March 2, 2021
Minneapolis Area Synod, ELCA Enews
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Synod Tool Kit for Congregations planned for Saturday, March 13 |
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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 three of the workshops:
Turn $1 into $100 with RIP Medical Debt
Do you want to find out how to turn $1 into $100? If so, you can learn about the ways individuals and congregations can partner with the nonprofit RIP Medical Debt to free an estimated 79 million Americans from having to choose between basic needs, such as food and shelter, or paying their medical bills. Come hear Lord of Life (Maple Grove)’s story about how they transformed lives in their community through this incredible ministry.
Young adult ministry in 2021 and beyond
A lot of people talk about young adult ministry and how to do it well. Don’t be overwhelmed by that, and don’t feel like there is only one way to get it right. Pastor Kate Reuer Welton will lead a conversation, drawing primarily on lessons she’s learned from the 55,000 young adults she’s surrounded by at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities. Using the framework that emerged from discernment alongside student leaders for Lutheran Campus Ministry-Twin Cities, you’ll be able to explore the strengths of your context and community; and put that into context with the lived experience of the young adults within and outside your congregation as it exists right now. Come with questions ready to engage. This workshop will be less lecture and more conversation and dreaming together.
Engaging racial justice in the Minneapolis Area Synod
This session will walk through all the different ways that the synod is engaging racial justice work and how congregations and leaders can get involved.
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Leading with Love:
Here in the Wilderness
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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. Justice-seeking people of faith can't be partisan, but can be 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 injustice laid bare? 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.
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Remembering that "Hope Lives" |
The National Lutheran Choir will host a hymn festival on Sunday, March 14, during its Winter Virtual Program. This free program blends songs, images, hymns, and poetry around the theme “Hope Lives.”
Sunday, March 14
4:00 p.m.
Online
The choirs will sing well-known hymns that highlight the joy of an ever-growing hope, and new hymns that speak to this very time, inviting all people to sing in joy together “… as all the world in wonder echoes shalom.” Join singers of the National Lutheran Choir and guest artists, the Keith Hampton Singers & Friends.
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Living Well, Leading Well |
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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.
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Expanding Ministry and Growing Generosity |
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Disaster relief opportunities
for companion synod
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Just think of the lives your congregation could impact if your members grew their giving by 10%-15% next year! This is exactly the goal of Stewardship for All Seasons (SAS), a two-year, comprehensive process. SAS congregations embrace an impactful annual appeal and move into other vital realms of a culture of generosity: Communications and Story-Telling, Strategic Planning, Endowments, Special Appeals, Volunteer Recruitment, and Donor Cultivation.
The Minneapolis Area Synod invites you to a virtual informational session to meet Pete Reuss, the SAS facilitator, and learn more about the process on Tuesday, March 9, at 6:00 p.m. Contact the synod's new Director for Evangelical Mission, Rev. Norma Malfatti, to receive the Zoom link, or with any questions. Our synod has already had 16 congregations participate in SAS and their experiences tell us that this is an opportunity you won’t want to miss.
Congregations are invited to register by April 15, with the first cohort session to be held in late April or early May.
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Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR) is supporting the Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast Synod, the Southwestern Texas Synod, the Northern Texas-Northern Louisiana Synod, and Lutheran Social Services Disaster Response. With such extensive damage, long-term recovery may include repairing water-damaged homes, disaster case management, and supporting vulnerable populations.
Subfreezing temperatures and heavy snow across the country impacted millions of people. The harsh conditions severely impacted Southern states, such as Texas, which lack the infrastructure to handle the freezing temperatures and record-setting snow and ice. This has led to power, food, and water shortages throughout the region. At the peak of power shortages, 4.5 million homes and businesses in Texas were without electricity and heat. Around 13 million Texans are also facing water disruptions due to bursting pipes and damaged water systems. As temperatures rise, melting ice and snow is expected to cause even more water damage.
Your gifts will support storm survivors. Gifts to "U.S. Severe Storms" will be used in full (100%) to assist those affected by severe storms.
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Where is the synod staff in upcoming weeks? |
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Bishop Ann Svennungsen will be offering the opening presentation for the 2021 Annual Tool Kit for Congregations via Zoom on Saturday, March 13.
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Bishop Ann Svennungsen will be conducting a Ministry Site Profile at Grace University Lutheran, Minneapolis, on Sunday, March 14.
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Ms. Brenda Blackhawk will be speaking at a forum at Zion Lutheran, Anoka, on Tuesday, March 23.
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Workshop about Sex Offenders, March 2
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Workshop about Sex Offenders, March 3
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Leading with Love: Here, In the Wilderness, March 4
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Child Abuse--Mandatory Reporting Training, March 9
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Expanding Ministry and Growing Generosity, March 9
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Region 3 Discernment Event, March 9 and 16
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Child Abuse--Mandatory Reporting Training, March 11
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Congregational Addiction Ministry Training, March 11
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Pursuing Justice Retreat, March 11
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One Year Changed: Faith in Pandemic, March 11
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Make Justice Your Aim: JRLC Virtual Day on the Hill, March 11
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Lenten Retreat, March 11
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Minneapolis Area Synod Tool Kit, March 13
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National Lutheran Choir Hope Lives Hymn Festival, March 14
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Child Abuse--Mandatory Reporting Training, March 16
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Child Abuse--Mandatory Reporting Training, March 18
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Minneapolis Area Synod Assembly, April 23-24
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