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A Reconciling in Christ synod
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Welcome Pastor Janice Kibler, Lilly Grant 3E Director!
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Educate, Equip, Enact
(3E) is the Rocky Mountain Synod’s response to the Lilly Endowment’s National Initiative to Address Economic Challenges Facing Pastoral Leaders. The Synod Council is excited to welcome Pastor Janice Kibler as the part-time
3E Project Director.
Pastor Janice has been serving Grace in Boulder part-time since 2013.
Prior to coming to Grace and the Rocky Mountain Synod, she served congregations in Ham Lake and Cottage Grove MN, Phoenix AZ, and Berlin Germany. More recently, she served as the Bishop's Associate for Leadership in the Central States Synod for 11 years, working with First Call Theological Education, Candidacy, and congregations in transition. Pastor Janice shares why she is excited about this work:
"I'm excited about the work ahead because I know God is active in this world and invites us to be involved. Worry about finances (both as rostered ministers and congregations) easily distracts our energy and focus away from our call as followers of Jesus. This program of grants and education is designed to help us look at our financial wellness and be intentional about being healthy in our understanding and use of money. As we look at systemic issues that contribute to the debt of our rostered ministers, we will have the opportunity to work for change, so that we might be freed from financial worry. The potential is great. And I'm ready to get to work."
Welcome Janice!
Read more about the 3E Initiative and opportunities for involvement
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Global Church Sunday
February 12, 2017
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Liturgy, Prayers for Healing of the Nations
You are also encouraged to invite someone with Global Church experience to preach or present an adult forum. The
Global Church Speakers Bureau is in the works, we encourage you to contact someone in your area to join you on this or another Sunday.
Do you have global church experience through ELCA Global Mission, YAGM, or another ministry?
Help us expand our speakers bureau by joining the list!
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2017 Mission Support Intent
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Your 2017 commitment will support the ministry we are called to do as the Rocky Mountain Synod to proclaim and embody God's unconditional love for the sake of the world. We are Christ's Church, Better Together!
If you prefer a hard copy of the intent form, please email
Cheryl
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Include these in your annual report and annual meeting!
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Important Updates for Rostered Ministers!
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The 2017 Annual Report to the Bishop forms for Rostered Ministers are now available:
We've already received several rostered minister reports, and they all came back
BLANK. Please pay attention to these instructions:
- Go to this webpage to get the form.
- Right-click or control-click (on a Mac) on the file you want to use and select "save file" so it gets saved on your computer in a place you can find.
- Close the webpage! Don't type your answers in the webpage version!
- Find the file on your computer, and open it in Acrobat, Preview, or any other PDF reader.
- Fill out a couple lines of the form. Save it. Close the file. Reopen it to see that the data is being saved correctly.
- Finish completing the file and save it.
- Find the file on your computer, attach it to an email, and send it to Janice Ladd-Horkey.
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What Would Luther Do Today? – Free Online Course
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What Would Luther Do Today?
presented by ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton
Open January 16 – 30, 2017
Marking the 500th year anniversary of Martin Luther’s historic reform work, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton is inviting the world to commemorate the life, legacy, and relevant teachings of reformer Martin Luther by taking a free, pre-recorded online class series.
In the class What Would Luther Do Today?, students will learn more about Luther and make relevant connections that can lead to transformation. The class is a series of video lectures, quizzes, and discussions. No special software is required. The course will take an average learner about 45 minutes to complete, and learners are encouraged to interact in the online discussions. Registration is free and open to all. Go to ChurchNext.tv to learn more and register today. Once registered, the course will be available free from January 16 – 30, and accessible after then for a modest fee.
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New Churchwide Positions:
- Candidacy and Leadership Manager for Regions 1 & 2
- ELCA Regional Gift Planner
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The Candidacy and Leadership Manager is a member of the Domestic Mission Candidacy Team working collaboratively with bishops to mentor, resource and train synod candidacy committees. Their work will be in collaboration with other leadership team members, and may include leadership formation, Assignments, mobility, vocations and recruitment, relate to the Lifelong learning and campus pastor networks to identify and resource the formation processes for people responding to their call to rostered ministry. This full-time position will be based in the Region 1 or 2 area.
UPDATE: Application deadline has been extended to January 20. Th
is was done to provide candidates sufficient time to post their RLPs as the RLP data entry portion of the system is down due to updating. Click
here for more information and to apply.
The ELCA seeks a
Regional Gift Planner
to support the
Rocky Mountain Synod
. 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).
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Now Hiring Sky Ranch Summer Staff!
