Greetings!
If you are receiving this email, you have registered (or been registered) as a voting member of the 2021 Southwest California Synod Assembly.* Thank you for taking on this leadership role for your congregation and faith community! Over the next two weeks you will be receiving important emails about the assembly and how to attend and vote in a virtual space, as well as special training sessions next week, so please make sure you add "news@socalsynod.org" to your contacts/safe senders list and check your spam, just to make sure you haven't missed anything.
This year, we will gather as the Southwest California Synod as never before—completely virtually.
It will be different. You won’t greet fellow synod and congregation leaders in the hall or during the breaks. You will be responsible for your own coffee and snacks. And you’ll have to stretch your legs as you walk around your own office or living room.
But much of our business will be the same important work: receiving annual reports, adopting a budget, electing folks to serve in numerous positions throughout the synod. And no matter the format, we will gather—in mind, body and spirit, through the wonders of the internet “for such a time as this.”
We pray that you will be encouraged and inspired by the work we’ve been doing together as the people of God in this place and that you will be enriched and energized by the time shared together. And it’s our goal that this isn’t just another Zoom that you have to navigate and endure!
When its happening:
The assembly will start at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, June 4 and continue through about 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 5.
On Sunday, June 6 our synod-wide online worship will celebrate the 50/40/10 anniversaries of the first woman and first woman of color ordained in a Lutheran body in the US, and the removal of barriers to LGBTQ+ clergy serving in the church.
What We will Accomplish:
The business of this year's assembly will be to elect the next Bishop of the Southwest California Synod, as well as elect 2/3 of council positions, including the Vice-President of Council.
We will also elect members of the Endowment, Consultation, and Discipline Committees, and decide who will represent us at the 2022 Churchwide Assembly. Please visit the Bulletin of Reports and the other links you will find below for more information, reports from our staff, conferences, ministries, and partners, and the materials to inform you as you make the decisions that will determine the future of this community.
We are grateful for this opportunity to gather together—to worship our Great God, celebrate the ministry we share, and dream together about the work God calls us to in the future.
Your 2021 SWCA Synod Assembly Planning Committee
Important Links
*If you are not, or don't think you should be, a voting member of the 2021 SWCA Synod Assembly, please contact shenderson@socalsynod,org or the synod office as soon as possible.
