Assembly is the business meeting of the synod and we will hear reports from synod committees and officers, approve the 2022 budget and elect voting members for a variety of synodical and churchwide positions. We'll hear from Dr. Joy Moore, our keynote speaker, and Mikka McCracken, our churchwide representative. We'll also launch the Planting Hope capital campaign and take time to observe milestones of rostered ministers and congregations.

Voting members will gather on Zoom for the official proceedings; others are invited to observe on Facebook or the livestream on the synod website. Visit the assembly webpage at https://spas-elca.org/events/synod-assembly/ to find all of the assembly details, including links to the assembly booklet, the proposed agenda and much more.

Assembly registrants are encouraged to attend one of the digital orientation sessions this week:

These sessions will give you practice joining Zoom and being admitted to a meeting, voting on different types of ballots, "getting in line" to speak and using Zoom functionality. (The content is identical; attend only one.) If you need any special assistance with Synod Assembly, contact the synod office right away at 651-224-4313 or info@spas-elca.org. For technology questions during the digital orientation sessions or assembly, visit the assembly webpage for the Tech Help Desk contact information.

Over several months, our congregation was able to send 14 people to the online training, including our rostered leaders, staff and volunteers. We met afterward to consider how the training helped us reflect. Given that our congregation has not met in person for worship for over a year, we also noticed how this is an opportune time to “re-set” expectations about how we interact physically, how we practice boundaries in a way that empowers people to ask for and give consent. Sometimes, one person reflected, these practices are looked at as “self-centered” but it’s not; it’s how we build good, safe community.

NOTE: To learn more about the synod's mental health grants, visit https://spas-elca.org/resources/for-leaders/mental-health-grants/.

The need for mental health support within our community increased steadily in the years leading up to COVID-19. This demand will likely continue past our return to a post-pandemic "normal." Developing healthy habits in support of our emotional health is critical to our collective well-being. Accordingly, Portico has prioritized the expansion of access to mental health resources, in a variety of mediums, to meet individual learning styles and preferences.

In recognition of May as Mental Health Awareness Month, Portico is pleased to share the following

resources with you, courtesy of our health and wellness vendor partnerships:

Items to encourage member awareness of and engagement with benefits and live events offered in

May:

Portico's regional representative, Deacon Terri Endres, can be reached at 952-221-2000 or tendres@porticobenefits.com.

Questions? Contact Rachelle Gill at rgill@easter.org or Julie Vagle at juliev@trinitylonglake.org.

The synod office is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. A limited number of staff are on-site each day. You may continue to reach all staff members by phone (651-224-4313) or by email.

World class communicator Rob Bell has been profiled in The New Yorker, toured with Oprah, and was one named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time Magazine in 2011. He is also the author of 10 books including What We Talk About When We Talk About God, Love Wins and What is the Bible?. Church Anew is offering a two-part event with Rob:

The cost is $30 for Monday only and $69 for both days. Learn more and register.

Grab a friend and get outside together to walk, run, ride or however you like to move...for Shobi's Table, the food truck ministry supported by our synod! We’re all about coming together around one table to eat delicious, nutritious food that feeds the body as well as the soul. Once you’ve all been fed, what better thing to do than to get those bodies outside to revel in God’s good creation and get to know one another even better.

The week of May 16-22, you are invited to do a 5K at your own pace, however you love to move best, wherever you are. You can walk, run, ride your bike, do cartwheels, skip, push someone in a wheelchair or a stroller. You could do 1K a day for 5 days! You can go fast or slow. If a 5K is too much for your body, consider driving to a place you can see a vista that goes out for at least 5K. This 5K-As-You-Can is accessible to everyone! Wherever you do your 5K, take a picture and post it using the hashtags #5KAsYouCan and #ShobisTable.

On Saturday, May 22nd, those who are local to the St. Paul area can gather (location TBD) for a pay-as-you-can lunch at the Shobi’s Table food truck, 5K routes available nearby. The truck will be there from 11 a.m.-2 p.m., so you can eat lunch before or after! There will be plenty of space to spread out. Register here. Whether you walk by yourself, with a friend or a team, each participant must fill out a registration form. (Parents and guardians, you can fill one out for your kids.) Registration fee is pay-as-you-can (so you decide how much you want to give!). Registration fees of $25/person and up come with a Shobi's Table t-shirt.

Mt. Olivet Conference & Retreat Center concludes its Living Well, Leading Well virtual workshop series with a conversation about trauma. As we cope with the mounting losses, anxieties and uncertainties of our current pandemic, many of us feel like we are losing our footing. Having some awareness of trauma and its impact on our personal, intergenerational, and collective lives can increase our self-understanding and compassion. Join us in exploring concrete psychological and spiritual tools for increasing resilience and finding hope and joy in the midst of pain.

The session will be led by the Rev. Deborah van Deusen Hunsinger, Ph.D., the Charlotte W. Newcombe Professor of Pastoral Theology Emerita at Princeton Theological Seminary. Deborah was originally trained as a pastoral counselor, taught at Princeton Seminary for 25 years, and now offers spiritual direction for individuals and small groups. She will share psychological and spiritual tools for increasing resilience and finding hope and joy in our life together. Learn more and register.

Join the National Lutheran Choir for Light Dawns, an online celebration and benefit. The program will feature music by the choir, words of joy from supporters across the nation, and an introduction to the vision for our next season. Make sure to tune in to join the fun and help NLC prepare for the 2021-2022 season. To join the event on that day, visit NLCA.com/LightDawns.

www.spas-elca.org | 651.224.4313