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Our Mission:
Supporting lifelong faith formation
in the home and congregation.
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From the President's Desk
Dear friends,
Each year we cherish these familiar words sung in over 300 languages...
Silent night, holy night!
All is calm, all is bright
This year is the 200th anniversary of Silent Night. Who knew that a simple song, played on a guitar, would touch the hearts of millions over the years?
It all began in 1818 when Joseph Mohr, the parish priest at St. Nikola Church, in the village of Oberndorf, Austria, was worried as Christmas Mass approached. The organ was in need of repair and he wanted something special for his congregation.
Franz Xaver Gruber, a nearby teacher, played the guitar. Morh asked Gruber to create a melody to accompany the words to a poem he had written about the Nativity. The two performed the song for the first time the night of December 24, 1818.
In 1839, the song was first performed in the United States in front of Trinity Church in New York City.
In 1941, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill song "Silent Night" together in the garden of the White House in Washington, D.C.
Where will you sing Silent Night this year? Where will you celebrate our Savior's birth? Let me encourage you to take time in this upcoming Advent season to sit with the shepherds, sing with the angels and celebrate once again the baby in the manger.
Blessings on your journey to the manger.
Pastor Juli Lejman-Guy, President
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Resources
for Ministry Leaders
Advent-Christmas-Epiphany Devotions in English and Spanish
Thanks to a generous grant from the Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd
Foundation located in south Minneapolis, Minnesota,
Storyboard is offering free Advent - Christmas - Epiphany
devotions for all ages.Fifty people from around the USA shared their time writing, proofreading, translating, editing, drawing, publishing, and funding this resource. States represented include: Minnesota, Wisconsin, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Florida, South Carolina, Nebraska, Washington, South Dakota, Arizona, Maryland, New Mexico, Michigan, Connecticut, New York, Georgia and North Dakota.
Martin Luther King, Jr. National Holiday and Black History Month
National Geographic Kids offers succinct history and photographs to help teach about Martin Luther King Jr. (National Holiday January 21)
The Crafting Freedom website provides educators with a user-friendly resource on the African-American experience during the era of slavery. Here you'll find ready-to-use lesson plans, videos, PDF slide shows, teacher tools, and student handouts that reflect the expanding scholarship on the 19th-century black experience.
VBS
Weekend VBS from Group Publishing has arrived! The Yee-Haw starter kit and other resources are available here.
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Good Reads
Title: A Christmas Tree for Pyn
Author: Olivier Dunrea
This children's book invites the reader into the joy and grief of a daughter and her father at Christmas time without her mom. It would work well for a "Blue Christmas" or intergenerational event, as well as at home. Although long for a children's message it has good repetition which might make that possible.
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How You Can Support the Christian Education Network
You can become a member or make a one-time donation via PayPal on our
website; or, y
ou can purchase from AmazonSmile
and designate The Christian Education Network as your charity. We receive a percentage of the proceeds!
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Prayer Pause
Andrew, Apostle
Almighty God, you gave your apostle Andrew the grace to obey the call of your Son and to bring his brother to Jesus. Give us also, who are called by your holy word, grace to follow Jesus without delay and to bring into his presence those who are near to us, for he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
(ELW pg. 54)
Elizabeth Cummings
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The CENetwork is on Pinterest!
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Christian Education
Network of the ELCA
Vision Statement
Building a community which equips, encourages, and empowers those engaged in lifelong faith formation in a changing world.
The CENetwork will:
- Identify and evaluate resources and educational opportunities
- Facilitate communication and conversation
- Offer guidance, networking and mutual support
- Nurture spiritual growth online and face to face
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Contact Us
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CENetwork of the ELCA
P.O. Box 9304
Rochester, MN 55903
Phone messages may be left at
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