Members of Spirit of Truth, an ELCA congregation under development, fight for workers' rights in the St. Paul, Minn., area. | more »
Advocacy
Elim Lutheran Church in Duluth, Minn., is saving money by saving the planet. | more »
A Wisconsin congregation raises over $17,000 for the ELCA campaign to help contain the disease in Africa. | more »
When she was a teenager, Jen Engquist, center, visited Uganda, and since then she's been pursuing her passion for international development and social justice. | more »
When have you been moved to be an advocate for, in Jesus’ words, “the least of these”? You might also want to read: The least of these A moral voice Called into community... | more »
The work we do with our hands sometimes makes it possible for others to do God’s work with their hands. | more »
As small measures can combine to make large ones, so can the little things we do to help protect our Earth add up to something large. What small but important steps have you taken to protect the Earth? You might... | more »
A Medford, Wis., congregation has been infused with new energy and is focusing on the ELCA Malaria Campaign. | more »
Social service providers, community leaders and ELCA pastors in Ohio met with the staff of their U.S. senator, Sherrod Brown. | more »
ELCA youth groups around the nation are creatively raising money to help bring wells to areas of the world without safe drinking water. | more »
Every 45 seconds a child in Africa dies of malaria. To help save lives, ELCA congregations are supporting the ELCA Malaria Campaign in some creative ways. | more »
For the youth at MYLE, the ELCA Youth Gathering is a chance to share their cultures with 35,000 other young people. | more »
Attendees of the 2012 ELCA Youth Gathering join with youth around the world at The Wall. | more »
For this congregation, "living Lutheran" means going public with their faith. | more »
Through ELCA World Hunger, members of this church can make a difference, ensuring that the most basic of human needs are met. | more »
About 250 people from Ethiopia’s Oromia region have found a spiritual oasis in their Washington, D.C., congregation. | more »
Sarah Rossing is one of 19 Fund for Leaders scholarship recipients, thanks to the generosity of John and Mary Satter.
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Her family thought she ran away from them, but she shows how young people can run toward their calling.
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Her grandmother, mom, daughter and mentor helped Jessica Arneson learn to care for the poor, which has made her a stronger Lutheran and advocate. | more »
If you lean toward being an activist, maybe it’s every issue. But if you tend to shy away from politics and the endless debates on policy, is there an issue that grabs you? Why is that one important to you?... | more »
There's something about the immigration experience that opens us up to God. | more »
Susie Delgado heard racial slurs as a teenager. When it continued with her sons and grandchildren at school, Susie's faith motivated her to end it. | more »
Mark Knutson, pastor of Augustana Lutheran Church in Portland, says members can see how their faith connects to the world.
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ELCA members in the Bay Area collected school supplies for the 2,200 homeless students in San Francisco’s public schools. | more »
Some of the greatest risks these congregations have taken happened by inviting people inside their worship spaces and home lives. | more »
Members of First English Lutheran Church in Columbus, Ohio, are reducing the energy costs of maintaining their 100-year-old building. | more »
Because we have other sources of liquid nourishment, not having clean water for a week would be inconvenient but not fatal. But it would still be a long, dirty week for most of us. In many areas of the world... | more »
The Spirit bestows unique gifts and apportions them as the body has need. | more »
Has the immigration issue gone from the news stories to your personal or congregational life? Are you or your congregation involved in helping those who are undocumented and living in the U.S.? What have you learned from the experience? You... | more »
The whispers and glimpses of the risen Christ call us to think beyond our own lives to how we can serve and advocate for others. | more »
Would you be willing to be arrested for the sake of living out your faith? | more »
As the number of those struggling financially has grown in recent years, so has the importance of remembering the problem involves people who are not just statistics. Putting a face on those numbers and telling the stories of those struggling... | more »
The church on the inside is in relationship with congregations on the outside. | more »
Constance Mamba plans to establish HIV and AIDS programs after earning her master's degree, thanks to an ELCA scholarship. | more »
It kills more people than war, malnutrition or heart disease. We as a church have decided to do something about that.
