As COVID-19 infection rates rise in Minnesota, we need to do our part in the faith community to lessen the risk of infection and to increase the public health common sense practices. Here is a link to updated protocols for funerals and memorial services. Thank you for folding these updates into your congregation’s SMART plan during this ongoing pandemic.

- Bishop Lull

In the midst of a pandemic when staying safe means that congregations cannot gather in familiar in-person ways, it takes some imagination to know how to host an Annual Meeting.

Congregation presidents, other elected leaders and rostered ministers serving in congregations are invited to join Synod Attorney Sarah Crippen and Bishop Patricia Lull for a tutorial on how to host and run an online congregational meeting. Topics will include passing a Continuing Resolution to allow an electronic meeting, participation by internet or phone connection, rules for discussion and legitimate ways to vote. There will be time for questions, as well.

No advance registration is necessary. A reminder email with a link to the Zoom call was sent yesterday afternoon. Call the synod office at 651-224-4313 if you haven't seen it.

Under the Trump administration’s “Zero Tolerance” policy, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) heinously separated more than 3,000 immigrant children from their parents in 2017 and 2018. This includes more than 50 children who were two years old or younger. Despite a court order to reunite all families, ICE still cannot locate the parents of 545 immigrant children currently being held in the U.S. because their parents were deported.

Join us at the Interfaith Coalition on Immigration (ICOM) vigil on Nov. 10 at the Whipple Federal Building at Ft. Snelling (1 Federal Dr., St Paul) at 7:30 a.m., where ICOM and Accompanying Migrant Minors with Protection, Advocacy, Representation and Opportunities (AMMPARO) will demand: “ICE: Reunite 545 immigrant children with their parents now!”  NOTE: This vigil will be socially distanced and masks are required for all attending.

You are invited to a series of free conversations with the Moments of Arising Videos, sponsored by the EcoFaith Network and Together Here Ministries of the Northeastern Minnesota Synod, and the Saint Paul Area Synod's Care of Creation Work Group.  

This year's Bega Kwa Bega Fall Festival will be virtual celebration of our partnership with the Iringa Diocese in Tanzania. With the theme, "Together & Apart," we'll enjoy fellowship and workshops, as well as video greetings from Tanzania. The schedule, Zoom link, workshop descriptions and more can be found at https://spas-elca.org/events/bega-kwa-bega-fall-festival/.

Worship Resources - Festival planners are also making available to all synod congregations a variety of worship materials which can be used on Sunday, Nov. 15, or later. This includes a full video worship experience or a variety of separate worship elements, including a sermon, prayers, music and more. A variety of resources for children and families will also be posted. The worship resources will be available by tomorrow on the webpage shown above.

Join the Rev. Angela Denker on Zoom for a free night of learning, listening and being church together while we discuss "Where do we go next?" We want to work towards healing and wholeness regardless of being red, blue, purple, green political orientations. Join for a night that will encourage, stretch and inspire us. This event is hosted by the synod's Advocates for Racial Equity work group.

The Rev. Angela Denker is the author of Red State Christians: Understanding the Voters who Elected Donald Trump (Fortress: August 2019) and an ELCA Pastor. She is also a veteran journalist who has written for Sports Illustrated, The Washington Post, Christian Century, Sojourners and U.S. Catholic. Thank you to our event sponsors: Gustavus Adolphus in St. Paul, Trinity in Stillwater, Christ the King in New Brighton, Redeemer Lutheran in White Bear Lake, All Saints in Eagan, and Grace in Apple Valley.

Looking for a way to connect with other leaders in engaging conversation and fulfill your boundaries requirement at the same time? Join this book group! Pre-reading and attendance at both meetings are expected to meet the requirement. This book group is only open to rostered ministers; please no lay leaders or interns. The group will be hosted by Deacon Krista Lind.

We will be reading The Integrity of the Body of Christ: Boundary Keeping as Shared Responsibility by Arden Mahlberg and Craig Nessan. Pre-reading and attendance at both meetings is necessary to meet the requirement. There is no cost, but participants are expected to purchase the book themselves. NOTE: Boundaries education is required for all rostered ministers in the Saint Paul Area Synod every three years.

Applications are now being accepted for the ELCA's Young Adults in Global Mission (YAGM) program for the 2021-2022 program year. If you're a young adult ages 21 to 29, you can apply for an international service year that will shape your faith, career, identity and understanding of how you fit into God's work in the world.

Through YAGM, you'll learn what it means to serve in a spirit of accompaniment as you walk alongside global church companions. You'll immerse yourself in new community and form deep relationships with the people you meet. And you'll confront issues of wealth and poverty, racial privilege, gender privilege, economic disparity and globalization, all through the lens of faith. Learn more and apply on the ELCA website. Application deadline: Jan. 15, 2021.

Join ELCA World Hunger leaders for a time of networking, idea sharing, learning and planning to address hunger and its root causes in our local and global communities. The event centers on John 6:11-12 with the theme, "And All Were Satisfied." The cost is $20. (Scholarship opportunities from the ELCA are available for those for whom the cost would be a barrier to attending.) Register here to receive the information for joining the event. Questions? Contact the ELCA World Hunger Team at hunger@elca.org or 773-380-1749.

Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota invites you to consider helping to brighten the lives of young people through its Sponsor A Youth holiday gift program. Individuals, families or groups are invited to participate. Just complete the sponsor form by Nov. 20 and you'll receive a wish list with instructions. Then shop for the gifts, spending $75-$100 per youth. Gifts can be dropped off at an LSS site on designated days and times between Dec. 4-Dec. 11. Fill-in gifts are also welcome - visit the sponsor form link above and look under "Additional Information" at the bottom of the page.

