February 9, 2021
Minneapolis Area Synod, ELCA Enews
Synod office update
Synod staff members continue to work remotely for the foreseeable future. Contact them using their email or cell phone.
Conference assemblies are upon us
All 12 conference meet in assembly this week or next. The business of these gatherings includes:

  • Nominations for synod committees (to be elected at synod assembly)
  • Approval of resolutions for consideration at the synod assembly
  • Nomination of voting members for the 2022 Churchwide Assembly in Columbus, Ohio
  • Selection of leaders for conference leadership

Those individuals who are chosen by their congregation to be voting members at the 2021 Synod Assembly should try to attend their conference assembly.

The synod’s Reference and Counsel Committee is willing to have a Zoom meeting with anyone planning to introduce a resolution. If you would like to meet with members of the Reference and Counsel Committee prior to your conference assembly, email Bob Hulteen.

As a reminder, consideration of resolutions is made somewhat more complicated using online technology. Please think about whether you can accomplish the goals of a resolution that you might write in another way. The Reference and Counsel Committee can offer guidance on this as well. 
A better choice than normal
“What is the first thing you will do once the pandemic subsides? Will you take a family reunion? Are you longing for in-person worship? Do you want to take a trip to someplace fun and unusual?

There’s so much I yearn to do once restrictions are lifted and we can return to ‘normal.’ And yet, in this surreal space of restrictions and waiting, I challenge us to think whether ‘returning to normal’ is what we truly want – or what our global home can bear.”
Synod Tool Kit scheduled for Saturday, March 13
Hop on a video call with your church council, leaders from around the synod, and Bishop Ann Svennungsen to gain valuable tools to help your church in times like these. There will be workshops on preventing burnout, young adult ministry, racial justice, budgets, and more.

Saturday, March 13
9:00 a.m. – Time with Bishop Ann
10:00 a.m. – Workshops I
11:00 a.m. – Workshops II

Spotlight of two of the workshops:

Financial contingency planning in uncertain times
During a time such as this, financial contingency planning is on everyone's mind, ... and it should be. Who in a congregation should be involved in planning? What should be considered? How should plans be communicated to congregants? Come ready to learn, discuss, and brainstorm with your peers.

Yes, addressing systemic white racism and connecting with neighborhoods can lead to congregation vitality
The Center for Leadership and Neighborhood Engagement (CLNE) completed year one during a pandemic and the police killing of George Floyd. CLNE was established with the Minneapolis Synod We Raise Campaign to support congregations and their connection with neighborhoods and to address the impact of systemic white racism on North Minneapolis. How might we connect congregations with neighborhoods? And, how can we address systemic white racism? Let's have the conversation!
Will you be someone's special "valentine"?
Are you ready to share a smile with someone special -- who you don't even know -- this Valentine’s Day?

Give honeybees ($20), a fruit-tree seedling ($10) or a piglet ($30) in honor of your valentine and help someone around the world overcome hunger and poverty. Each gift provides a sustainable source of food, income or both to help a family in need. This Valentine’s Day, you can share the love of Christ far and wide!

Donate now and print or email one of the limited-edition cards to let your valentine know about your sweet gift. Card options are available after checkout.
Leading with Love:
Here in the Wilderness
We’ve braved the belly of the beast.
We’ve learned that quiet isn’t always peace …
And yet, the dawn is ours before we knew it.
Somehow we do it.

Amanda Gorman’s words rung out on January 20, putting image and word to the challenges weathered and hopeful anticipation surrounding a new set of elected leaders on the national stage. The call as justice-seeking people of faith is not to be partisan but always political. What does it look like in a new dawn to hold our elected leaders accountable?

What do we do when we are still “in the wilderness” – with a pandemic raging and structural injustice in full relief? To do our work, we have much to learn from the ancient community of faith whose tradition we carry. After all, they too were balancing the hope of a new future with the challenges of the long haul to arrive there.

Thursday, March 4
2:00-3:00 p.m.
Zoom

Join a panel conversation with faith leaders to ground ourselves in this current moment, the work of accountability, and the journey ahead.
Virtually ... time for
Synod Assembly
The Minneapolis Area Synod will meet in Assembly in 2021 under the theme of "Jubilee Reclaimed: Opening the Way" on April 23-24.
 
Visitors to the Assembly will be welcome and able to participate through live streaming. Voting members 
elected from their congregations are able to register now and will be given a Zoom link! Talk to your rostered leader or council president about the details, if you are a voting member.

Friday, April 23, 6:00-9:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 24, 9:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.
Zoom

Participants in the Synod Assembly will hear from inspiring speakers, elect synod leaders and voting members for the Churchwide Assembly in 2022, experience insightful Bible studies, watch encouraging messages from partner ministries, and vote on a synod budget and resolutions. (Watch for announcements about speakers and Bible study leaders over the next few weeks.)

Registration under the early bird offer (good through March 3) is $40 per voting member. After March 3 the cost will increase to $50 per voting member. (Retired rostered leaders selected as voting members and youth representatives for each congregation are $25 per person.)
Living Well, Leading Well
A monthly series of virtual workshops sponsored by Mount Olivet Conference & Retreat Center promoting wholeness, wellbeing, and renewal in our personal and professional lives. Each workshop will be taught by specialists in the areas of counseling, biblical studies, peace-making, and pastoral ministry. See below for details on our next two topics in this series.
Cultivating Wisdom
Thursday February 11, 6:30-8:30 p.m. | $20

Every day brings a new flood of information. It’s difficult to take it all in, much less to discern what bits are trustworthy, significant, and true. Perhaps what’s missing is not information so much as wisdom. In this workshop, participants will explore what the Bible’s wisdom tradition has to offer Christians facing the peculiar challenges of life today. Rev. Dr. Carol M. Bechtel, professor of Old Testament at Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Michigan, will lead this timely and interactive online event. 
Pursuing Justice
Thursday March 11, 6:30-8:30 p.m. | $20

Join Rev. Chris Dorsey to learn about the call to “do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God” (Micah 6:8). Dorsey is president of Higher Education & Leadership Ministries and has worked as a university chaplain and professor of preaching. Dorsey has significant leadership experience in racial justice and equity in churches and seminaries. 
Where is the synod staff in upcoming weeks?
  • Ms. Emilie Bouvier will be leading an art workshop for Lutheran Campus Ministry--Twin Cities, on Wednesday, February 10.
  • Bishop Ann Svennungsen will be installing Pastor Miriam Samuelson-Roberts virtually at Christ Church Lutheran, Minneapolis, on Sunday, February 14.
  • Pastor John Hulden will be offering a farewell greeting to Pastor Sarah Anderson at Christ Lutheran, Blaine, on Sunday, February 14.
  • Bishop Ann Svennungsen will be conducting a Mission Site Profile at Grace University Lutheran, Minneapolis, on Sunday, February 14.
  • Ms. Emilie Bouvier will be speaking for a Lenten series on peacemaking at Atonement Lutheran, Bloomington, on Wednesday, February 24.
  • Pastor John Hulden will be offering a farewell greeting to Deacon Glenndy Ose at Our Saviour’s Lutheran, East Bethel, on Sunday, February 28.
Upcoming Events
Minneapolis Area Synod, ELCA www.mpls-synod.org