Subscribe now to Ecumenical Life via e-mail

• Theme of this issue: A Year of Prayer and Action for Christian Unity
  • A Year In Review Brief reflections by Michael Trice from ELCA Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations
     
• 2006 WEEK OF PRAYER FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY:  January 18-25 marks the 2006 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity throughout the world.  The theme is Matthew 18:15-22, "Where Two or Three are Gathered in My Name . . . "  Visit these links to learn more about the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity:
  • Visit these Links!
    • Graymoor Institute and learn about the history of the week of Prayer.
    • Vatican Resources for the week of prayer.
    • Weeks of prayer from 2002-2006.
    • Eight Days of Biblical Reflection by the Canadian Council of Churches.
    • Resources and Order Forms: English and Spanish
    • World Council of Churches:  The week of prayer in German, Spanish, English, and French
    • ELCA Synods celebrate Week of Prayer: Metropolitan Chicago Synod,

• NEW joint ELCA-UMC Resource. Confessing Our Faith Together: A Discussion and Study Guide is designed so ELCA and UMC congregations will meet and trace the joyful journey of discovery that is at the heart of seeking Full Communion between our churches. 
  Download the study guide: Color PDF | Black and White PDF
  Read more about the ELCA's bilateral dialogues with other churches!
   
• NEW ELCA Powerpoint Presentation on Ecumenical Life - From grass-roots to seminaries and your local congregation -- 27 minutes long with discussion questions, pictures, and a brief history of ecumenism in the ELCA
   
• 2006 Ecumenical Seminary Essay Contest on Ecumenism for the 21st Century now underway.  Lutheran Seminarians encouraged to submit an essay.  Word DOC |  PDF
   
• "Churches join to ordain Hispanic minister". ELCA and Episcopal bishops join to ordain pastor for outreach to the Hispanic population of southern Chester County, PA.  Read more
   
• "Churches join forces in youth work". A local partnership between Prince of Peace Lutheran Church and Holy Trinity Episcopal Church. Read more
   

• NEW The ELCA Brings "Joy to the World" to ABC Television for Christmas.  The holiday worship service includes a joyful mix of music and praise from ELCA African American, Asian, American Indian, Arab and Middle Eastern, and Latino congregations. The rich and diverse cultural blend begins with a Santa Lucia celebration in the Swedish Lutheran tradition.  Check local listings for the exact airtime in your area.

^ back to top ^
 

At My Church
- Seeking Unity and Understanding

• ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson meets with Pope Benedict XVI in Rome. Read more.
  • The Pope's address to Bishop Hanson
  • Bishop Hanson's address to the Pope
     
• NEW Ecumenical Study Focused on Lutherans and Southern Baptists - The ELCA Department for Research and Evaluation has just completed an extensive analysis of similarities and differences between Lutherans, Southern Baptists, and other member communions in the United States.  Download and view this document. 

• The November issue of the magazine, LutheranWoman Today tells the story of Augusta Victoria Hospital.  The LWF sponsored Augusta Victoria administers health and healing to Palestinian refugees.  Learn more about the ecumenical activities of Women of the ELCA, the magazine, and articles such as the above covering ecumenical and Inter-Religious issues of our day.  Visit the Women of the ELCA Web site
   

• Peace in the Holy Land - The conflict in the Middle East affects the whole world. Learn five specific ways Lutherans are acting boldly for peace and justice in the region.

^ back to top ^

• Ecumenical Advocacy Days in Washington D.C. - Seeking Peace and Justice. Over 800 people participated in 2005 with top speakers from throughout the world. Mark your Calendar for March, 2006.
   
• NCCC - Does the U.S. use its power to pursue peace, justice, food, shelter and safety?  What  is the role of U.S. Christians in bringing moral clarity to U.S interactions with its global neighbors?  This and other urgent questions are the focus of a new congregational resource "For the Peace of the World: A Christian Curriculum on International Relations"
   
• NCCC - "Hunger No More: Faces Behind the Facts" will be televised on the Hallmark Channel on Sunday, November 20, at 11:00 a.m. central time. (12:00 noon, eastern and pacific times, 10:00 am mountain time). "Hunger No More" is an unflinching look at the persistent problem of hunger in the 21st Century.  It is a production of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., Mennonite Media, and the Interfaith Broadcasting Commission. The program was partially underwritten by the ELCA World Hunger Appeal.
   
