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 Reflections
from
Rev. Chad Rimmer, International Church of
Copenhagen, about his
experience at the WCC Continuation Committee on Ecumenism in
the 21st Century.
"I am thankful to have been invited to share my vision
that grows out of my ecumenical experience of serving as a
Pastor in the ELCA in the York City and Pennsylvania Council
of Churches, and now through ELCA Global Mission at the
International Church of Copenhagen and the Danish National
Council of Churches. But most of all, I am thankful to the
WCC that these ecumenical experiences are happening, and our
participation is sought. Regardless of what forms or
structures ecumenism takes on in this century, one thing is
for sure. Christ’s prayer is being answered. Ecumenism is
alive."
Read more... |
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 National
Workshop on Christian Unity (NWCU)
April 27-30, 2009
in Phoenix, Arizona
Theme:
"Desert Pilgrimage", complemented by the 2009 Week of Prayer
theme "That they may be one in your hand", drawn from
Ezekial 37:15-28.
Read more about the
workshop, check out the
online
brochure, and
register online!
NOTE FOR
LUTHERAN ATTENDEES:
For the 2009
National Workshop, there are two registration processes: one
is the
general registration
for the
Workshop itself, and the second is for
Lutherans.
Luncheon
forms are available
here.
The Fifth Annual
Seminary Essay Contest Winner
Mr. Steven Wilco, a seminary student from the Lutheran
Theological Seminary at Philadelphia was chosen as the
2009 winner of the contest. Steven will be presenting his
essay: "That
They May Be One" at the 2009 National Workshop on
Christian Unity (NWCU), April 27-30, 2009 in Phoenix, AZ.
Congratulations Steven!
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March: Women's
History Month
Women
of the ELCA, the women’s organization of the church, has
thousands of participants in thousands of congregations.
Together we are committed to growing in faith, affirming our
gifts, supporting one another in our callings, and engaging
in ministry and action that promotes justice and wholeness
for all people. Our mission is
to
mobilize women to act boldly on their faith in Jesus Christ.
Read more... |
Ecumenical Women
at the United Nations
Ecumenical
Women is an international coalition of church denominations
and ecumenical organizations which have status with the
Economic & Social Council (ECOSOC) at the United Nations.
These bodies share and are committed to a common mission and
vision. Grounded in faith and commitment to global justice,
Ecumenical Women trains and empowers an expanding network to
advocate for gender equality at the United Nations.
Read More...
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Peace
Not Walls: Making a Difference in the Holy Land
The DVD, "Peace
Not Walls: Making a Difference in the Holy Land," offers
a dynamic introduction to the ELCA inter-religious work and
the Peace Not Walls campaign dedicated to peace with
justice in Israel-Palestine.
Click
here for other PNW resources.
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ELCA Churchwide Assembly
Aug. 17-23, 2009
Minneapolis Convention Center
Theme: "God's work. Our hands."
Registration opens in mid-April.
Please click
here for further information pertaining to
this
year's assembly. |
 National
Council of Churches Darfur Letter
The National
Council of Churches and its member communions have been
working to end the genocide in Darfur since 2004.
Read February 27,
2009 NCCC Darfur Letter
View
copy of a large postcard
addressed to President Barack Obama
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ELCA TV Ads to Air
Nationally May 11 – 31
The
ELCA brand campaign is going national. After two years of
research, testing and tweaking, the ads are ready for prime
time. From May 11 – 31, during sweeps, a flight of
televisions ads will broadcast nationally on CNN, CNN
Headline News, Fox News, HGTV and DIY Network.
Read more.. |
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The
LERN network is a group of ELCA clergy and laypeople
appointed by their synodical bishops throughout the ELCA.
They are the eyes and ears of ecumenical and inter-religious
activity in their synods. LERN reps meet annually at
the
National Workshop on Christian Unity and with staff
members of the ELCA Ecumenical and Inter-Religious
Relations Office. These representatives assist in meeting
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 global, ecumenical and
interfaith relationships."
