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Grace Lutheran Church: A Bright Spot for Risk-Taking Mission & Service
The congregation of Grace Lutheran Church in Red Lion is a wonderful example of what it means to engage in risk-taking mission and service. Their food pantry will provide in excess of 3,000 boxes of nutritious food and real hope to local residents in need this year. In sharing their abundance with others, the folks at Grace are also building relationships and deepening faith. Best of all, they've opened their doors and hearts to develop a web of relationships with other area churches and local high school students. Even elementary-school-age children are learning the joy of service through volunteering at the food pantry. The congregation is served by Pastor Tina Melusky. Be sure to check out this short and inspiring Bright Spot video.
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 Responding to the New Pennsylvania Child Protection Laws
with Strong Congregational Policies
Congregations across our synod have long been instituting child protection policies, drafting safe-practice documents, and modifying existing space within their buildings to create a safer environment for our children and youth. Yet with the new child protection laws taking effect in
the state of Pennsylvania, some congregations may need to go even further to come into compliance. This weekend our synod council will vote on a "model policy" that congregations can adapt and use as they strive to come into compliance with the new law.
This Child Protection Policy (CPP) draft was constructed under the watchful eye of Assistant to the Bishop, Pastor Rob Blezard, in consultation with local attorneys, and includes not only a careful explanation of what the new law defines as child abuse, mandated reporting, and hiring guidelines, but also model forms such as covenants, event release forms, interview forms for volunteers and staff positions, and even driver information sheets. EVERY congregation providing youth ministry programming or ongoing faith formation ministry for children and youth should at least review this document and compare their existing child protection  policies, hiring practices, and event forms to the new law and tweak or modify these items as needed. Congregations functioning without current child protection policies and volunteer or staff guidelines should implement them immediately.
Once approved by Synod Council, the Child Protection Policy will be posted to our synod website in pdf format and available for your use. Congregations may request a copy in Word or Rich Text Format. We hope it will be a valuable resource for congregations looking to create a safer environment for raising up young people in faith. For assistance contact Charlie Roberts at the Office for Children, Youth & Family Ministry at croberts@lss-elca.org, or Pastor Rob Blezard at rblezard@lss-elca.org.
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Restorative Justice Event Set for February 27, 2016
The Criminal Justice System Ministry of our Lower Susquehanna Synod will sponsor a half-day educational event with keynote speaker Christopher Fitz, Executive Director of the Center for  Community Peacemaking in Lancaster. Join us on Saturday, February 27, 2016, for a day of discovery about the principles and practices of restorative justice, along with breakout sessions addressing domestic violence, Healing Communities, Restorative Justice in Action, and a presentation about Diakon's youth and young adult programs. This half day event will be held at Trinity Lutheran Church, 2000 Chestnut St., Camp Hill, from 9:00 - 11:30 a.m. and is designed for students, youth, adults, pastors, and church leaders. Look for more details soon.
 About our Speaker: Christopher Fitz first learned about conflict from his mother, who would tell him to go outside and "run off my anger." Fitz says, "Transforming negative conflict cycles has been a passion of mine. As a scholar, mediator, educator, trainer, artist and even a fundraiser, my passion has been to bring our creative resources to catalyze community changes."
Now the Executive Director of the Center for Community Peacemaking in Lancaster, Fitz has spent 21 years working on restorative justice and community peacemaking, particularly in communities of ethnic tension - Northern Ireland, former Yugoslavia, Iraq and most recently, his hometown of York, PA.
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 Our synod grows stronger because its dedicated leaders continue to learn new ways of approaching ministry and serving God's people. Check here each week for a link to a video, article, podcast, powerpoint presentation or other media that will help our leaders embrace new ideas and learn new insights into ministry. (Photo: Chris Carter, Creative Commons)
Easy Ways to Share Gratitude this Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving comes every fourth Thursday in November, but thanking God for our blessings is a spiritual discipline that should not be limited to a single day. Giving thanks is as essential to our spiritual growth as prayer. From the United Methodist Church, here are some creative ideas not only to develop an attitude of thankfulness but also to reach out to our neighbors. Which ones would work in your context? ( Click here to see the Leadership Link archives.)
December 10 TED Talk to Explore "Healthy Congregations"
Healthy Congregations is a way of looking at your church as a system of relationships, how it handles anxiety and conflict, and the crucial role of leadership in promoting health in the congregation. Pr. Dan Biles has served as a teacher of Healthy Congregations in our synod, and has taught understanding churches as systems at the Lutheran Seminary in Russia. Based on the teachings of Bowen Family Theory, Ed Friedman, and Peter Steinke, the program on December 10 will offer an overview of understanding how your church system works. Here's a flyer about Healthy Congregations.
Our synod's monthly TED (Theology, Evangelism and Discipleship) Talks cover topics of interest to congregational leaders free and open to anyone. They are held every second Thursday of the month from 10 a.m. - Noon in the lunchroom of the United Church Center (where our synod office is located), 900 S. Arlington Ave., Harrisburg. Bring a lunch and we can share a fellowship meal and talk afterwards. In order that we have enough resources to go around, please RSVP to Cathy Deitrich at the synod offices, cdeitrich@lss-elca.org.
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Our synod prayer list is updated frequently and posted on the website. To be redirected to the complete prayer list click here.
We pray for Pastor Miriam Nicholson (Messiah, Elliottburg) for health and healing.
Check out ELCA Prayer Ventures by clicking here and download daily prayer petitions each month.
Have a prayer request to share with others in our synod? Please contact Pr. Sharron Blezard at sblezard@lss-elca.org.
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Give + Receive + Share = News to Use from our Synod Office
CLICK TO GIVE: It's Easier Than Ever to Make a Difference with your Mission Support!
