participating in the program. Click here to read more in this project in the Daily News Journal.

 

Latino Ministry Intensive

 

Ms. Monica Weber (intern at St. Paul, Nashville/St. Timothy, Hendersonville), the Rev. Tom Clark (pastor, Ascension, Jackson), and Diaconal Minister Rebecca Kolowe (Southeastern Synod Director for Evangelical Mission) attended a Latino Ministry Intensive, the week of June 8, at the Lutheran Seminary Program of the Southwest in Austin, TX. The group learned liturgical Spanish and focused on the history and culture of the growing Latino population in the United States.
Today's article is meant for those who escort the Word into the gathered worshipping communities each week, and it is the beginning of a series.
Click here to read.
          WE ARE CHURCH FOR THE SAKE OF THE WORLD

 

"The urgent challenge to protect our common home includes a concern to bring the whole human family together to seek a sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change. The Creator does not abandon us; he never forsakes his loving plan or repents of having created us. Humanity still has the ability to work together in building our common home. Here I want to recognize, encourage and thank all those striving in countless ways to guarantee the protection of the home which we share. Particular appreciation is owed to those who tirelessly seek to resolve the tragic effects of environmental degradation on the lives of the world's poorest. Young people demand change. They wonder how anyone can claim to be building a better future without thinking of the environmental crisis and the sufferings of the excluded."

 

-Encyclical letter, Laudato Si, Of the Holy Father Francis on Care for Our Common Home

 

Today, Pope Francis issued a clarion call for the care of God's earth; for humanity to come together to protect the planet that God created, which sustains us and our fellow creatures.  In an encyclical, or Catholic teaching document, the Pope outlines the ecological challenges we face and calls on individuals, institutions and governments to take action.

 

In a statement released this morning, ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton praised the encyclical, noting parallels to our own social statement "Caring for Creation" and calling for action: "The present moment is a critical one, filled with both challenge and opportunity to act as individuals, citizens, leaders and communities of faith in solidarity with God's good creation and in hope for our shared future."

 

The encyclical speaks to a variety of current ecological issues, but prominently calls for action on climate change and expresses particular concern for those who are most impacted by the earth's changing climate-those living in poverty around the world.  In a year where countries are negotiating a new global agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help poor countries and communities  build their resilience to the effects of climate change, the Pope's message to our world leaders could not come at a better time.  

 

You can send a message to U.S. leaders now, calling for a strong climate agreement! Sign an interfaith petition on climate change by clicking here to urge President Obama and Members of Congress to take strong action to combat climate change before it's too late. Add your voice to a growing chorus of people of faith who are holding our leaders accountable on this critical issue!

 

Our ELCA advocacy initiatives are made possible through support from ELCA World Hunger. Please donate now to ensure that we can continue to work for systemic change that truly supports our brothers and sisters facing poverty and hunger.

 

Click here to sign up for the ELCA Advocacy Network today!

Also, stay up to date on Advocacy efforts by following us on social media.

Facebook: ELCA Advocacy    Twitter: @ELCAadvocacy

 




The June edition may be found here.
                                     SYNOD CALENDAR                
                                 
July 15 - 19, 2015:  ELCA Youth Gathering, Detroit, MI
July 19 - 23, 2015: Called to be a Living Voice, Worship Jubilee of the ELCA & the Biennial Conference of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians, Atlanta, GA

July 30 - August 2, 2015: Association of Liberian Lutherans in America (ALLIA) and African Descent Lutheran Association (ADLA) Joint Conference, Baltimore, MD

September 13, 2015:  "God's Work. Our Hands." Sunday

September 15 - 17, 2015:  Southeastern Synod Leadership Convocation, Lutheridge, Arden, NC

September 18 - 20, 2015: Southeastern Synod Women of the ELCA annual convention, St. Simons Island, GA

January 17, 2015: The ELCA - Southeastern Synod service of commemoration for the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  Location to be determined

May 27 -29, 2016 - 2016 Southeastern Synod Assembly, Birmingham, AL

July 13 - 17, 2017:  Tenth Triennial for Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Minneapolis, MN

                        SYNOD VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES                    
Volunteers are crucial to the mission of the Southeastern Synod. Click here to find ways you can serve.  Thank you for your generosity!
                   EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES                      
Descriptions and application instructions for the following open positions and others are listed on our website:  

Full-Time Director for Congregational Support
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Chicago, IL

Full-Time Development Director
NovusWay Ministries, Arden NC

Part-Time Music Director/Accompanist
Nativity Lutheran Church, Bethlehem, GA

Part-Time Social Media/Publications Specialist
NovusWay Ministries, Arden, NC 

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ELCA Southeastern Synod
100 Edgewood Ave. NE, Suite 1600
Atlanta, GA 30303
404-589-1977