LERNing Newsletter –
March 2009 Issue
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Mark your calendars!
A Communion of
Communities: Being Lutheran in a Globalizing World
December
1-12, 2009
Journey with us to Geneva, one of the Ecumenical centers of
the world, through the mission, witness, and public ministry
of the global experience of being Lutheran in the 21st
century. Discover what it means to be members of a global
communion of churches and the implications this
globalization has for ministry within North America.
Who can attend?
Persons currently serving as assistants to synodical
bishops or other synodical staff as approved by the
synodical bishop in the LWF member churches in United States
and Canada.
For the 2009
brochure, please visit our
website.
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Stewards Programme 2009: Ecumenical Experience for Young
People
The Central
Committee of the World Council of Churches meets every 18
months to monitor and set directions to the Council's work.
About 150 church representatives, advisors and observers
will gather at the next meeting of the Central Committee
which will be held in Geneva, Switzerland. There will be a
group of young people from all over the world participating
in the meeting as stewards from 19 August to 4 September
2009. You may be one of them!
 2009
Information Brochure
2009
Application Form
Interested?
Read the application form carefully, complete it clearly and
fully (in English; type if possible) and send it to the
address mentioned in the form before 31 March 2009.
Only applications which are fully completed and sent in time
will be considered.
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 Ecumenical
Institute of Bossey
The Ecumenical Institute at Bossey is the international
centre for encounter and formation of the World Council of
Churches. The Institute brings
 together
people from diverse churches, and backgrounds
for ecumenical learning, academic and personal exchange.
Student guidelines, application form, and scholarship
information
2009 Seminars
Pursuing Unity As An Inclusive Community: May 18-24,
2009
Building an Interfaith Community: July 6-31, 2009
Healing of Memories Reconciling Communities: August
17-23, 2009
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 Parliament
of the World's Religions
Melbourne,
Australia
December 3-9, 2009
A Parliament is a
place to come together to listen and commit. Religious
leaders and activists from around the world will address
critical issues facing the global community. Over seven
days, delegates will choose from over 450 activities,
including daily morning observances of many traditions,
intrareligious and interreligious programs, models of
engagement, symposia, performances, open space dialogue and
exhibits.
Read more...
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Ecumenical
Work Week III: Worship, Witness, and Work
The National
Council of Churches will host Ecumenical Work Week
III: Worship, Witness & Work August 2–8, 2009 in
Gulfport, Mississippi and New Orleans, Louisiana.
This week of ministry and fellowship will not only
help those still experiencing the aftermath of
Hurricane Katrina but will highlight the need for
continued work and ministry in this impacted region.
Read
more...
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43rd
International Ecumenical Seminar: July 1-8, 2009
"The Liturgy as Ecumenical Chance and Challenge"
Participants
come to the
Ecumenical Institute from around the country to be
formed for ecumenical leadership in a variety of settings.
Ecumenical Institute 2009 is an ideal introduction to the
ecumenical movement for newly ordained clergy, new staff in
ecumenical and interreligious organizations, recently
appointed ecumenical representatives and interested lay
leaders.
Download
the application
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After a year of hard
work and preparation, the members of the Young Adult Task
Force of the WCC are thrilled to launch
FaithConnectsUs,
and welcome the participation of ecumenically engaged young
adults throughout US and beyond. |
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Building a Relationship
UMC-ELCA Best Practices - A booklet for starting grass-roots
conversation
 This
new joint ELCA-UMC best practices booklet is meant to launch
you, and accompany you, while you ask both the “how” and
“why” questions. The booklet moves to specific
examples of members of the ELCA and UMC doing ecumenical
work, and delineates best practices of building ecumenical
relationships for the reader to apply. Grass roots ecumenism
is born from this curiosity, this prodding to find the
familiar in the midst of difference. As members of the UMC
and the ELCA, and people interested in nurturing this new
relationship between our churches, you are invited to do
some prodding of your own.
