East Central Synod of Wisconsin
Weekly Newsletter
7/31/2020
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Virtual Synod Assembly Registration is Now Open!
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The East Central Synod of Wisconsin 2020 Synod assembly will be held September 26th using the Lumi platform. The registration deadline is September 10th. No refunds or additional registrations will be accepted past September 10th. This is a strict deadline. All participants will need to use their own device (Laptop, Tablet, IPAD, smartphone) and have a strong internet connection. Information is available on the ECSW assembly webpage regarding registration. Please review all the information carefully before registering for the assembly.
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ELCA Unveils New Design For Future Church
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This week, the ELCA
unveiled
a new design for the future of the church meant to ensure the answering of God’s call to invite more into the way of Jesus. This design will focus on attracting young, diverse people to position the ELCA for the future.
“The world has changed but the message of the gospel has not,” said
Elizabeth Eaton
, presiding bishop of the ELCA. “What needs to change is the way the church engages the world to invite more people into the way of Jesus—the way of love, grace and justice. This new design positions the ELCA to accomplish this mission.”
In this new design, the church body’s three interdependent expressions—congregations, synods and the churchwide organization—will work holistically to bring the gospel to the world. Churchwide organization staff will be aligned around the design for the launch in early 2021.
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Wisconsin Council of Churches Advises a return to Online Worship
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Given the accelerated spread of COVID-19 in Wisconsin, lack of a coordinated statewide response, and requests from churches around the state for updated information, Wisconsin Council of Churches staff has prepared a critical midyear Returning to Church update. We’ve been gathering a great deal of information to inform these latest recommendations. Here’s the brief summary:
- Current conditions of COVID spread warrant a return to online-only worship and online options for most ministries. If you cannot move these fully online, we urge you to roll back to an earlier stage in your re-opening plans that involve less physical interaction.
- Use a longer decision-making time frame. For many reasons, including the mental and emotional health of leaders, it would be wise to hold off reconsidering gathering until mid-September – meaning at the earliest, an October re-entry into our physical spaces of ministry. Considering an even later date is not an overreaction.
- Begin adjusting your thinking about Advent and Christmas. The collision of COVID and flu season will mean that many treasured rituals and expectations will be affected. It will likely be very difficult, if not impossible, to gather safely.
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View Recording of the Christian Education Webinar Featuring Dawn Rundman along with East Central Synod and Greater Milwaukee Synod Pastors.
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Are you struggling to find engaging material for Sunday School and Confirmation classes? Wondering how to offer exciting and creative online Christian Education? Learn from the experiences of our panelists about what your congregation can do to meet this challenge. Presenters include Dawn Rundman from Augsburg Fortress. Dawn is the Director of Faith Formation Resource Development for Sparkhouse and Augsburg Fortress. She has worked on the editorial teams that developed Spark, Holy Moly, Connect, Whirl, and Frolic. This spring she and her family produced eight episodes of Family Sunday School by Sparkhouse. Currently she is committed to helping ministry leaders discover new ways of nurturing faith in children, youth, and families at home through technology, creativity, and collaboration. She lives in the Minnesota but holds a place in her heart for the East Central Synod of Wisconsin. She will be joined by Rev. Dara Clifford who serves as associate pastor of Christ the King Lutheran Church in Combined Locks and Rev. Drew Yoos who serves Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Menomonee Falls.
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Mark Your Calendars - First Call Event Information.
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The 2020 FCTE (First Call Theological Education) Fall Conference will still be taking place. It will, however, be in a virtual format. Because of that, the dates will cover only 2-3 days within
the time frame of
November 9-11.
Because we are providing this event virtually, the cost will much less than the $300 previously charged. Please reserve these dates now and watch for more detailed information to arrive during the latter part of September.
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Global Leadership Summit 2020 - Saint Andrew Lutheran Church Wausau
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The Global Leadership Summit is an opportunity to access a wealth of leadership insight from a world-class faculty ready to equip and inspire you—no matter where you have influence. When you grow in your leadership and use your influence for good, you can strengthen your relationships, maximize the impact of your church, business or organization, or ignite transformation in your community! Leadership takes perseverance, dedication, and a commitment to stretch your mind, expand your heart, and use your God-given gifts to impact your world in real and powerful ways.
On
August 6-7
, you're invited to join with thousands of leaders across North America for The Global Leadership Summit. This year the GLS is being presented online. Pricing is $189 per individual ticket and $169 for purchases of 2+ tickets. Your registration will give you access to the 2-day Livestream event and video recordings for 7 days, giving you flexible options to watch.