• NCCC General Assembly November 8-11 Reports: Rev. Michael Livingston new NCCC president; delegates reject any form of torture, send message to Congress. Read more
   
• CCT - The next  meeting of Christian Churches Together in the U.S.A. will be March 28-31, 2006 in Atlanta, Georgia.
   
• WCC U.S. Office  - Young Adult Ecumenical Living Letters for the life of the church

^ back to top ^

• WCC - "Today's constellation of ecumenical organizations is not immutable" according to the World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr. Samuel Kobia. Read more
   
• WCC - Latin American churches prepare for significant moment in history!  A call "to pray, support and participate" in the forthcoming World Council of Churches (WCC) 9th Assembly in Porto Alegre, Brazil February 14-23, 2006.  Representatives from churches and ecumenical bodies in the region concluded a preparatory event that took place in Mendes, Brazil from October 16-18. Read more
   
• WCC - A new website from the World Council of Churches (WCC), "Keeping the Faith", is a multimedia portrait of people, their faith and their communities engaging in dialogue, working in mission, praying together, facing conflict and violence, poverty and illness in a rapidly-changing world.  Check out the stories from Kenya, Denmark, Romania and more!
   
• "God's Grace - a new beginning in the midst of the scars of history". October 30, 2005 marked the historic re-opening of the Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady) in Dresden, Germany.  The re-opening of the church , which was destroyed in the final months of World War II, is "a sign of the grace of God" for many Germans according to bishop Margot Kaessmann.
   
• The Lutheran World Federation and the ELCA Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations are hosting in cooperation with seven ELCA seminaries a seminary January Term (J-Term) from January 7-24 in Geneva on the topic of Globalization and Ecumenism.  Nearly thirty-five seminarians from numerous ELCA seminaries will be participating.

^ back to top ^

Inter-Religious Relations

• Keep up with the latest developments in Jewish-Christian relations -- check out www.jcrelations.net.  Sponsored by the International Council of Christians and Jews, this site publishes news, articles, statements, and reviews from around the world, and has sections in six languages.
  • Nostra Aetate -- Forty Years since Vatican II issued the declaration.  Read the declaration, then read Rabbi Dr. Ron Kronish's essay as a look back from revolution in the Catholic church to both dialogue and action. 
     
• ELCA Seminaries:
  •  LTSP - "Honoring Our Neighbor's Faith"  -- Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia (LTSP) has online theological study for laity.  From William Penn and the charter of religious liberty to religious pluralism today, the course grapples with this question -- How does my inter-religious neighbor assist me in identifying who I am as a Christian?  How do I honor the inter-religious "other"?  More info., click here...
  • LSTC - Along with other Jewish-Christian Relations events, the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago hosted its third annual observance of the anniversary of Kristallnacht (Crystal night) with members of the Jewish communities.  See News release
     
• The Institute of Interfaith Dialog - Inform yourself about the major holidays of  the world's great religions.

^ back to top ^

Lutheran Ecumenical Representatives Network (LERN)

The LERN network is comprised of ELCA clergy and laypeople appointed by their synodical bishops throughout the ELCA to conduct ecumenical activity on local and regional levels. LERN reps. meet annually at the National Workshop on Christian Unity and with staff members of the ELCA  Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations. These representatives and the LERN Executive Board meet the challenge of the ELCA’s strategic directions to authentically “step forward as a public church, support congregations, assist synods, produce wise and courageous leaders, and deepen and extend our... ecumenical relationships.”

LERN News & Events:

LERN Executive Committee Meeting February 5-7, 2006 at the ELCA church wide offices in Chicago.

LERNing Newsletter!!  Read the November issue on Christian Unity, and reconciliation with faiths other than Christian.

^ back to top ^

• News & Events - ELCA and the Lutheran Communion throughout the world!
   
• ELCA, Presiding Bishop,  LWF President Focuses on Ecumenism, October 11-17,2005( Sao Leopoldo, Brazil)
   
• World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) - International Theological Dialogue with the Orthodox Church
   
• Worldwide Faith News (WFN) - is a database of full text official news releases and other documents, including policy statements, from the news offices of national and world faith groups. This collection indexes more than 18,000 documents.
   
• Ecumenical News International (ENI) - Nigerian president urges religious tolerance at the end of Ramadan; World Council of Churches honors Nobel Peace Laureate;
   
• World Jewish Congress
   
• See recent news releases from the World Council of Churches

Subscribe now to Ecumenical Life via e-mail