Download this booklet
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 Interfaith
Toolkit:
Full communion partner interfaith resource done in concert with the
ELCA.
This kit contains a
variety of resources to help as you engage with neighbors of faiths
other than your own, or prepare to do so. It contains “how to do it”
sorts of pieces, examples of what others have done, as well as more
reflective materials on interfaith relationship as an integral part of
being faithful followers of Jesus Christ.
Read
more...
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Upcoming PBS Film, Jerusalem: Center
of the World
 For
over 40 centuries, untold numbers of Jews, Christians and
Muslims have come to Jerusalem to look for God, while
billions more have worshiped from afar. Jerusalem: Center of
the World, a two-hour epic event in Hi-Definition by Emmy
Award-winning producer/director Andrew Goldberg and Oregon
Public Television, is the first documentary of this scope to
delve into the historical facts and religious beliefs that
have led so many thousands to live and die for this city.
Learn More &
View Trailer
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Islam and Civil Society Summer Seminar
Princeton Theological Seminary
August 3-7, 2009
The Islam and Civil Society Seminar is a week-long program
for young adults in Islam-related fields of study and work.
In a small seminar setting alongside scholars and religious
leaders (Muslim and non-Muslim), participants will explore
the relationship of Islam to civil society by engaging
together in study, reflection, discussion, and pragmatic
solution-seeking. The seminar will consider history and the
modern world, with a focus on modern challenges and
opportunities for Islam and civil society.
Read
more.. |
Film: "Elisabeth of Berlin"
 "Elisabeth
of Berlin" is a new film by Steven D. Martin, maker of the
acclaimed "Theologians Under Hitler." "Elisabeth of Berlin"
is now screening at churches and universities across the US
and Germany for the next several months. The filmmaker is
seeking churches and other organizations willing to present
the film in events designed to build interfaith dialogue and
friendship..
This groundbreaking new film, based on original research,
tells the story of a woman of the Confessing Church, who
during the years of the Nazi regime, challenged her church
to do more to protect the Jews, and sheltered them herself
during those most dangerous years. We now have the
opportunity to know Elisabeth Schmitz, a contemporary of
Bonhoeffer and a remarkable woman who not only spoke to her
own time, but speaks to ours as well.
A screening by your organization offers a terrific
opportunity for community witness. Please contact Vital
Visions at 865-483-6823 or online at
www.vitalvisions.org. |
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 Your
Guide to Inter-Religious Life in the ELCA
This guide will help you and your congregation gain a
hands--on appreciation of
the inter-religious relations in the life of the church.
Navigate the waters of inter-religious relations, and take
opportunities to learn more about how you can be part of an
important journey.
Download as PDF file
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 ELCA
The "Fourth Expression" – Partner/Related Organizations
We share a strong, growing relationship with pan-Lutheran and
ecumenical partner ministries, such as Lutheran World Federation (LWF),
Lutheran Services in America (LSA), Lutheran Immigration and Refugee
Service (LIRS), Lutheran World Relief (LWR) and many more.
Learn why
our partners are so critical to this church’s mission.
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 lnter-Religious
Resource
Windows for Understanding: Jewish, Muslim, Lutheran
Relations
This resource offers
opportunities to learn more and become better informed. You
are invited to explore Windows and grow in your
faith. We encourage you to send us your comments and
suggestions by filling out the Evaluation Form on back of
Windows.
Additional
Inter-Religious Links:
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 NEW
– Interactive Faith: The Essential
Interreligious Community-Building Handbook
Religions for Peace USA debuts an
indispensable interreligious resource to bring different
communities of faith together. This practical guide to the
key methods and resources of the interfaith movement will
help you effectively engage people of other faith traditions
in order to increase understanding and acceptance in your
community and beyond.
Read more....
