Dear Friends in Christ,
Advent brings with it many wonderful characters and stories and gifts. Here are three words I commend to you as we enter into this joyful and hopeful season and look ahead to the new year.
Woven Together: A Post-Election Message
The day after the 2024 presidential election, Bishop Eaton reflects on the many expressions of our church being woven together as strands of a large tapestry, even as individually people are experiencing joy or grief. She reminds us that regardless of who is elected president or to other leadership positions in our country, our call to be Christ in the world doesn't change. "As we're moving through these next years, no matter what happens and what befalls ... imagine all of us woven together and in Christ, and we will continue to serve the gospel and to serve the world."
What is Grounding You?
I was reminded that one of the greatest gifts the body of Christ, which we call the church, can give to its members and our larger communities is the opportunity to take a breath, the gift of making space, and not just space but sacred space, space where we can bring our deepest longings to God and then be silent. In our singing and praying we make space.
Campus Ministry Agencies
“If you had asked me my junior year of college if I had ever thought of being a Lutheran pastor, I would have said, ‘absolutely not.’” recalls Mariah Mills. Mariah attended an ELCA college but was deeply involved in an evangelical campus ministry. Later on in her junior year, though, her involvement with that ministry was disrupted.
About Bonhoeffer
You may have seen that a new film about German Lutheran Pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer will be coming to theaters Thanksgiving Weekend.
Here is what I suggest. If you want to see the film, go see it and understand that it is entertainment AND see it with some friends and have a discussion about the film afterwards.