The ELCA General Counsel reminds us that the Boy Scouts of America have filed for bankruptcy, primarily due to the flood of sexual abuse lawsuits. There are many questions about what this may mean for congregations that are (or were) chartering organizations for Boy Scout troops. In particular, congregations that chartered Boy Scout troops should consider whether to file a proof of claim in the bankruptcy to protect their interests.

The ELCA has prepared a resource on the BSA Bankruptcy, which is now available on the ELCA resource page under the sexual misconduct tab: www.elca.org/Resources/Legal#Sexual. NOTE: the ELCA has reposted the direct link to this resource. Please alert Bishop Lull if your congregation has a concern about this or additional questions.

The synod office is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. 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.

Rostered and lay leaders alike are invited to a weekly gathering of topical presentations designed to provide encouragement and support for ELCA leaders. On Nov. 11, the topic is "Applying Improv Techniques to Lead with Confidence, Courage and Connection." In this challenging year, we have all been made improvisers, thrust on the “stage” of leadership, expected to lead with no training, no “script,” and no training in improv theater. For many of us, this reality has left us feeling overwhelmed, anxious, uncertain and frustrated. However, we can lead with confidence and courage, as well as strengthen connections with others, as we move forward. This week's presenter is the Rev. Mike Weaver, who is the author of Improvised: 7 Improv Secrets to Help You be Happy, Live Freely, and Connect with God and Others Naturally. Recordings of past sessions with supporting documents are available at www.elcacoaching.org/podcasts/media. You may find upcoming topics and presenters at www.elcacoaching.org/.

or by phone: +1 312 626 6799

Centering Prayers is a receptive, deep method of silent prayer that prepares us to receive the gift of the experience of God's presence within us. Presenters Rev. John Keller and Rev. Luna Gebbengreen invite you to learn how Centering Prayer emphasizes prayer as a personal relationship with God and as a movement beyond conversation with Christ to communion with Him. Each session includes a 20-minute Centering Prayer session. Participants are encouraged to read Thomas Keating's book, Open Mind, Open Heart, between sessions. Learn more.

Ambiguous losses are perhaps the most challenging kind of loss. When someone or something is physically absent yet psychologically present, or physically present yet psychologically absent, it’s hard to find clarity, it’s hard to make decisions, and it’s hard to grieve. The physical, emotional, economic, and relational uncertainty resulting from the current pandemic further complicates ambiguous losses. In this workshop hosted by Mount Olivet Conference & Retreat Center, we’ll discuss the nature of ambiguous loss and ways to deepen our resilience in these uncertain times. The presenter is Carla Dahl, Professor of Congregational and Community Care at Luther Seminary. Learn more and register.

Get inspired to work to overcome racism where you live, work and play! This year's theme is “Taking Back 'We the People'" What does it mean to be “We the People” through an antiracist lens, in these times? How do we address the rise of right wing populism worldwide? The keynote speaker is Dr. Eddie S. Glaude, noted Scholar on African American Culture & James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor. Other speakers and presenters include: Chanda Smith Baker, Senior Vice President, The Minneapolis Foundation with May Lee-Yang of FAWK; Michael McDowell of Black Lives Matter, Minneapolis; Jim Bear Jacobs of the Minnesota Council of Churches and Judith Marquz Duran of COPAL-MN. The conference is presented by the Facilitating Racial Equity Collaborative (FREC); the Saint Paul Area Synod is one of the sponsors. The cost is $125 to attend both days or $65 per day; student tickets and limited scholarships are available. Learn more and register.

This virtual retreat will create sacred space in a unique way. We invite you to pause and experience what it means to embody your faith at the intersection of yoga and faith. The retreat will prepare participants to enter the season of advent, to celebrate the birth of Jesus at Christmas, the Incarnation. Emmanuel, God is with us. Included in this virtual retreat are four different yoga classes (Restorative, Vinyasa, Hatha and Yin), worship with communion, self-healing touch session and a way to be community in a time of physical distancing. The keynote speaker is Father Tom Ryan, author of Prayer of the Heart and Body. Learn more.

Online Book Discussion: Born a Crime

Trevor Noah’s unlikely path from apartheid South Africa to the desk of The Daily Show began with a criminal act: his birth. Trevor was born to a white Swiss father and a black Xhosa mother at a time when such a union was punishable by five years in prison. Living proof of his parents’ indiscretion, Trevor was kept mostly indoors for the earliest years of his life, bound by the extreme and often absurd measures his mother took to hide him from a government that could, at any moment, steal him away. Born a Crime is the story of a mischievous young boy who grows into a restless young man as he struggles to find himself in a world where he was never supposed to exist. This discussion is hosted by the Racial Truth & Justice Team at Shepherd of the Valley, Apple Valley. Please purchase and read the book before class. Registration deadline: Nov. 15. Register.

At Shobi’s Table we believe in sharing from scratch, delicious and nutritious meals with anyone who comes and everybody who needs it. We’ve been doing this through our pay-as-you-can mobile café throughout almost all of the craziness of 2020 has thrown at us, going from serving twice a month to serving twice a week. We want to keep up the good work, and plan to expand. To do that we need your help!

Your support can provide the ingredients for this From Scratch effort to continue into the future. Come join us for our online fundraiser. We’ll be broadcasting live with Emcee Paul Damico-Carper and special guests Rhoda Habedank, Nate Houge and Beth Dooley! There will be music, cooking demonstrations and ways for you to support the ministry of Shobi’s Table into the future. Watch for more details soon. Together we can gather the ingredients to continue making From Scratch meals available to everyone!

Registration is now open for the 2021 Festival of Homiletics. Speakers such as Craig Barnes, Anthea Blackmon, Anthea Butler and Diana Butler Bass will address the festival theme of "Preaching for the Future Church." Registration is free. Learn more.

www.spas-elca.org | 651.224.4313