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Religious Switching Among American Jews
Written by Tom W. Smith, director of
the General Social Survey at the National Opinion Research
Center of the University of Chicago, the report examines
Jewish religious identification in the United States in the
context of "religious switching" -- leaving one faith for
another faith or for no faith. "Jewish losses are
disproportionately to no religion," concludes Smith. "It is
not primarily that Jews are converting to other religions in
general or assimilating to the Protestant majority, but that
they are ceasing to identify with a religion."
Read more...
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 Newsweek
Article: Learning to Live With Radical
Islam
by Fareed Zakaria, Newsweek International Editor
In Fareed
Zakaria’s latest, Learning to Live With Radical Islam,
(on newsstands Monday, March 2) he subtitles his article:
“We don’t have to accept the stoning of criminals. But it’s
time to stop treating all Islamists as potential
terrorists.” He emphatically does not say that we should
accept the medieval values of the Islamists, or that we
should not continue trying to destroy Al Qaeda. But to
prevail in a generational cultural struggle, the West must
learn to distinguish between those who have nihilistic
philosophies and expansionist aims and those looking to
apply their values at home.
Read the
cover article
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 A
Century of Prayer for Christian Unity
This book is
a
celebration
of the
one-hundred-year
history of
the Week of
Prayer for
Christian
Unity and a
wonderful
resource for
understanding
the theology
and practice
of common
prayer for
the
reconciliation
of the
churches.
Contributors
to this
volume
represent a
cross-section
of
perspectives
both
denominationally
— including
Anglican,
Roman
Catholic,
Baptist, and
Reformed —
as well as
in light of
their lived
experience
of Christian
spirituality
and prayer.
Each
essayist
offers
significant
insights
into the
history,
theology,
and
spirituality
of the Week
of Prayer in
particular,
and of
ecumenical
prayer in
general.
Read more...
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One Heart: Universal Wisdom from
the World's Scriptures
 One
Heart illuminates the common sacred ground at the heart
of seven faiths: Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism,
Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Taoism. Its method is to
identify 65 essential principles, among them. Illustrating
each principle are one, two, or three quotations from a wide
variety of texts sacred to each of the seven faiths --
including the Old and New Testaments, the Talmud, the
Mahabarata, the Tao Te Ching, the Bhagavad Gita, the Koran,
the Analects of Confucius, and many other sacred sources. In
addition, each chapter also provides guidance on a spiritual
theme or practice — prayer beads, a home altar, labyrinth
walking — to enhance our understanding of these wise
words and universal principles.
Read more...
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Torture Is a Moral Issue:
 Christians,
Jews, Muslims, and People of Conscience Speak Out
In this
hard-hitting volume, two dozen scholars, activists, military
officers, and religious leaders call for an immediate end to
the practice of torture, paying particular attention to its
use in the American war on terror. Torture Is a Moral
Issue begins with background material, including vivid
firsthand accounts from a torture survivor and a former U.S.
interrogator in Iraq. The heart of the book contains
respectively Christian, Jewish, and Muslim arguments against
torture, and the final part charts a way forward toward a
solution, offering much principled yet practical advice.
Read More...
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 For
the Peace of the World
For the Peace of the World seeks answers questions of
international relations and provides a resource for further
reflection. The study guide weaves together many strands of
Christian faith that would inform the discussion of current
events. It is meant to be the centerpiece of a larger,
long-term conversation that, as a nation, and as people of
faith within this nation, we will have for many years to
come.
Read
more...
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 The
Lutheran Magazine
Articles
Checking Facts in the Holy Land
(March 2009)
Bishops hope to increase awareness in synods.
Read more...
'Humanize
people we don't understand'
(March
2009)
Few Americans
are more at home while abroad than Rick Steves.
Read more...
Papua New Guinea's dynamite women
(February 2009)
Jesus' encounter
with the Samaritan woman inspires Lutherans to challenge
their cultures.
Read more...
Why I teach the Quran
(E-Newsletter, March 2009)
Christian
minister teaches Quran on an ongoing basis.
Read more...
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Inter-Religious News
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