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 Get ready for the 17th annual Hunger Appeal, God's Peace Your Piece to raise $45,000 for world hunger. Each congregation is challenged to bring at least $450 to assembly. The instructions are simple - collect donations from members of your congregation and bring one check along with the attached tally sheet to the hunger table at the Synod Assembly. (Make checks payable to Upstate NY Synod.)
Materials to support your hunger fundraising efforts are available -
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Knock the Socks off Hunger - Bishop Macholz
 is once again challenging all Synod Assembly attendees to increase our fundraising for hunger. Join him in wearing CRAZY SOCKS to the Tuesday morning Plenary session. Our Pages will assist us in counting the people with crazy socks as they enter the plenary hall on that morning. For every pair of socks, Bishop Macholz and his wife, Lin will make a donation to World Hunger. He has also secured matching dollars for our sock challenge. Join the fun - start looking now for your crazy socks and help us raise even more money for Hunger!
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Workshops at Synod Assembly
On Monday afternoon beginning at 1:15pm you will have the opportunity to participate in one of our fifteen workshops being offered at this year's Assembly. Our presenters will cover a variety of topics including Out of Poverty: What Works for Children; Racism and Youth; Hunger, Faith and Justice presented by a member of the ELCA Hunger staff; Money Beliefs not
 Budgets; and All Things Legal for Congregations shared by our synod attorney. Our ELCA Representative will share information on the new ELCA vision, Called Forward Together in Christ; Rev. David Lose will be on hand to talk about the vision shared by Philadelphia and Gettysburg Seminaries; and our keynote speaker, The Rev. Cheryl Stewart Pero will share how the church is One Body, Many Members. Look for the Workshop booklet in your Assembly packet for detailed information on all the workshops and the room locations.
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REFLECTION on JUSTICE #3
Robert Roger Lebel, Synod Assembly Planning Team member
The theme of synod assembly this year is racial justice. The first installation in this "column" explored the foundational philosophical notion of "justice," represented by several species: interpersonal, rectificatory, punitive, and distributive justice. (Jan. 20 SA UU)
The second installment explored theological notions of justice, emerging in various civilizations during the axial age and articulated through Holy Scripture. (Mar. 30 SA UU)
Here we shall contemplate the various inverse experiences regarding justice: the ways in which we recognize (instinctively but also systematically) the way in which injustice impacts persons and societies.
- Economic injustice occurs when individuals or groups employ power in any form (military, political, etc.) to create and maintain an unfair distribution of wealth and valuable items among persons and groups of persons.
- Sexism (gender bias) is found where people are divided according to a binary assumption (male vs. female), one considered to be more valuable due to intelligence, wisdom or dignity.
- Classism is based on stratification of society so that members of certain groups have power over other groups because of more or less defined arbitrary criteria.
- Nationalism happens when people who live in a particular geographical region or political group believe that in itself renders them superior to others who happen to have been born in a different region.
- Racism embodies an attitude of superiority or inferiority based on perceived criteria which supposedly separate persons into distinct groups on the basis of characteristics with alleged genetic basis, usually associated with skin pigmentation.
The common denominator of the above regimes is the assumption of reality being defined in terms of a binary modality: one or the other, this or that. It also depends on a specious assumption of permanence, and investment of the binary division with moral authority.
Stay tuned for #4 in the May 11 Assembly Upstate Update!
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"Informing, Engaging, and Equipping the Upstate New York Synod to pursue racial justice."
by The Rev. John Saraka, Racial Justice Task Force Chair
 The Synod Racial Justice Task Force has created a Congregational Resource Packet (CRP) that outlines a process for congregations to engage in a dialogue surrounding racial justice. This packet is provided to faith communities who are willing to get comfortable with the uncomfortable and carry on conversations surrounding race relations in America. This is not easy work. This is not comfortable work. But this is important work that rises out of the mission that Jesus calls us into loving our neighbor. This packet, which will be shared in depth at Synod Assembly, is intended to be a faithful response to the embedded and structural racism found in our churches and communities. We hope this process will be grounded in prayer, worship, sacred listening, and a collaboration that moves us towards a more beloved community we are called to become. It is only together through God's love enacted that we can learn from our histories, and begin to transform the discomforts and divisions between people. The CRP is structured to move between different seasons set within the Church year, to be a time of shedding light, repentance, and transformation. It begins in Epiphany and runs through Easter. In preparation for our discussions at Synod Assembly take time to read the Synod-wide book read, The New Jim Crow Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander. Bring your book with you to Assembly.
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Voting at Synod Assembly - Chapter 7 of the Synod constitution spells out the guidelines for voting members at the Synod Assembly. It is available on the synod website. Voting members shall have voice and vote at Assembly.