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On April 4, 1968, King was assassinated on a hotel balcony in Memphis, Tenn. Our society is not the same as it was in 1968. While much has changed among the races, what do you think King would say are... | more »
Podiatrists, medical students and pastors will be among those ministering to the people who live on the streets of Philadelphia. | more »
For Ron Glusenkamp, senior pastor at Bethany Lutheran Church in Denver, reading is fun, as long as it doesn't involve Thing 1 and Thing 2. | more »
What if by the end of the week everyone had helped someone in need? For some people, probably a day doesn’t go by without lending a helping hand. For others, coming to the aid of another is perhaps an occasional... | more »
"It's time to say to the evils of this world, 'Go back to the shadows, because the good is taking in the light,'" says Lutheran Nobel Peace Prize winner Leymah Gbowee. | more »
Her name is Kim, and she is 8 years old. Tonight she will be bought for sex — perhaps 10 times before the sun comes up. | more »
Big problems, be they personal or societal, are often beyond a quick fix. A few small steps can often cover more ground than big steps. What small steps have you taken when faced with a problem that seemed too large... | more »
"Anybody who sounded as smart as he was ... and had the name Martin Luther, I had to get to know him better," says Robert Graetz of Martin Luther King Jr. | more »
We might not be called to lead a national movement, but we can in our small ways each day try to make a difference. How have you been able to apply and honor the example of Martin Luther King Jr.... | more »
Poverty in the U.S. is on the rise. Recent statistics claim that over half of us will spend at least a year at the poverty level at sometime when we are between the ages of 25 and 75. If you’ve... | more »
It’s so easy to become jaded and expect that the future will be no better than the past. But, for now, the pages of 2012 are blank. What would you like to see written in them? What can you do... | more »
Pueblo de Dios, an ELCA mission start in Compton, Calif., shares spiritual and material bread with its community. | more »
Larry is eager to ride his bicycle, especially if the mission supports Outreach for Hope — an organization that funds ELCA congregations that serve the poor.
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An interview with Lutheran Nobel Peace Prize winner Leymah Roberta Gbowee. | more »
The AIDS crisis called the ELCA to an even higher level of commitment in its focus on health care.
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Coffee is waking up a rural Haitian community to economic growth and hope. | more »
Bishop Mark Hanson tells young gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people that "it gets better" in his video "You Are a Beloved Child of God." | more »
You can only choose one from the many problems, so choose wisely, but the one you choose will magically go away and never return. Which one will it be? You might also want to read: Build a right relationship between... | more »
On the world’s stage, Leymah Roberta Gbowee, a Lutheran Liberian peace activist, has won the Nobel Peace Prize. But in the smaller circle of our daily lives we also have peacemakers — those who go out of their way to... | more »
In sparsely populated Montana, 50 congregations join together to reach out to the state's inmates.
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At the Churchwide Assembly, Renee Splichal Larson urges members of the ELCA to live out their baptismal calling — to strive for justice in all the earth. | more »
Candid conversations about HIV and AIDS change and protect lives in Tanzania.
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Bishop Hanson talks about how social statements are developed and how they are opportunities for conversation among ELCA members.
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An ELCA summer camp reminds LGBT youth that they are created and named as beloved children of God. | more »
Despite the enormity of the problem, the White House and Congress are struggling to agree on a plan to handle the U.S. debt. If you could sit down at the negotiating table, is there something constructive you would offer in... | more »
Fine china is best used when serving the homeless. | more »
It started 18 years ago, on the other side of the world — a refugee family's journey to a new home. | more »
Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service helps America's newcomers by resettling refugees, reuniting families and rekindling dreams. | more »
Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson wrote, “We do God’s work, not because God needs us to do so, but because our neighbor does. We do God’s work in Christ’s name for the life of the world.” How does God work through... | more »
Fern Lee Hagedorn writes in a blog entry that Jesus asks us to BE the neighbor to those around us. How have you been a neighbor to others in your community, in your congregation or in your family today?... | more »
Malaria is a disease of poverty. There are many ways to address this disease: through educating members in your congregation by giving to the ELCA Malaria Campaign to support ELCA World Hunger’s relief and development work by standing with and... | more »
April 22 is not only Earth Day this year, it’s Good Friday. Are you (or is your congregation) doing anything to care for creation on this day or week? What do you plan to do? How are other people in... | more »
One of the ways we can fulfill God's work with our hands is by joining an online advocacy network. | more »
"I believe in the mission of the ELCA. It is what I have in my life, and it is good,” says Kathleen Elliot Chillison, a member of the Living into the Future Together task force.
