Rev. Dr. Meggan Manlove Elected as Bishop
At our 2023 Assembly, Rev. Dr. Meggan Manlove was elected to succeed Bishop Kristen E.M. Kuempel as Bishop of the Northwest Intermountain Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Rev. Manlove currently serves Trinity Lutheran in Nampa, Idaho. Rev. Manlove graduated from the University of Chicago Divinity School, was ordained in September 2004, and holds a Doctor of Ministry from San Francisco Theological Seminary. She will officially assume the duties of Bishop in July 2023.
a Bishop’s work is a Calling
By now, word has gone forth that NWIM has a new bishop! Many of you in the days since synod assembly have been reaching out with words of thanks for my six years of ministry with you as bishop & voicing concern about how I’m doing with the outcome of the election.
First of all: thank you for your kind words. It means a lot of hear how the ministry I oversaw was helpful for you & that I will be missed.
Secondly: what happened at the Red Lion in Pasco was not so much an election as it was a call process. The Spirit was invoked, and the Spirit moved, and the Spirit indicated that Bishop-elect Manlove is the one to lead the synod into the future. And while her election was not the outcome I had hoped for going into the assembly weekend: it absolutely is the necessary outcome. If the synod needs her leadership gifts & style to move into the future, it concretely doesn’t need mine!
Synod Assembly Recap
We had the privilege of undertaking an election for bishop. After six candidates, four ballots, and a lengthy Q & A, the gathered assembly elected Pastor Meggan Manlove as the next bishop of the NWIM Synod. We are grateful to all the candidates (with the support of their congregations and families) for letting their names go forward. And I am excited for Bishop-Elect Meggan and her leadership. The Bishop-Elect is currently serving at Trinity Lutheran Church in Nampa, Idaho, where she has been for the last 12 years. You can read more about her and all the candidates here. The Assembly gave a standing ovation to Bishop Kristen in gratitude for her 6 years of service in that office. Bishop-Elect Meggan will start her term July 1. Her installation is scheduled for October 7 at Cathedral of the Rockies, Boise, ID.
We also had the privilege of undergoing an election for two officer position on the Synod Council: vice president, which is the highest lay office (lay = not pastor or deacon) in the synod, and synod secretary, a role that may be held by a lay person or a rostered minister. Lisa Therrell, member of Faith Lutheran, Leavenworth, WA, was elected as our next vice president. Her term will begin September 1, 2023. Randy Darst, member of St. Mark’s Lutheran, Spokane, WA, was elected as synod secretary. His term will begin September 1, 2024.
Continue for full recap…
E-News 4-17-2023
E-News 4-3-2023
Real, Living and Active Faith
Every Lent, I have a tradition of reading the book “Lamb” by Christopher Moore…
The reason I read this book every Lent is because Moore’s depiction of the events of Holy Week abandons all the chaos, high-jinks, and crudity of the previous chapters and instead focuses in on the very real, honest, searing moments of Biff realizing his best friend is going to die, and there is nothing that Biff can do to stop it.