ELCA
ELCA leaders call on Congress to pass US Citizenship Act of 2021 in new letter
By Emily McFarlan Miller — March 4, 2021
(RNS) — Leaders of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America threw their support behind what they called ‘fair and compassionate transformations to our nation’s broken immigration system.’
What next? Christian leaders offer advice for confronting Christian nationalism
By Emily McFarlan Miller and Adelle M. Banks — January 28, 2021
(RNS) — One good first step for Christians is to learn more about Christian nationalism — and why it conflicts with Christianity.
Martin Luther’s pandemic advice goes viral — 500 years later
By Emily McFarlan Miller — November 20, 2020
CHICAGO (RNS) — Luther's advice was the subject of a lunch-and-learn session hosted Friday on Zoom by Good Shepherd Church, a congregation in suburban Naperville affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
Study finds that queer Christians quit the church twice as much as others
By Kathryn Post — November 6, 2020
(RNS) — A study in the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion strongly associated queer identity with a decision to attend church less frequently or stop going altogether.
Vote, pray, wait: Faith leaders reassure congregations, call for full vote count as election remains uncertain
By Emily McFarlan Miller — November 4, 2020
(RNS) — Clergy, houses of worship and faith-based organizations have been preparing their members for a long wait for election results.
Election stress? Check out these spiritual self-care activities designed for the day
By Emily McFarlan Miller — November 2, 2020
(RNS) — Take a break from 'doomscrolling' and join a prayer vigil, a guided meditation, a poetry reading or even a sing-along.
Lutherans ask Trump administration to admit more refugees as deadline looms
By Emily McFarlan Miller — September 28, 2020
(RNS) — Clergy in the US largest Lutheran denomination are asking the administration to admit at least 95,000 in the 2021 fiscal year, which begins in October.
Kenosha prayer vigil at ELCA church calls for confession, lament and justice for Jacob Blake
By Emily McFarlan Miller — September 3, 2020
KENOSHA, Wis. (RNS) — About 200 people — including the head of the largest Lutheran denomination in the United States — gathered Wednesday (Sept. 2) at a prayer vigil in Kenosha to confess and lament the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
ELCA Presiding Bishop Eaton lightens up on social media with viral neon Luther rose
By Emily McFarlan Miller — August 10, 2020
CHICAGO (RNS) — The lighting of Bishop Eaton’s Luther rose was accompanied by the buzz of neon, the trumpet blast of Luther’s hymn ‘A Mighty Fortress’ and enthusiasm from Lutherans on social media.
Dinner church movement sets the table for food, faith and friendships
By Emily McFarlan Miller — August 29, 2019
CHICAGO (RNS) — Dinner churches are popping up across the country in churches in a number of denominations, conservative and progressive, urban and rural and everything in between.
Black minister to his mostly white ELCA denomination: ‘We need to rethink church’
By Adelle M. Banks — August 28, 2019
(RNS) — The Rev. Lenny Duncan recently decided to challenge his denomination in a new book, titled 'Dear Church: A Love Letter from a Black Preacher to the Whitest Denomination in the U.S.'
‘A celebration for the whole church’: ELCA women reflect on 50 years of ordination
By Emily McFarlan Miller — August 16, 2019
MILWAUKEE (RNS) — The ELCA Churchwide Assembly kicked off a year of celebrations: 50 years of women's ordination, 40 years of women of color being ordained and 10 years of LGBTQ people serving freely in the mainline Lutheran denomination.
ELCA Churchwide Assembly calls sexism and patriarchy sins, condemns white supremacy
By Emily McFarlan Miller — August 9, 2019
MILWAUKEE (RNS) — The ELCA's newly approved social statement — titled 'Faith, Sexism, and Justice: A Call to Action' — names patriarchy and sexism as sins and acknowledges the church’s complicity in them.
ELCA declares self a ‘sanctuary church body,’ marches to ICE building in Milwaukee
By Emily McFarlan Miller — August 7, 2019
MILWAUKEE (RNS) — 'Marching is fun, words are great, but action makes a difference,' Bishop Paul Erickson of the Greater Milwaukee Synod said.
5 things to watch at the ELCA Churchwide Assembly
By Emily McFarlan Miller — August 6, 2019
(RNS) — This week's ELCA Churchwide Assembly offers a window into the issues important to many progressive Christians across the United States.
