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Your chance to save on the
Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit
August 6-7, 2015
 The Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit is an annual, national gathering of leaders for two days of talks and discussion "designed to help you get better and embrace your grander vision-the reason God called you to lead," according to its website.
"You are presented with a lot of opportunities to sharpen your skills and develop the people you lead. The Summit is a proven tool to leverage that produces these compelling outcomes for leaders who attend."
The Summit takes place in Chicago, but is broadcast to hundreds of sites across the country, including several sites in New England. If you'd like to attend, click on one of the registration links below. Registration is currently $189 for individuals and $149 per person for teams of 10 or more, but you can also save on registration costs by using our discount. To get the discount, input the code GLSCRFT15 when you register.
NEW ENGLAND SATELLITE SITES
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Pre-Assembly materials now available
The 2015 New England Synod Assembly is scheduled for June 5-6, 2015, at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Mass.
If you are attending this year's assembly as a voting member, you are encouraged to download several documents meant to be used both before and during the assembly, including the proposed budget, bios of nominees to the 2016 Churchwide Assembly, and 2016 Compensation Guidelines.
You can download those items by visiting the Assembly page on our site, or by clicking on each document download link below.
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ELCA Domestic Hunger Grants
 The ELCA World Hunger-funded Domestic Hunger Grants support ministries that offer hope and assistance to many thousands of people who experience poverty and hunger in the United States. These grants do more than just give food to people who are hungry - in addition to immediate relief programs, ELCA World Hunger Domestic Hunger Grants fund projects in community development and community-based organizing and advocacy that strengthen the foundations of communities impacted by hunger and poverty.
In 2015, this program allocated a total of $739,075 to support 324 domestic projects and programs ranging from congregational food pantries to weekend backpack programs for children to job training and living-wage advocacy campaigns. ELCA World Hunger-funded Domestic Hunger Grants make a difference.
- Advocacy: 6 programs, $15,500
- Development: 58 programs, $148,725
- Organizing: 41 programs, $106,400
- Relief: 219 programs, $468,450
The domestic hunger grant application will become available May 8th , and close on July 10, 2015. Applicants can access the application by clicking here.
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We did it!
 Want to know what our new favorite number is? It's 80.57. That's the participation percentage that our Synod had to the Mayo Clinic Health Assessment, in conjunction with Portico Benefit Services.
As a result, the congregations and organizations within the Synod will save a combined $35,000 on health contributions for the year! Not only did we surpass the 65% threshold to earn this discount, we even beat last year's participation rate, and ours was among the highest rates of all of the ELCA's synods!
So if you were one of the 141 participants in this year's assessment, pat yourself on the back, enjoy the $150 wellness dollars you earned for completing the survey, and accept our thanks for helping all of our congregations and organizations save!
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"I am am I"
 Member at Immanuel (Attleboro, Mass.) writes book on spirituality; proceeds to go to church
Robert Sendling, a member at Immanuel Lutheran in Attleboro, Mass., has written a book on mindfulness and meditation for the Christian mind, titled "I am, am I," and has pledged to donate half of his royalties to the church's building fund.
For much of his life, Sendling lived a charmed existence. While most of the kids from the old neighborhood ended up dropping out of school or landing in jail, Sendling managed to graduate from prep school, earn a degree, and achieve tremendous success in his career. He was happily married to his soul mate, kept his body in fine athletic form, and enjoyed all the benefits of a productive, easy life.
Everything came crashing down, however, when a freak accident broke his neck, injured his spine, and stripped him of his ability to function independently in the world. A shell of his former self, crippled with pain, and addicted to painkillers, Sendling contemplated suicide to end his misery once and for all.
"I Am Am I" tells the story of Sendling's journey back from emotional darkness and physical dysfunction through the practice of Zen mindfulness and meditation. Bridging the gap between Eastern and Western thought, this book makes Zen accessible to people of other faiths, particularly Christians.
Interesting, humorous, and compelling, this book offers deep wisdom and practical lessons on how to cope with life's hardships through the use of Zen's powerful concepts of mindfulness and meditation.
