ELCA Lutherans mark 35th anniversary amid calls to expand beyond European roots
RNS It’s both the oldest and the youngest of large Lutheran denominations in the United States, by the World Council of Churches’ reckoning. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America logo. GRAPHIC: Courtesy ELCA The mainline Evangelical Lutheran Church in America officially was created 35 years ago this Saturday, the result of a merger of […]
In the US, Nadia Bolz-Weber installed as ELCA’s first pastor of public witness
RNS Rev Nadia Bolz-Weber was installed on Friday as the first pastor of public witness for the largest Lutheran denomination in the United States. Bolz-Weber, who has often attracted controversy, is perhaps best known for her New York Times bestselling books, including Shameless: A Sexual Reformation and Pastrix: The Cranky, Beautiful Faith of a Sinner & Saint, […]
ELCA leaders call on US Congress to pass Citizenship Act of 2021 in new letter
RNS Pastors, bishops and the head of the largest Lutheran denomination in the United States are calling on Congress to support the US Citizenship Act of 2021, which President Joe Biden proposed on the first day of his administration. In a letter published Thursday, leaders of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America threw their support behind […]
No touching! US churches get ready for Ash Wednesday in a pandemic
RNS Ash Wednesday is one of the touchiest observances on the liturgical calendar – literally. Many churches mark the beginning of the penitential season of Lent with the imposition of ashes. Clergy smear ashes, usually those left after burning palm fronds from the previous year’s Palm Sunday celebrations, onto congregants’ foreheads, often in the shape of […]
Martin Luther’s pandemic advice goes viral — 500 years later
Chicago, USRNS It has been more than 500 years since German monk Martin Luther’s words went viral, thanks to what was then some cutting-edge technology. In 1517, Luther’s famed 95 Theses helped spark the Protestant Reformation after they were distributed far and wide with the help of the printing press, the 16th century’s version of […]
In US city of Kenosha prayer vigil at ELCA church calls for confession, lament and justice for Jacob Blake
Kenosha, WisconsinRNS The message appeared on signs, T-shirts and face masks in the crowd. Black Lives Matter. But Sonja Wolfe, a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s Church Council and resident of Kenosha, Wisconsin, said she was tired of feeling like they don’t. “I’m tired of feeling like I don’t matter to some people […]
Latino Lutherans from 17 countries discuss caring for migrants
New York City, USReligion Unplugged Christopher Vergara, 35, is a costume designer currently in London working on the film, Prince of Egypt – the Biblical story about how Moses was left in a basket in Egypt’s Nile River by his Hebrew mother so that he would not perish and have a chance for a better life. […]
SHARING LIVES: ‘DINNER CHURCH’ MOVEMENT SETS THE TABLE FOR FOOD, FAITH AND FRIENDSHIPS
EMILY MCFARLAN MILLER, of Religion News Service, looks at the US trend for so-called ‘dinner churches’…
In the US, ELCA Churchwide Assembly calls sexism and patriarchy sins, condemns white supremacy
Milwaukee, USRNS A new social statement from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America labels patriarchy and sexism as sins and acknowledges the church’s complicity in them. The social statement — titled ‘Faith, Sexism, and Justice: A Call to Action‘ — was approved by the ELCA’s Churchwide Assembly with 97 per cent of the vote Friday morning […]
US denomination ELCA declares self a “sanctuary church body”, marches to ICE building in Milwaukee
RNS More than 500 years ago, a monk named Martin Luther nailed 95 theses outlining his grievances with the Roman Catholic Church to the door of a church in Wittenberg, Germany. On Wednesday afternoon, members of the mainline Protestant denomination bearing Luther’s name taped 9.5 theses – expressing their concern for immigrants and refugees – […]