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Share a ministry or initiative that your congregation participates in. How often does it happen, who takes part and what is the impact?... | more »
What's a tradition in your family? Dione Miller has been attending ELCA Global Mission events with her Aunt Carolyn since 1999. | more »
Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s work, The Cost of Discipleship, has provided material for reflection and action for Christians since it was first published in 1937. What does the phrase “the cost of discipleship” mean in your life and ministry context? Has your... | more »
What ideas, resources or actions related to HIV and AIDS awareness are worth sharing with other congregations? If you haven’t already seen them, check out the resources posted on ELCA.org, including the video “Living Positive in Defiant Hope.” Suggest a... | more »
On April 9 we commemorate the death of German Lutheran pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer. As Martin Marty points out in today’s lead article, Bonhoeffer was himself a bit of a paradox. What do you remember him for? What phrase, teaching or... | more »
Helping to free a man who’d been wrongly convicted of murder changed Nicole Cásarez' legal career and life. | more »
Does your congregation recycle? If so, what materials do you collect: paper, plastic, glass, compost, other? What have you learned from the process and what lessons or tips can you share with others as a result?... | more »
Fundraising events come in all shapes and sizes. Simple or elaborate, a good fundraiser brings people together to raise awareness and dollars for a particular cause. What’s one idea — it doesn’t have to be your own idea — that’s... | more »
Today’s lead story, “Holding steady in Japan,” describes a number of ways that the ELCA is responding to the disaster in Japan. What’s one way you (as an individual or as a member of your congregation) have responded? What prompted... | more »
I was able to see past their learning and developmental disabilities and saw what amazing people they were. | more »
Hating the actions of those who hang nooses in libraries is one thing, but hating those who have committed such acts is quite another.
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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. famously proclaimed, “I have a dream…” What is your dream for today’s young people? What change would you like to see in the next generation?... | more »
Steven Thai joins a long line of that students have made contributions to social justice movements throughout American history.
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In her blog entry, Kristen Birkey-Abbott writes that she realized at a certain point in her life that no job is more spiritual than another. In fact, she writes, we all have the same task: to be the face of... | more »
“Blessed are the peacemakers,” said Jesus in Matthew 5. The Greek term eirenopoioi could be literally translated as “peace-doers.” Who is a peacemaker that has blessed your life through his or her dedication to doing or making peace? How do... | more »
When temperatures are below freezing and people affected by homelessness have the greatest need, what does your community or congregation do to help? Do you sponsor temporary shelter or a food bank? Do you volunteer? In what ways do you... | more »
3 pastors, 1 bike, 13,000 miles — what could they be thinking? | more »
What are some ways that your community or congregation helps individuals who are in abusive relationships? Share some ways that your congregation communicates that it is called to be a safe place.... | more »
In our self-absorbed society it is time to shatter the glass, to look less at ourselves and more at our neighbor. | more »
Does your congregation have a regular feeding ministry (food pantry, community meal) or contribute to a shared ministry that helps hungry people locally? Do members contribute to ELCA World Hunger or raise funds for hungry people around the world? What... | more »
A knock on the door opened David Rhoads’ life to a vocation of helping congregations become good stewards of creation.
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Reckless incivility has overtaken public discourse in our nation, and it is a travesty. | more »
The most powerful earthquake to strike Haiti in more than two hundred years devastated that country on January 12, 2010. More than 250,000 people were killed, 300,000 injured and more than a million people left homeless. A year later, what... | more »
We must reshape our attitude about those with cognitive or intellectual disabilities by building from the perspective of similarities rather than differences. | more »
Today’s featured video focuses on the Kafley family, who resettled to Illinois after living for 18 years in a refugee camp in Nepal. They were received by members of an ELCA congregation, who helped the family get their feet under... | more »
In the early church there were Christians who believed that artistic renderings of God were a violation of the Old Testament injunction against "graven images.”
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We are now at one in four children in our country that are food insecure.
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Advocacy affirms our Christian mission in this world and speaks, prophetically, to the powers that be in the spirit of biblical truth.
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The ELCA’s next online Town Hall Forum will be held Sunday, Nov. 21, at 5 p.m. EST. What question would you ask Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson? Reminder: None of the questions at the Town Hall Forum are submitted in... | more »
November 11 is Veterans Day in the United States, and is celebrated as Memorial Day or Armistice Day in other parts of the world, marking the end of World War I on this date in 1918. What do you do... | more »
If you were president of the United States of America for a day, what’s one thing you’d make sure you would do before the day was done? Why?... | more »
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