April 8, 2013
- CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) are extending prayers for the family and friends of a pedestrian killed April 7 in Sun Prairie, Wis., and for the Rev. Bruce H. Burnside, bishop of the ELCA South-Central Synod of Wisconsin. Reports indicate that Burnside’s vehicle hit the pedestrian. He was arrested and taken into custody. “We offer our prayers for the woman who lost her life in this tragedy. Nothing can undo this terrible accident...
March 31, 2013
- CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In his 2013 Easter Message, the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), shares the promise of forgiveness and reconciliation with the more than 4-million members of this church. The full text of the presiding bishop’s message follows: Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ, Easter. It is about more than an open tomb. It is the good news of the risen Christ who opens lives. Think about Jesus' friends aft...
March 19, 2013
- CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Leaders of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the Malagasy Lutheran Church signed a partnership agreement designed to strengthen the relationship “in a new time.” The signing took place March 13 at the Malagasy church offices in Antananarivo, Madagascar. The agreement “is a strong foundation built upon the past but we sign it for the future,” said the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop, during the signing. “It is a document that refl...
March 15, 2013
- CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Embarking on a “journey of listening and learning,” a group of Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) members will travel March 16-25 to southern Africa to visit Lutheran companion churches working to help contain the deadly disease of malaria. “This is not just about going on a trip but entering into a long term relationship that will change all of us,” said the Rev. Philip Knutson, an ELCA regional representative in southern Africa. “What people need...
March 13, 2013
- CHICAGO (ELCA) -- In response to the election today of Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina as the new pope, the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), said he is “encouraged that Pope Francis I has worked with Lutherans in Argentina.” Meeting with Lutheran church leaders in Madagascar, Hanson said that “as we approach the commemoration of the 500th (observance) of the Lutheran Reformation, we share a deep commitment ...
March 12, 2013
- ITASCA, Ill (ELCA) -- Recognizing the rapidly changing landscape of religion, society and the world the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), said the ELCA is in a “kairos” moment and that members can make a compelling “Lutheran witness in our culture today.” At the ELCA Conference of Bishops meeting here Feb. 28-March 5, Hanson framed his report around questions ELCA members and congregations are frequently asking. “Often t...
March 8, 2013
- ITASCA, Ill (ELCA) -- Expressing grief over the tragedy of gun violence in the United States, the 65 synod bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) offered a pastoral letter on violence to the 4-million-member church. In their letter, the bishops invite members to address together the cause and effect of violence, engage in prayer and respectful conversation, and care for one another and the communities impacted by violence. “We recognize that we serve in di...
February 25, 2013
- CHICAGO (ELCA) - In a Feb. 25 letter to President Obama and Congressional leaders, the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), joined more than 100 national church leaders, calling for fiscal responsibility that models our nation’s values and is mindful of the moral obligation to protect those most vulnerable. “The measure of the necessary work of debt and deficit reduction should not be political gain or loss, but whether or...