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2009 ELCA Youth Gathering E-News
August 2008 ► Issue 3

The Gathering E-News will be sent to you each month and deliver Gathering information and news to you on New Orleans and beyond. Previous issues of the Gathering E-News are archived.

What's a day at the Gathering like?
Music, worship, read the Bible, community service, learn, play, pray, meet people, laugh, sing with thousands in the Louisiana Superdome, dance, listen to stories of life and faith, share your faith in Christ, stretch your faith, explore New Orleans, remember baptism. Eat, sleep, and repeat... yet each day is new and different!

Check out the daily program schedule (subject to change).

How will we serve in the manner of Christ in New Orleans?

Every congregational group and Gathering participant will have the opportunity to be involved in compassionate, meaningful service in New Orleans during the Gathering.

Think broadly though... service may mean:

  • assembling school packets
  • reading to a child
  • fixing someone's front porch
  • praying with someone
  • becoming more aware of what justice means from a biblical perspective
  • working on a Habitat home
  • listening to someone's story about life after Hurricane Katrina
  • picking up trash in a park
  • learning about racism
  • writing an email advocating for something to change
  • listening to a local jazz musician play and talk about life
  • visiting with a local doctor or nurse

When you register, your group will choose one of six Interest Areas to focus on. This Interest Area selection will help guide and structure your group's service and learning experiences. The Gathering will provide transportation to all of the service experiences in New Orleans.

And when it's all over, well, it's not over -- it's never over! We will not forget New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, but we will leave New Orleans to continue following Jesus in service wherever we are for the rest of our lives. We will trust God's Spirit to show us how to live with love, justice, forgiveness, and hope.

Requests for financial assistance

Between May and the application deadline this past July, the Gathering office received 1228 requests from young people for financial assistance. These young people are from 268 congregations in all of our regions and synods. The need for assistance is great, and we can only provide financial assistance to 1000 young people.

  • If someone from your congregation has requested assistance and receives it, you will see the amount credited in your congregational account when you register online on or after September 15.
     
  • If someone from your congregation has requested assistance and does not receive it, please know that we are doing our best to find additional funding. We want everyone to be able to join us in New Orleans!
Videos of the 1949 and 1961 Lutheran youth gatherings

Some things never change and some things seem like another universe. These are great videos of past youth gatherings. 

Spread the Jesus Justice Jazz news...

Download and use the Gathering logo files and shop for your Gathering shirts at Old Lutheran.
 

Registration opens online September 15th at 12:01am (Central Time)
  • Registration will remain open until January 15, 2009.
     
  • Read more about registration...
Did you know?
  • Youth and their congregations contributed over $1 million dollars in offerings during the 2006 ELCA Youth Gathering. The offerings went to 25 ministries in the US and around the world.
     
  • Did you know Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke at the 1961 Luther League Convention? We've got the video!

You are receiving this e-mail because you subscribed to the 2009 ELCA Youth Gathering E-News.  Unsubscribe from or subscribe to this Gathering E-News list.  For general questions contact the ELCA Youth Gathering office at gathering@elca.org or 1-800-638-3522, ext. 2100.