"This book is a sincere attempt to help others find a spiritual path to gentle compassion," Sendling said. "It is, in the most simple terms, Zen for the Western, Christian mind."
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Ordination: Amanda Nelson 
Immanuel Lutheran Church
Attleboro, Mass.
The New England Synod announces the upcoming ordination of Amanda Nelson, who is to become pastor of Faith Lutheran Church in East Hartford, Conn.
Nelson received her call on April 26, and will start as Faith's new pastor on June 1. She is a 2007 graduate of Wheaton College with a bachelor's degree in International Relations and German, and a 2014 graduate of the Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary, with a master of divinity.
Nelson's ordination will take place on Sunday, May 31, at Immanuel Lutheran Church, 647 North Main St., Attleboro, Mass. The service will begin at 6 p.m. Pastor Sandra Demmler-D'Amico will preside, and Bishop Jim Hazelwood will preach. The color of the day is red. All are welcome.
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2020: The Next Church
 This spring, Bishop Jim Hazelwood is coming to a conference or church near you. The purpose of this tour is to engage you, your synod assembly voting members, and church council leaders around the broad theme of what the Next Church will look like. Specifically, Bishop Hazelwood's presentation will focus on the following:
- How can the church engage people in contemporary New England culture?
- How can I as bishop provide support in the area of stewardship & generosity?
- How can we as a synod make the best use of congregational and individual mission support?
- How can we move more deeply into true mission partnership rather than isolated ministry sites?
Please invite your Synod Assembly voting members to your local conference meeting, as Bishop Hazelwood will be presenting information about several items that will come before the Assembly in June. However, this is also an event for anyone, and we are encouraging you to bring church council leaders as well.
Click here to visit the Synod's 2020 page for information, including download links for the above flyer as well as conference-specific flyers to help promote your conference's meeting.
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Job listings policy
Job postings will run for two weeks in the synod's weekly NES News and/or Bishop's E-News, and then will be removed to make space for new listings. The listings will also be edited, so we urge you to submit them as 2-3 sentence listings with a contact if job seekers seek further information. Readers are encouraged to retain weekly emails if they wish to reference the job listings past their two-week publication period.
Additionally, job listings are now hosted on the Synod website's new job board.
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Music Director
Trinity Lutheran Church
Chelmsford, Mass.
Trinity Lutheran Church seeks a Music Director for its vibrant music program. Responsibilities include: providing organ and piano music during worship services, collaborating with worship planning, directing the voice and bell choirs for adults and youth, developing skills in parish musicians, and working with the Pastor and staff. We are seeking an energetic, organized, collaborative musician with strong organ, piano and directing skills, knowledge and appreciation of diverse styles of music, and competency in supporting liturgical worship. This position requires 15-20 hours per week and will begin July 1, 2015.
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Organist/Pianist (part-time)
Bethlehem Lutheran Church of Sturbridge (Mass.)
Bethlehem Lutheran Church (ELCA) seeks a part time (8-12 hours/week) organist/pianist to lead one Sunday morning service per week. The ideal candidate will possess a varied musical repertoire, and work collaboratively with the pastor and worship leaders to engage the congregation in spirited worship. The position is available immediately and compensation will be competitive.
Click here to download the full job listing, including qualifications and responsibilities.
Interested candidates should send a resume, cover letter and references to:
Daniel J. Carlson
Bethlehem Lutheran Church
345 Main Street
Sturbridge, MA 01566
508-347-7297
Website: www.bethlehemsturbridge.org
Email: dcarlson06@hotmail.com
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Faith Relations Manager
Ascentria Care Alliance
The Faith Relations Manager will be responsible for growing and managing Ascentria Care Alliance's faith relations program. This position will cultivate new faith partners and maintain existing faith relationships with the goal of engaging volunteers and securing gifts in support of Ascentria's mission.
The Manager reports to the Chief Development Officer and is a member of the Development team.
For full details, including a list of responsibilities and minimum qualifications, click here to visit Ascentria's job page.
If interested in applying please forward your resume to MAjobs@ascentria.org and reference #04301501
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