We are pleased to share with you the following news, information and ministry opportunities taking place within our synod and throughout the ELCA. Our e-newsletter is distributed semi-monthly in two separate issues. One issue includes Pacifica Synod and ELCA news items, along with prayer requests. The second issue contains ministry celebrations, events and opportunities, and positions within our synod and beyond.

If you have items to share about the ministries happening through your congregation, please email Terri Robertson at  [email protected]. If you know of others who aren't receiving our emails, please share this with them and encourage them to sign up here.

In 2016, "The Murray and Rhoda Finck Global Engagement Mission Fund" (GEM Fund) was established. It is named in honor of Bishop Emeritus Murray Finck and his wife Rhoda, in recognitionA close up of a logo and appreciation of their service and accomplishments during the 18 years that Bishop Murray served as Bishop of the Pacifica Synod (from 1998 through 2016.)

The goals of the fund are:

Distribution of funds may be given to increase awareness of global mission work, to fund domestic and/or foreign projects related to Pacifica Companion Synods and Lutheran partners and provide assistance in travel expenses related to the fund's stated goals.

Click here to go to the GEM Fund Grant application which must be completed and submitted along with a one-page description of the project/program and how the money will be spent. The maximum amount that can be requested is $3,000. The application deadline is June 30, 2019.

Lutheran Social Services Southern California (LSS) is initiating a GoFundMe Campaign to raise funds for Project Hand, their pantry located on the campus of St. Mark's Lutheran Church in Chula Vista.  Project Hand has been serving the greater San Diego area for over 70 years.

LSS currently engaged in a funding effort to raise $50,000 for the purpose of keeping this pantry open and filled with food. They have operated on a deficit for generations, and thus need everyone's help to make contact with as many people and organizations as possible.

Here's how you can help:

"As part of my Masters thesis, I've been teaching local pastors how to use more of the traditional liturgy in worship, and how to educate their congregation about the meaning and practice of different parts of worship. (Here it's mostly songs-sermon-offering-done!) Today I showed a group of pastors my 2008 copy of Sundays and Seasons Year B. Then I got a bunch of texts asking where the pastors can buy it!

My mother-in-law is coming to visit us at the end of July. I was wondering if you could see if any Lutheran pastors/congregations near you have old copies of Sundays & Seasons that you could send with her. The pastors can make use of old versions and I am going to tell them about the online Augsburg Fortress set up. But if we tried to mail books there's no guarantee they would make it through customs, so sending in my mother-in-law's bags would be easiest. They were really thrilled to see this resource - there is so little available to pastors here for worship planning."

If your congregation has old copies of Sundays and Seasons that you are willing to donate to be shared with  pastors in Malaysia, please contact Pastor Kent by July 15 at 951.682.1350 or by email at [email protected]. You may also drop them by the Synod office (prior to July 15). Thank you in advance for your help!

For more updates, visit the Pacifica Synod AMMPARO Network web page.

In this invitation, Eaton unites with the Most Rev. Michael B. Curry, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church; the Most Rev. Fred Hiltz, primate, Anglican Church of Canada; and the Rev. Susan C. Johnson, national bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada.

This common invitation joins the seasonal devotions from this four-way relationship as resources for the churches.

Read the full invitation from the four church leaders.

Read the Arusha Call to Discipleship.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is saddened by the all-too-frequent occurrences of gun violence in the U.S. We mourn the loss of life. We grieve for the victims and their families, who often feel silenced. And we lament for those who have done violence to others and often feel removed from a community of faith.

We invite you on a journey of prayer, scripture, stories and church teachings with this resource, "A 60-Day Journey Toward Justice in a Culture of Gun Violence." Together through daily observances, it calls us to work toward the prevention of gun violence as people of God who strive for justice and peace in all the world. It may be used for individual reflection, group Bible study, adult education sessions, and congregational daily devotions. Your journey is intended to start on June 16th, but this resource can be used at any time.

In 1994, the ELCA adopted the social message Community Violence, calling for advocacy to end the cycle of violence in the U.S. Twenty-five years later, this message is still relevant and should be considered another resource on your journey. Also available to download are an easy-to-use guide and appendix noting key documents and actions, and a gun violence litany.

On Sunday, Sept. 8, congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will come together for "God's work. Our hands." Sunday. We hope you plan to join us!  As church, we are guided by our life in Christ to share the love of Jesus and serve our neighbors. On "God's work. Our hands." Sunday we join together as one church to help restore and reconcile communities in Jesus' name.

As you start to explore opportunities and begin making plans to participate in our dedicated day of service, please visit ELCA.org/dayofservice for helpful planning resources:

* Planning toolkit

* Worship resource

* Posters, door hangers and postcards

If your congregation cannot participate on September 8, please consider another day for your service activities.

Don't forget to share your congregation's participation with us! Send your stories and photos to [email protected] so that together we can celebrate what God accomplishes through you.

Old Lutheran will once again have T-shirts and other items available for purchase. The bright-yellow theme provides a wonderful visual impact across the ELCA. The deadline for ordering your congregation's personalized T-shirts from Old Lutheran is August 13.

Sharing the love of Christ through service to our neighbors is work you do every day. We look forward to "God's work. Our hands." Sunday and doing this work together again this year.

Join us for the second annual Addiction and Faith Conference to be held in Bloomington MN on Sept. 20, 21, 22, 2019. Addiction in every form, including opioid addiction, is ravaging our world. The conference seeks to help answer the question, "How can we as people of faith respond to this crisis?" We believe faith communities can play a vital role - to better recognize and respond to addiction in all its forms and could do much to help save lives. The conference is open to anyone interested in exploring the devastation of addiction and the remarkable role of faith in the healing process. It is designed for congregational and community leaders, clergy, parish nurses, youth workers, synod staff, church staff, lay leaders, parents and caregivers, and not just for people in recovery. Together we will enhance our knowledges about addiction recovery, share stories that provide hope, learn life-changing tools and best practices, all while celebrating our faith in God's abiding grace.

* For more information about the conference, go to www.addictionandfaithconference.com.

* To download a flyer, click here. 

* To learn how your congregation can help support this conference, click here. 

* For sponsoring and exhibiting information, go to https://www.addictionandfaithconference.com/advertise.html .

The Addiction and Faith Conference is co-hosted by the Fellowship of Recovering Lutheran Clergy (FRLC) and the Recovery Ministry of the Episcopal Church (RMEC). Pastor Ed Treat of Transfiguration Lutheran Church in Bloomington, MN, is the organizer of the conference and also leads FRLC.

We are thrilled for the opportunity to reach ELCA members nationwide. We are excited by this thing God is doing!