Saint Andrew Lutheran Church in Wausau is hosting this virtual event and you can register here:
https://www.salc-wausau.org/gls/
Saint Andrew is offering 2 registration scholarships to this event, if you would be interested in applying for registration assistance please contact Jenna Diedrich at (
jenna@salc-wausau.org
) for more information.
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ECSW Technology Grants for Congregations Awarded
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Congratulations to the following congregations who were awarded a technology grant from the synod.
1.
First English Lutheran Church – Wisconsin Rapids
2.
St John’s Lutheran Church – Oconto Falls
3.
Church of the Wilderness – Bowler
4.
Mt Calvary – Rothschild
5.
St John’s Lutheran Church Birnamwood
The East Central Synod of Wisconsin is applying for more money from the ELCA to be used in the form of technology grants. In the event that the synod is awarded more money for this purpose we will keep all applications on file and be in touch if you are awarded any funds in the future. Thank you for taking the time to apply for a technology grant. We cannot emphasize enough how difficult of a decision this was. With over fifty applicants and many deserving congregations, it was a struggle to narrow down grant awards to just five. If you have any questions on technology or for ideas on how to utilize it in your ministry please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at
ben.stepanek@ecsw.org
.
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Beginning a Culture of Generosity Deadline Approaching!
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Beginning a Culture of Generosity is a new program designed to strengthen congregational giving and to help congregations continue to (or begin to) thrive even as we live in the aftermath of the Covid-19 crisis. History shows us that will remain strong in congregations even in times of recession as long as the leadership of the congregation does not inadvertently create a feeling of scarcity of abundance.
This program is being presented by GSB Fundraising, the same people who work with us in Stewardship for All Seasons. The program will guide congregations through their fall of 2020 stewardship appeal with the expected outcome of making up losses incurred as a result of so many weeks of not worshiping together in person – and see financial growth beyond that!
Deadline to register is August 1! Please see the attached flyer for more information. Have questions? Contact Rev. Amy Engebose at
amy.engebose@ecsw.org
or (920)734-5381.
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Voices of the Living Stones Series - Sponsored by the ECSW Global Mission Team.
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Before dawn on the morning of Wednesday, July 1, soldiers of the Israeli Occupation entered the Fadaiel home in the al-Tirah neighborhood of Ramallah. Mais Fadaiel, a rising 8th grade student at the Lutheran school of Hope in Ramallah, was at home with her mother, Haneen Nassar Fadaiel. The soldiers asked Mais mother for her identification and cell phone and told her to come with them. She simply asked for five minutes to get dressed.
Read More
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WELCA Bible Study Zoom Info
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Topic: Gather Bible study
Time: Jun 10, 2020 06:30 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
Every month on the Second Wed, until Aug 12, 2020, 3 occurrence(s)
Jun 10, 2020 06:30 PM
Jul 8, 2020 06:30 PM
Aug 12, 2020 06:30 PM
Please download and import the following iCalendar (.ics) files to your calendar system.
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 859 2727 3694
Password: 675785
One tap mobile
+13017158592,,85927273694#,,1#,675785# US (Germantown)
+13126266799,,85927273694#,,1#,675785# US (Chicago)
Dial by your location
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
Meeting ID: 859 2727 3694
Password: 675785
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NEW 2020 Remittance Forms Available
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New Remittance Forms are now available! Please Return to the forms to the Synod office. To access the forms and learn more about Mission Support in the East Central Synod and the ELCA use the following link.
https://ecsw.org/financial/
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Congregations across the East Central Synod are live-streaming and providing online worship opportunities. Check out all the congregations who are providing these opportunities on our website.
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The ministries of all of our 122 Congregations. Especially those congregations currently in Transition.
Thanks for all Pastor's, Deacon's and Rostered leaders for their ministry during this time.
The Rev. Dewey Wisner who mourns the passing of his mother Janet who passed away July 10.
Hope and Healing for our communities being affected by COVID-19.
Phyllis Smoot as she is installed as pastor at St. John's Lutheran Church in Mosinee.
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View Job opening from our ministry partners from across the East Central Synod. If your Congregation or organization has a job posting that it would like lifted up on the Synod job board please send a job description and application information to Ben Stepanek at ben.stepanek@ecsw.org
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The Synod office is currently closed to the general public.
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The Arise Campaign is a capital campaign for the East Central Synod of Wisconsin. This campaign will fund many exciting new ministry initiatives. Learn more about the campaign and consider a monetary gift.
Learn More
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