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Sky Ranch Lutheran Camp is hiring for our 2017 summer staff! Positions available include counselors, off-site guides, kitchen staff, onsite & offsite coordinators, chaplain, and a creative arts coordinator. If you or someone you know is interested in spending a summer in the mountain sharing the love and grace of Christ with kids and adults please visit our
website
to learn more! If you have any questions please call the Sky Ranch office at 970-493-5258, or email
Jeff Fairfax
or
Hannah Anderson
.
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Applications for ELCA Young Adults in Global Mission now open for 2017-2018 year!
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Do you have children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or know of young adults in your congregation or in your neighborhood with a passion for service and a willingness to serve? Consider telling them about the Young Adults in Global Mission program and about the opportunity to serve alongside Lutheran companion churches and organizations in countries around the world.
Applications are due Feb. 15, so share the
link to the application with someone you know now!
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Installations
Pastor Deb Cote
Prince of Peace, Gillette, WY
Saturday, January 21, 2:00 p.m.
Color of the Day: Green
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Enjoying snow in Greenwood Village, CO
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RMS Prayer Cycle
January 2017
Metro West
Conference
Week of January 15
Lord of the Valley
Granby, CO
Brian Bergum
St Mark’s Church of Grace Episcopal Lutheran Ministry
Craig, CO
Bain White (ECUSA)
Mount of the Holy Cross
Vail, CO
Scott Beebe
Shepherd of the Valley
Grand Junction, CO
Kaila (Hochhalter) Armbruster
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From the Peace Wall in Hamilton, New Zealand
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Prayer of the Day: Sunday, January 15
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Just as Jesus' disciples shared their experiences and introduced others to him as the promised Messiah, we pray that we are enthused to go out of our way to share with people our faith and the good news of Jesus Christ.
Join us in daily prayer:
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Peter Eide in Concert January 15
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Shepherd of the Hills
1200 S. Taft Hill Rd, Fort Collins, 80521
Sunday, January 15 at 7:00 p.m.
We are pleased to host a concert by singer/songwriter Peder Eide, who has led many Christ-centered praise and worship for youth conferences, festivals, camps and of course, churches. This concert will be an exciting opportunity for families and anyone looking for an energetic evening of song and praise! A free will offering will be collected.
Contact Shepherd of the Hills for more information.
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Executive Office Manager
(temporary, need ASAP!)
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Water is Life: Standing Rock and Beyond, with Joseph Medicine Robe
Sunday, January 22, 12:30 p.m.
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What has been taking place at Standing Rock, North Dakota has brought millions of people across the United States and the world to stand in solidarity, including over 400 Indigenous Nations worldwide, thousands of Interfaith Clergy, teachers, farmers, veterans, Resolutions from numerous City Councils across the US, and people from all walks of life. Joseph Medicine Robe examines the awareness that has blossomed from the issues that have been raised from Standing Rock. This has special significance for Lutherans this year—both the Rocky Mountain Synod and the ELCA have taken action to repudiate the Doctrine of Discovery, a legal principle by which the Christian Church in the 1400s justified the taking of native lands by Christians.
For more information and event location,
click here.
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Registration for Colorado Faith Advocacy Day 2017 is now open!
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Bethany Lutheran Church, 4500 E. Hampden Ave., Denver, CO
Saturday, February 11, 2017
8:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. (registration opens 8am)
Join advocates and people of faith from across Colorado for this year's event,
"Luther at 500: Reclaiming Protest for Today's Public Church."
Click here for more information and to register. Register your group today!
The Lutheran Advocacy Ministry-Colorado Policy Committee has adopted its 2017 Advocacy Agenda. Our priorities include combating hunger, reducing poverty, supporting access to healthcare and housing, and caring for our environment.
Click here to learn more about our advocacy priorities for the coming year!
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Prepare/Enrich Facilitator Training offered at Bethany Lutheran Church, Cherry Hills Village, CO
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Friday, February 3, 2017
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Prepare/Enrich is the leading relationship inventory and skill building program used by clergy and counselors nationally and internationally. It is used in premarital counseling and marriage enrichment or marriage counseling. This training teaches proficiency in the Prepare/Enrich program and certifies Facilitators to administer the assessment, interpret reports, and give feedback using skill building exercises.
To register or for more information please contact Beth Walker at 720-352-9915, or email, or visit the Prepare/Enrich website.
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"Rebuilding When Your Relationship Ends" Seminar
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Mondays, January 9 through March 13, 2017
The 10-week Rebuilding Seminar offers education and support for individuals experiencing a divorce or the loss of a love relationship. Beginning on January 9, 2017, the seminar will meet Monday evenings at
St. Andrew United Methodist Church, 9203 S University Blvd., Highlands Ranch, CO.
