The Southeastern Synod, ELCA hosted a conversation around “Becoming the body of Christ where all bodies are valued: A conversation around the ELCA’s resolution to condemn White Supremacy.” Bishop Strickland was joined by Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton. Other speakers included: Pastor Tiffany Chaney, Pastor Ron Bonner, Ms. Roxann Thompson, Ms. Judith Roberts, Pastor Matt Steinhauer, and more.
Guidelines for Resuming In-Person Worship
To the people of the Northwest Intermountain Synod,
Attached to this letter you will find a substantial document focused on how to reopen our congregations safely. We are grateful for Rev. Brad Munroe, Executive Presbyter of the Presbyteries of Grand Canyon and de Christo, for sharing with us the work his Presbyteries did in preparation for re-opening. We have taken that document and edited it for our contexts. We have also taken a checklist that is contained within the body of the document and sent it as a separate document to make it easier for you to find and use. I strongly encourage you to review the entire document, and to distribute it to your congregation members so that everyone knows the criteria that leadership is using to establish safe parameters around worship.
How You Can Help | A Message from the Presiding Bishop
Dear partner in ministry,
Weeks may have passed since you last walked in the doors of your congregation and worshiped, face-to-face, with your community of faith. To be sure, being the body of Christ looks and feels differently than it ever has before.
Despite all of this, we are called to be church — together.
Communion in Extreme Circumstances
To the People of God in Northwest Intermountain Synod,
There are those who like to say that we are living in “unprecedented” times. They certainly feel unprecedented. However, for anyone with a knowledge of history there is nothing “unprecedented” about the time of pandemic due to COVID-19. The scale is, perhaps, larger than epidemics that have come before. But perhaps it is not. Perhaps it is our increased global connectedness through technology that has given us the sense of this being an unprecedented pandemic event—because we are seeing this virus unfold in real-time, not simply receiving reports of devastation months or years after the fact.
A Letter Regarding the Executive Committee Meeting on 3/17/2020
Please click “Read More” below to see the letter from Bishop Kristen summarizing the NWIM Synod Executive Committee meeting on March 17, 2020.
Highlights include:
An update on the Regional Gatherings.
An update on the Synod Staff travel ban.
The Committee’s current considerations regarding how the 8-week ban affects Holy Week and Easter.
How to contact synod staff via email and phone as we work from home.
And more.
A copy of the letter is also available for download & printing.
COVID 19 Message · 3/15/2020
New CDC recommendation: Starting immediately and for the next 8 weeks, CDC recommends cancelling all events of 50 or more people.
If you have not yet made the decision to suspend worship, please contact Bishop Kristen here.
Ongoing guidance recommends that, in areas where there is even minimal COVID-19, events likely to include 10 or more people at high-risk for serious issues should be cancelled. People at higher risk include older adults and people who have chronic medical conditions such as lung and heart disease, as well as diabetes.
If there is substantial spread in your area, all gatherings should be cancelled.
https://bit.ly/2xyUfDQ
COVID 19 Message · 3/13/2020
To God’s Beloveds in the Northwest Intermountain Synod,
We are living in interesting times. Any one of the issues we are actively dealing with would warrant the label “chaotic” and we are dealing with multiple issues at the same time. We are frazzled. We are fragile. We are forlorn.
Many of our congregational leaders are considering whether to suspend holding services for a time. Let me assure you that this is for the safety of the members of your congregational community. Let me further assure you that not one of these decisions is made lightly or without a great deal of emotional conflict and fervent prayer.
COVID 19 Message · 3/6/2020
We have received a few inquiries regarding COVID-19, or Novel Coronavirus.
We currently have only a few folks in the synod (as far as I am aware) who have been affected by this, but I anticipate that number will rise.
Bishop Shelley Bryan Wee has done a LOT of work around this, as Seattle is Ground Zero for the coronavirus in the United States. I didn't see a reason to reinvent the wheel when she's done such a great job already.
Please remember: the very best way to protect yourself from this virus is to wash your hands as frequently as you can. If you cannot use soap and warm water, an alcohol-based hand sanitizer is a good option. FYI: Vodka does NOT have the appropriate level of alcohol to effectively kill the virus, so be cautious of any "make your own hand sanitizer" recipes that are are floating around on social media.