- All ordained members, associates in ministry, deaconesses, and diaconal ministers, under call on the roster of this synod (S7.21 );
- At least two voting members from each congregation in the synod (SC/R7.21.c);
- Officers of the synod and Synod Council members who are not the voting member from their congregation
- An ordained minister from a church body with which a relationship offull communion has been declared and established by the Churchwide Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America during the period of that ordained minister's service in a congregation of this church may gain voice and vote privileges in the Synod Assembly by sending a letter to the Bishop requesting such privileges. (SC/R7.27.)
- Rostered leaders who are on leave from call and serving in a congregation in an interim capacity at the request of the bishop, may gain voice and vote privileges in the Synod Assembly by sending a letter to the bishop requesting such privileges. (SB/L7.22.)
Note that according to constitution provision S7.21.01. Voting members shall begin serving with the opening of a regular Synod Assembly and shall continue serving until voting members are seated at the next regular Synod Assembly.
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Save your can tabs! Bring your can tabs to Synod Assembly and add them to others at the table in the Registration area at the Convention Center.
Calling All Musicians - Synod Assembly Music Director, Thatcher Lyman,  invites vocalists and instrumentalists to be in touch with him to participate in music for this year's assembly. In addition to Monday evening's Eucharist worship there will be opportunities throughout assembly for music to enrich our time together. Please email Thatcher at incarnatewordmusic@gmail.com with your interest, instrument of choice and/or your interest in joining the choir. Assembly rehearsal times will Sunday, June 5, 6 - 6:45pm and Monday, June 6, 3 - 3:45pm. Worship is scheduled for 7:00pm.
Volunteers Needed! Are you attending Synod Assembly as a visitor? If yes, consider helping out by serving as a Page during assembly. We are also looking for volunteers to help at the Registration desk and for some strong volunteers who can help us with loading and unloading equipment from the synod both in Rochester and at the synod office. Volunteers are needed at the synod office, 5811 Heritage Landing Drive, E. Syracuse on Friday, June 3 for about an hour to load the truck and again on Tuesday, June 7 at 4:00pm to unload the truck. At the Convention Center in Rochester volunteers are needed on Sunday, June 5 at 12:00noon to help unload and on Tuesday at 1:00pm to load up the truck. Volunteers from the Rochester area are also needed to support our hospitality table at the Radisson and transportation needs for out of town guests. If you would like to help, please email Patsy Glista, pglista@upstatenysynod.org.
Child Care Available at Assembly - be sure to note on your Synod Assembly Registration form under the 'Special Requests' section if you will need child care at assembly. Help us with planning by telling us the number of children and their ages in this box as well. Child care will be provided on Sunday evening, June 5 from 6:30 - 9:30pm, Monday, June 6 from 8am - 9:30pm and on Tuesday, June 7 from 8am - 1pm. Child care services will be closed during the meal hours to allow our child care providers to also enjoy their meal time. Parents indicating a need for child care on their registration will receive a registration form to complete and bring to assembly.
SERRV and Alpha & Omega Parable Christian Store Return in 2016. We are excited to have both of these vendors join us again this year at Synod Assembly to meet your shopping needs. Please be sure to stop by Highland A and B and see what Alpha and Omega and SERRV have to offer while you are at Synod Assembly.
Arriving Early on Sunday for Assembly?? Join us for one of two opportunities beginning at 4:00pm.
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Global Mission Clean and Not-so-clean water: Interactive games and displays including things like carrying jugs of water from one place to another to earn raffle tickets to purchase snacks that are priced according to how much water they take to grow. Free snacks such as gummy worms labeled with pictures of parasitic worms, entertainment and more. Riverside Court.
- The New Jim Crow book discussion: Didn't have an opportunity to be a part of a book discussion or Bible study around racial justice? Join Racial Justice Task Force facilitators for discussion around racial justice and the book. Highland C.
FELLOWSHIP OPPORTUNITIES -Two Fellowship opportunities are available at Synod Assembly. On Sunday evening we will gather in the Genesee Suite on the 2nd floor at the Radisson beginning at 9:15. On Monday evening the Women of the ELCA are our hostesses in the Galleria where you will have the opportunity not only to enjoy refreshments and fellowship but to spend additional time exploring the many vendor displays at Mission Expo. See you there!
 Early Morning Prayer - Begin your day with one of our chaplains on Monday and Tuesday morning at 7:15am in the Lilac Room at the Radisson (at the top of the escalators on the 2nd floor) for morning prayer.
Don't Miss Mission Expo!! Our vendors have been invited to especially share ways that their programs and resources link to justice and advocacy. There are two dedicated opportunities this year to explore Mission Expo in the Galleria - Monday afternoon beginning at 2:30pm and Monday evening at 9:30 when our evening Fellowship, hosted by the Women of the ELCA will be held in the Galleria amidst the Mission Expo.
Take note - you could be in pictures! We will be web-casting Synod Assembly sessions this year. It is possible that you could appear on camera.
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