If your congregation would like to participate, you can find more information on our website on how to promote the project and submit your names! 

If you need any help, please reach out to Sami, our student assistant, at student@lcmmadison.org. You’ll be hearing from Sami again to encourage and help you participate in the Campus Connect Project as the summer comes to a close.

Abiding God be with students who return to campuses this fall. Be with those who return and face the uncertainty of returning to dorms and classrooms during the pandemic. Be with those who begin college or school for the first time during this pandemic. Protect and watch over them. Keep them safe from all danger and harm.

As these students grow in knowledge we ask that they might also grow in faith. As they ask questions may they also grow firm in their convictions. As they find their place may they also know that you are right there with them as you have always been.

Abiding God you are where we are not, give us strength and courage as you know to students, teachers and professors. Help us to be strong and cheerful until we are reunited knowing that all is well and all is good in your hands. Amen.

Peter is glad to be joining the synod staff as Assistant to the Bishop for Generosity on Wednesday, September 1st. He will be reachable on Wednesdays and checking email and telephone messages during that time. He is also available for evening appointments, Sunday stewardship visits, and looks forward to being with congregations and conferences in our synod to preach, teach, listen, and talk about stewardship and God’s generosity. Peter will be continuing to serve as pastor at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Madison, where he was called in 2018.

Peter previously served St. Matthew Trinity Lutheran Church in Hoboken, NJ where he was on the Fiscal Management, Administration, and Property Committee for the New Jersey Synod. Prior to that he was on the staff of Lutheran Church of the Reformation in Washington DC where he served on the Stewardship & Mission Support Table for the Metro DC Synod. In his former life he worked in technology project management in higher ed and is excited to have his loves of stewardship, real estate, and celebrating God’s generosity come together to resource congregations in our synod to use all our assets for building the Kingdom of God. Peter and his family live in Madison, where they’ve fallen in love with the lakes and nature spaces.

The Executive Committee of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Church Council has acted on Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton’s recommendation to appoint Carlos Peña as the ELCA’s interim vice president, effective immediately.

Read more by following the link below.

Rostered leaders are invited to join us as we celebrate being together once again!

**Please Note: We are keeping a close eye on Covid-19. We are going forward with the event but might need to make adjustments to protocol as we near the event. We want to keep everyone safe and healthy. 

One week from today, on Tuesday, August 31^st, at 4 pm Eastern Daylight Time, we will be hosting an Interfaith Prayer Vigil to hold space for ourselves and our Afghan neighbors. This special vigil will honor the struggle of our Afghan neighbors, acknowledge the difficult emotions that we face as people of compassion, and help our communities prepare to welcome those who are coming. 

You can download the Solidarity and Sacred Silence toolkit and register for our interfaith prayer vigil at //lirs.org/sacred-silence 

On October 27 & 28, you are invited to learn a little more about looking at congregations and leadership through the family systems lens on human behavior developed by Dr. Murray Bowen and applied to congregations by Rabbi Edwin Friedman. The Voyagers, a group of clergy and faith leaders that has been meeting for over 20 years to study systems thinking, is gathering this fall at the DeKoven Center in Racine. 

An Introduction to Family Systems Thinking is the topic on Wednesday, from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Unpacking Pete: The Teaching Legacy of Peter Steinke is the topic on Thursday, again, from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

There are things we can do right now to help the people affected by the earthquake in Haiti, the people in Afghanistan and people affected by the wildfires in the United States. Please use the resources below for yourselves and your congregations!

 We are eager to share what you’ve made possible through our inaugural issue of Thrive.

A 3% ELCA-Primary health contribution baseline rate increase* — the lowest in eight years! No change to current ELCA-Primary health deductibles, out-of-pocket limits, prescription drug cost-share, and coinsurance. A significant decrease in the contribution cost of ELCA Medicare-Primary health coverage for plan members, and a rate decrease for nearly all organizations sponsoring members with this coverage. You can find 2022 rate and benefit details in our just-published news article here.  * The 2022 ELCA-Primary health plan baseline 3% increase doesn’t yet reflect adjustments related to changes in compensation, age, and health coverage level (that is, whether members enroll their spouse and/or children).

With 2022 Annual Enrollment beginning soon, a few reminders: The window for employers to make their selection this year will be earlier and shorter, Oct. 4 – 15, 2021. Be sure to schedule any benefit discussions ahead of this window. Custom Comparison Reports are available now for all EmployerLink users. A reminder: Starting last year, the ELCA recommends both the Silver+ A and Gold+ health benefit options. If your congregational council is looking for a virtual presentation on the differences of this recommendation, please reach out to Jennifer Prinz, Regional Representative from Portico. She can be reach at JPrinz@porticobenefits.org

Help manage the cost of prescription frames and contact lenses. While ELCA-Primary health benefits already cover an annual eye exam, Portico will now offer in 2022 a new 100% member-paid vision care services coverage gives sponsored members an affordable way to prepare for additional vision care needs, including prescription eyewear. To learn more click here.

Rachel Mueller is Youth Coordinator for the Small Town and Rural Youth Initiative. Click below to continue reading the article.

NEW Administration Matters

We would like to introduce you to Administration Matters, a bimonthly electronic newsletter for ELCA church leaders. It addresses common, practical issues including finance, governance, risk management, and tax and legal concerns, as well as other topics of interest about day-to-day operations and management in church settings.

If you wish to subscribe to the Administration Matters e-newsletter, go to https://blogs.elca.org/adminmatters/ (see left side of page).

God‘s healing peace and presence be with Tina Koenig-Ray as she recovers.

pastor@allsaints-madison.org

As always we would love for you to continue to share your news. If you have something you would like considered for publication in What Matters, send it to us via email to Stephanie Bill, Communications Manager at stephanieb@scsw-elca.org. The deadline for consideration of inclusion in the current weeks e-newsletter is 12:00 p.m. (CT) on Wednesday.