ELCA Youth Gathering 

Right now 900 youth and adults from SW MN Synod are at the ELCA Youth Gathering in Detroit. "Rise Up Together" is the theme for about 30,000 youth and adults as they come together in Detroit for inspiration, worship and service. The Detroit press is already writing about this amazing event.

Alive and Called!

+Rev. Joyce Piper, Synod Minister

I am transitioning from serving as synod minister by mid-December.  I will serve full-time through the end of September and then half-time in October/November/December.

"We are alive and called!"  That was the announcement my husband, Dave, and I shared as we both began new calls in January 2004, simultaneously starting in separate synods. Dave was at that time a two-year survivor of stage-4 tongue and throat cancer. We had discerned that the gift of continued life did not have to mean clinging to one another for fear of another brush with death, but rather to embrace the two most challenging calls of our lives as pastors. It was a risk to serve separately and we have been carried in this  time . . .  by our calls and by our wonderful partners in ministry through these almost 12 years. Dave continues his call as Lead Pastor at Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd in Duluth. We have discerned that the time is right for me to join him in daily living in Duluth by mid-December this year. We are still alive and called!  I became a cancer survivor myself in 2007. I am now feeling called to increased time with Dave and with other family and friends. It's not retirement just yet; I will look for part-time employment in Duluth in 2016.  It is Dave and Duluth!

It has been such a blessing to serve in the synod office with so many amazingly faithful and dedicated folks in this big synod. I am grateful to Bishop Jon for inviting me, someone he barely knew before interviewing, to be part of the synod office team.  Having served in some previous part-time calls, I prayed for a call that would use all of me. That prayer was answered. (Understatement.) And now I think it will be a blessing for the synod and for someone else to have the opportunity to serve in this special ministry.

I look forward to serving in these remaining months with all of you and making a smooth transition to what's next for us all. Thanks be to God!

SW MN Synod Communications

The weekly online newsletter is the synod's only regular communication tool. We no longer send regular mail to the rostered leaders and members of your synod through the USPS, so we depend on this weekly "online newsletter" to communicate with you - and you with your congregations.

Click here to subscribe - Add your congregation council!

Though roster leaders are automatically subscribed to the online newsletter, we hope you will not unsubscribe, as this will cut you off from our line of communication with you. It is how you will find out about all events, registrations, scholarships, and important messages from Bishop Jon Anderson.

August through September our online newsletter will be short and sweet! Kristin Bakeberg, our communications staff person, will be on parental leave. Please check out our blog at swmnelca.wordpress.com for more synod news and resources.

Events coming up in August and September are the Building a Stewardship House, Church Staff Workers Retreat and Fall Theological Conference so please visit the events webpage for registration and event details. 

Awareness of Boundaries
Sexual misconduct by pastors, associates in ministry, and other religious leaders is one of the most serious challenges faced by the church today. Violation of the sacred trust between church members and their leaders brings deep pain to all who are affected: victims, offenders, family members, friends, and the congregation itself.

In response to this challenge, the Southwestern Minnesota Synod constitution and bylaws include the following provision (Bylaw §14.21.01):

"Within twelve months of assuming office, all ordained ministers under call and rostered lay ministers responsible for programmatic ministry shall demonstrate completion of at least six contact hours of continuing education in the prevention of sexual boundary violations."