Complimentary child care provided with registration. For more information please contact Beth Walker at
720-352-9915 or send her an
email.
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Join the Lutheran Advocacy Ministry-NM Advocacy Network!
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The NM state legislature convenes on January 17. Click here to join the LAM-NM Advocacy Network and receive Updates and Alerts. Or click here for more information.
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New Mexico Youth Retreat
Friday, February 10 through Saturday, February 11
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"The Amazing Race Borderlands: Season 3"
Congregations in the Northern New Mexico and Border Conferences are invited to create teams of youth (and adult drivers) for an event like no other! If you are familiar with the popular tv show The Amazing Race then you have a little bit of an idea of what this event will entail. This year's event will be
hosted by
Peace Lutheran in Las Cruces and will include community building activities, food, fun, fellowship, worship, and, of course, a race like no other! Are you ready to RACE?
Registration will take place online (by congregation). Visit
HERE for more information and a link to the registration page.
Contact
Deacon Laura Carson, Border Conference Faith Formation Coordinator, for more information or call
575-522-7119 ext. 17.
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We Must Pray for Christian Unity – Together!
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The Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity, which begins on January 18, the Feast of St. Peter, and ends on January 25, the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, invites the whole Christian community throughout the world to pray in communion with the prayer of Jesus: “that they all may be one” (John 17:21).
As brothers and sisters in Christ, we are called to participate in the opportunities offered to promote understanding. As we pray with our fellow Christians, we renew our commitment to work for the unity Christ expects from his disciples.
The theme for 2017 Week of Prayer
is “Reconciliation–The Love of Christ Compels Us”
(2 Corinthians 5:14-20)
All are welcome and encouraged to attend any of these events:
- Friday, January 20, 2017, at 7:00 p.m.- an Ecumenical Prayer Service with guest clergy and musicians at Our Lady of the Annunciation NE, 2621 Vermont, NE, Albuquerque, NM. Reception to follow. Please call 505-298-7553 for more information.
- Sunday, January 22, 2017, at 3:00 p.m.- an Ecumenical Prayer and Worship Service at Holy Cross Church - Iglesia de Santa Cruz de la Cañada, Santa Cruz, NM. Fellowship and light refreshments to follow at4:30 pm in Marian Hall. Music will be provided by Frances Castellano and group. Please call Felice Gurule at 505-929-2955 or the parish at 505-753-3345 for more information.
- Wednesday, January 25, 2017, at 6:00 p.m.- the Annual Taize Ecumenical Prayer Service at the Santuario. The service will take place in the Santo Niño Chapel on the Santuario grounds. Please call 505-689-2404 for more information.
- Wednesday, January 25, at 6:30 p.m.- a Bilingual Ecumenical Prayer Service at Camino de Vida Presbyterian Church, 3907 Isleta Blvd SW Albuquerque, NM 87105. Please call New Mexico Conference of Churches 505-243-6234
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Catholic-Lutheran Prayer Service at St. Luke Lutheran Church
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St. Luke Lutheran Church
9100 Menaul Blvd. NE
Albuquerque, NM
Sunday, January 29 at 3:00 p.m.
Rocky Mountain Synod Bishop Jim Gonia and Archbishop John Wester of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe will jointly preside at a service of Common Prayer to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the Reformation which occurs in 2017. The liturgy will highlight the agreements that have been reached through fifty years of dialogue between Catholics and Lutherans on topics such as the Church, Ministry and the Eucharist. Members of local Lutheran and Catholic parishes also will share in leading the January 29 service. People of all faith traditions are welcome!
This will be the first of seven joint prayer services around the Rocky Mountain Synod in 2017.
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2017 Bishop's Annual Legislative Luncheon & Issues Briefing
Santa Fe, NM
January 31, 2017
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You are invited: The morning Issues Briefing will be at the United Church of Santa Fe at 1804 Arroyo Chamiso, near Christ Lutheran Church.
Registration and refreshments will begin at 9:00 a.m. The Bishop's Legislative Luncheon will be at 12:30 p.m. in La Terraza at La Fonda Hotel (100 East San Francisco).
The cost of the luncheon is $35 per person. The cost is reduced to $30 when 4 or more people attend from your congregation or group. If you are only able to attend the morning Issues Briefing, the cost is $10.
Deadline for reservations is January 27. Please make reservations by calling the Lutheran Advocacy Ministry-NM office at 505-984-8005 or sending an email.
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Rocky Mountain Synodical Women's Organization
December Issue of
Views Now Available
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In December, the RMSWO Views December newsletter was incorrectly posted at the RMS website (the April issue was linked). If you tried to download it, please try again; the error has been fixed. Enjoy the articles and sorry for the delay. The next issue will be ready by the end of January. Share with your pastor and others in your congregation!