It's easier than ever to make a gift to support the mission of our Lower Susquehanna Synod. All you have to do is visit our website ( www.lss-elca.org) and click the "Donate Now" button on the bottom right side. It will take you to our secure donation site (the same one that hosts Thrivent's Simply Giving) so that you can easily support our work together. Make a one-time gift or set up a regular giving schedule.
You are Cordially Invited . . .
Sunday, November 15, 3:00 p.m.
Installation of the Rev. Marleen Griffith-Stull
St. John Lutheran Church, 8 Linden Ave., Mercersburg. The color of the day is green. Refreshments will be served following the service, and guests will have opportunity to shop at the congregation's SERRV Fair Trade Fair.
 Wanted: A New Home for Our Synod Office
As a way of containing the costs and reducing our footprint to permit our important ministries to continue and expand, our Lower Susquehanna Synod Office plans to move from its present location in 2017. Bishop Dunlop has appointed a task force to plan for our new office space. The first step is to explore possible locations. Our first preference would be to use existing space in one of our congregation's church buildings or in one of our related agencies' properties. We would prefer to be in the Harrisburg area or near the geographical center of our synod, which is near Dillsburg. We would like to have adequate parking, to be near main highways, and to be permitted to repurpose the space to meet our needs. Congregations and agencies that would be willing to explore with the task force the possibilities of allowing our synod to use space in their buildings for our offices, please contact Pastor Thomas McKee, synod secretary at 1-800-692-7282, ext. 111 or at tmckee@lss-elca.org
Check the Synod Calendar on our website for a complete listing of meetings and gatherings. Inclement weather closings of our office are announced on the answering machine (ext. 100) and our Facebook page.
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Opportunities for Education...
CLICK HERE to be redirected to our synod website for detailed information about upcoming events. We add events and update our website weekly.
November 28
Advent Retreat, St. Luke Lutheran Church, 2695 Luther Dr., Chambersburg. Click here for a flyer.
December 1
Peace Not Walls Convocation and Exhibition, Lutheran Theological Seminary Philadelphia. Click here for more information.
Be sure to check the Center for Faith Formation webpage for information about upcoming events and links for registration. Click here to be redirected. January 11-14, 2016
Week of Renewal-"Worship: Beyond Style", Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary, Berkeley, CA. Click here for more information.
Don't forget about all the fun and educational events at our area Lutheran Camps! Click here to visit the Lutheran Camping Corporation website and see what's happening at Nawakwa, Kirchenwald, and Wittel Farm.
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Visit the Congregation Connections page on our synod's website to keep up with the specific details (including event times, contact information, publications, and registration information) of the many good things happening in the worshiping communities of our synod. (Click the blue hotlink at the beginning of this paragraph to be redirected.)
Please keep us posted about what's happening in your congregation and community. We are able to post photos, pdf documents and flyers, and contact information on our Congregation Connections website page. E-mail event information to sblezard@lss-elca.org.
NEW THIS WEEK
Saturday, November 14
"Hymn Styles and How to Play Them: Hymnody vis-à-vis Theology"
- Dr. Karl Moyer, clinician
Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 212 Cocoa Avenue, Hershey, Alan Hair, host.
November 15
Hope 4 Haiti Welcomes Hugues Bastian, Trinity Lutheran Church, Chambersburg and St. Mark Lutheran Church, Harrisburg November 18 A Day at the Seminary, with Trinity Lutheran Church, Rouzerville, Lutheran Theological Seminary, 30 Seminary Ridge, Gettysburg November 21 Community Thanksgiving Dinner, Trinity Lutheran Church, 509 Hummel Ave., Lemoyne December 4 Craft Show and Fair Trade Fair, Zion Lutheran Church, 18 Quarry Rd., Leola December 5 Cookie Walk for Konde, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Springettsbury, 25 W. Springettbury Ave., York
"Christmas is a Claus for Celebration" Breakfast, Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church, 9 N. Main St., Dover
"Do You Hear What I Hear?" Richard A. Sultner, Sr. Music Scholarship Holiday Concert, Calvary Lutheran Church, 9 N. Main St., Dover
December 6 "Angels and Shepherds" Wheatland Chorale in Concert, St. Matthew Lutheran Church, 839 W. Market St., York December 31 Welcome 2016! New Year's Eve Celebration and Dinner, Christ Lutheran Church, 125 East High St., Elizabethtown January 16
St. Matthew Lutheran Church Annual Women's Retreat, 30 W. Chestnut St., Hanover
Coming Soon...
November 29
Advent Wreath-Making Event, Zion Lutheran Church, 100 W. Main St., Hummelstown
To Share:
Need hymnals, tables, Bibles, an organ, or choir robes? Check the Congregation Connections page of our Synod's website for a list of offerings by congregations who are willing to share what they no longer need. Have something to share with others? Let us know!
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Em ployment listings are provided to synod congregations and related agencies free of charge. This service is made possible by your Mission Support of Lower Susquehanna Synod and ELCA. Please provide a brief position description, contact information, and a link to a complete position description on your web site (if desired). Send information to Sharron Blezard at sblezard@lss-elca.org. Positions are posted for 60 days unless extended.
NEW THIS WEEK
Congregation: St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church, 1240 Broadway, Hanover
Position: Pianist or Organist
Congregation: Mt. Carmel Lutheran Church, 1398 Moulstown Rd., N, Hanover
Position: Part-time Organist
Congregation: St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church, Red Hill, PA Position: Director of Music Ministries
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| Carings and Sharings is the e-newsletter of the Lower Susquehanna Synod. Its purpose is the sharing of news and events which raise up the mission and ministry of the synod and ELCA in our congregations, our synod, and the broader church. It is not intended to be an endorsement of every activity. Comments about this newsletter may be sent to Sharron Blezard, editor, sblezard@lss-elca.org. |
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