We are pleased to share with you the following news, information and ministry opportunities taking place within our synod. If you have items to share about the ministries happening through your congregation, please email Terri Robertson at  terrirobertson@pacificasynod.org. If you know of others who aren't receiving our emails, please share this with them and encourage them to sign up here.

For a child has been born for us, a son given to us - Isaiah 9:6

Go d 's blessings to all as you prepare to celebrate the  birth of our Lord and Savior. Last Wednesday, I met with the roster ed leaders of the Sonshine and West San Diego Conferences. They, and I, were reeling from the news of the death of Pastor Larry Kog er, who had served an interim at Christ, Pacific Beach, a few years earlier, and was at the time of his death, Interim Pastor of First Lutheran in downtown San Diego. After the meeting, several of us went to lunch. While eating, a text came in, telling of the birth of a son to Pastor Lara and Rene Martin. In the midst of death, new life was given. 

On the nightly news, we hear of death and destruction. The siege of Aleppo, the terrorist attack in Berlin, the assassination of the Russian Ambassador to Turkey, all speak to a state of chaos in our world. In the midst of this chaos, we proclaim the hope that is ours through the child who was born in Bethlehem so many years ago. Through this child, God continues to bring life out of death, order out of chaos, hope in the midst of despair. For this child revealed God's love by giving his life on the cross, and freeing us from the powers of sin, death and evil, that we might have courage and strength to stand against the forces of chaos and despair and speak a word of hope.

Thank you for sharing this word yet again this Christmas season. Thank you for the hope you and your people share with your communities and with our world. Thank you for your prayers that the Prince of Peace will live in and through us by the power of the Holy Spirit so that we may share Christ's love with one another and with our neighbors. Thank you for the good and powerful ministry that is done in and through you and your congregations.

Merry Christmas to all. And may God work in and through us as we share Christ's hope with all we meet. 

Yours in Christ,
Bishop Andy Taylor

Applications are now being received for the Charles and Mable Warner Trust fund proceeds being administered by the Pacifica Synod. The application deadline is January 15, 2017.

Charles and Mable Warner were members of First Lutheran Church, Los Angeles. They had no children and loved their church as evidenced by the following quote from their will:  "...The entire remainder of the trust estate shall go and be distributed to the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of the Southwest, Los Angeles, California, with the request that such estate be used in the construction of Sunday School facilities and to further youth Christian education."

As legal successors to the Southwest Synod, the principal was divided among the five ELCA synods in Region 2. The principal from the fund has been placed in the ELCA Mission Investment Fund and the interest is made available annually in March, as grants. Depending on interest rates we anticipate receiving about $4,500 on our investment this year that will then be distributed as grants.

The Warner Trust Fund Committee, appointed by the Pacifica Synod Council, is empowered to approve all grant applications. Any project that received a grant last year will not be eligible again this year, but may apply again in the third year.

Please follow the link below to download an application and return it to the Pacifica Synod office no later than January 15, 2017.

Questions? Please contact Hitoshi Adachi ( hitoshiadachi@pacificasynod.org) or Terri Robertson ( terrirobertson@pacificasynod.org) or at 714.692.2791.

CLICK HERE FOR AN APPLICATION

We are excited to share that the NEW Pacifica Synod website is now live! The location hasn't changed - you can still find us at www.pacificasynod.org - but the design is new and the content has been updated.

We know this has been a long journey and we appreciate your patience through it all. We still have some additional pages to add in the weeks ahead, but we hope you find what is there now to be useful.

We welcome your feedback and suggestions. Feel free to email us here with your input or updates to existing information.

The ELCA seeks a Regional Gift Planner that will support the Pacifica and Southwest California Synods. The Regional Gift Planner is responsible for identifying, cultivating, soliciting and securing new and ongoing gifts from individuals in support of churchwide ministries, congregations, synods and related ELCA ministries. Each Gift Planner lives and works within their assigned territory (home office).

You can click here to access the online application process on the ELCA website. Application and inquiries may also be confidentially directed to Gaye Lindfors, the consultant managing the search: Gaye@SignificantSolutionsInc.com.

"I wanted to let you know that a federal court in Texas issued a nationwide injunction on November 22, enjoining enforcement of the new FLSA overtime regulations. This does NOT prohibit anyone from complying with the new regulations, but does appear to mean that, for now at least, the new regulations do not take effect December 1. An appeal is likely, however, and this decision is not final, so this road still has some twists and turns left in it.

As you know, we cannot give legal advice to congregations or advise on specific situations. Please consult with legal counsel regarding your specific situation and whether it makes more sense in your context to start complying with the new regulations, or to hold off pending further court proceedings."

For more information and to register go to:
http://spiritinthedesert.org/jan-13-19-2017-california-lutheran-executive-skills-for-clergychurch-workers

When we come to worship, we come as part of many cultures: congregational and church cultures, the cultures of our family, towns or cities, cultures of country and many more. Worship both transcends culture and embraces the diversity of particular cultures. Communal worship also challenges cultures and highlights sharing between cultures. It is these many intersections that make thinking about worship and culture both exciting and challenging. 

What questions do you have about how culture and worship intersect in your place? "Worship at the Center: Engaging Worship and Culture" will give you opportunities to address theses questions. These two days of worship, presentations and workshops are geared for pastors, musicians, worship teams and anyone interested in vibrant worship in their communities.

Come to beautiful Santa Monica, California on February 19-21. St. Paul's Lutheran will be our host for this event

Registration will go live on December 16 at www.elca.org/worship.