The corrected link is here and at the RMSWO webpage. Or you may email Anna Thompson.
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Youth
Application for YDT Reformation Road Trip
Due February 15
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To commemorate the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, the
Youth Discipleship Team (YDT) is going on a summer road trip, stopping in eight different cities across the five states of the Rocky Mountain Synod. The trip will take place July 9 through July 16. In each city, we will include an evening program with interactive activities, a ministry fair, a local excursion, a meal, and worship. Our goal is to is to network the youth of the RMS, to grow a great connection with our Lutheran Roots, and to embody the YDT mission of
"Youth empowering youth to be world shakers: Accompany, Grow, Love."
Want to join in on the fun?! YDT is currently accepting applications for youth participants from across the RMS to join the trip. While spots are limited, our hope is to have individuals from every conference as part of the experience. More information can be found on the
Youth Application, by email to
YDT, or by contacting
Pastor Paul Judson, YDT Advisor.
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Resource Corner
check back each week for a new or featured resource for your congregation
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2017 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity: January 18-25, 2017
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The 2017 theme for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity has been selected. On the occasion of the 500th anniversary year of the beginnings of the Reformation, the theme: "Reconciliation – The Love of Christ Compels Us" (2 Corinthians 5:14-20) has been chosen. The materials for the 2017 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity has two accents: reflection upon the main concerns of the churches marked by Martin Luther's Reformation and secondly recognizing the pain of the subsequent deep divisions which afflicted the unity of the Church. In selecting this theme, it is viewed as an opportunity to take steps toward reconciliation.
For 2017, it should be noted that this biblical text emphasizes that reconciliation is a gift from God, intended for the entire creation. "God was reconciling the world (kosmos) to God's self in Christ, not counting people's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation" (v.19). As a result of God´s action, those who have been reconciled in Christ are called in turn to proclaim this reconciliation in word and deed: "The love of Christ compels us"
Week of Prayer Resources
Resources include bulletin announcements, daily readings, music selections, sample prayers and more!
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Non-rostered positions available
Executive Office Manager (temporary)
Saint Paul Community of Faith - Denver, Colorado
Director of Faith Formation
Christ the Servant Lutheran Church - Louisville, CO
Office Administrator
Holy Cross Lutheran Church - Albuquerque, NM
Parish Nurse
Faith Lutheran Church - Golden, Colorado
Accompanist/Organist
Trinity Lutheran Church - Boulder, CO
Youth Leader
Holy Trinity Lutheran Church - Littleton, CO
Church Organist/Accompanist
King of Kings Lutheran Church - Pueblo, CO
Chancel Choir Director
King of Kings Lutheran Church - Pueblo, CO
Office Assistant
Trinity Lutheran Church - Boulder, CO
Faith Community Parish Nurse
Augustana Lutheran Church - Denver, CO
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Office of the Bishop This Week
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Bishop Gonia
- Faith Formation Network
- Messiah, Albuquerque, NM
- Emerging Church Conference, Austin, TX
Pastor Kent Mueller
- Candidacy meetings
- Lutheran Center Administration
- Interim Pastors
Ruth Hoffman, Lutheran Advocacy Ministry-NM
- Fairness Coalition
- United Church of Santa Fe (UCC)
- Opening day of the legislature
Peter Severson, Lutheran Advocacy Ministry-CO
- Opening of 2017 Legislative Session
- CFI Fiscal Forum
- ADCF Coalition
- Zion, Trinidad, CO
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Pastor Judith VanOsdol
- Abiding Hope, Littleton, CO
- Holy Trinity, Littleton, CO
- Our Savior’s Denver, CO
- Stewardship/Generosity Team meeting
- Latino Worshiping Community West Denver (former Cristo Rey)
- HKBP, Denver. CO
- Aurora Area Ministry Strategy, Aurora, CO
- Well of Hope, Castle Pines, CO
Deacon Erin Power
- RMS Communications
- Companion Synod Committee
- Hunger Network
- Together Colorado Event
- Synod Assembly Planning
Pastor Sarah Moening
- Interim Pastors
- FCTE Planning
Andy Sprain
- Faith Formation Network
- FoCoLu MSYG, Loveland, CO
- Rainbow Trail Board Meeting
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Erin Power
,
Assistant to the Bishop
Rocky Mountain Synod
800-525-0462 / 303-777-6700 / fax 303-339-4744
Announcements for eConnection are due before noon on Monday for the issue the following Wednesday. Event announcements are included for about two weeks and should be submitted via the eConnection Submission link above.
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