If you are a member of Community Lutheran Church, you know that I am a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s church council. Our church is a part of the ELCA.
I was appointed by our bishop over a year ago serve on our church’s national board. It is a great honor to represent CLC and our synod at the national level.
Every gathering consists of four days of meetings. I never knew there was such a thing as a four-day church council meeting before this!
I wanted to give you a snap-shot of the agenda items discussed and acted upon.
- We began by gathering in worship and celebrated Communion together!
- Update from the Commission for a Renewed Lutheran Church
- This commission has been looking at how the church operates based on the constitution of the ELCA and other formational documents. They are bringing proposals for potential change to those documents.
- Reports from our Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton, our Vice-President Imran Siddiqui, the Secretary of the ELCA, Sue Rothmeyer and the Conference of Bishops of the ELCA.
- A presentation of gender and racial inequality
- I sit on the Service and Justice committee where we heard the following reports:
- World Hunger
- Lutheran Disaster Response
- Young Adult in Global Mission
- Our ecumenical partnerships
- Specialized ministries
- Budget concerns
- Legal and constitutional review (revising and updating the constitution where needed)
- Information about the upcoming 2025 ELCA Churchwide Assembly of which I will attend as an ELCA church council member. After that event, I roll off the council.
- There will be a Presiding Bishop Election at the Churchwide Assembly in 2025
- Report from the treasurer of the ELCA
- Approved the 2025 budget for the churchwide organization
- Adopted a financial compliance policy for payments and re-payments.
- Report from the Vision Team that is shaping our future to be:
- A Welcoming Church
- A Thriving Church
- A Connected and Sustainable Church
- Finally we heard reports from every committee and department within the ELCA.
A lot happens in four days! If you are curious about anything, just ask me!
We are a part of a great church body that cares about people and how we live out of the love of Jesus.
God bless,
Pr. Ben