Bishop’s Note 24 January 2025

Please remember to share the notes with your congregation and if you know of someone who would like to be placed on the mailing list, just send me a note.
 

• New Notes or Changes to Notes will have this bullet Ø and will remain new notes for two weeks, then will shift to the • until they are removed from the Notes.

 
Upcoming Events:
The following is a list of upcoming events I will be attending in person. If I am in your area and you would like to go to lunch, coffee, have a chat, etc. let me know.

• January 26 – Bethlehem, Ohl / Zion, Shannondale
• January 27 – ULS Zoom Board Meeting
• January 29 @ Synod Office
• February 4-6 – Region 8 ULS Bishop’s Visit
• February 8 – Vocation’s Committee
• February 9 – Mt. Zion, Trade City
• February 12 @ Synod Office
• February 15 – Synod Council
• February 19 @ Synod Office
• February 24 – March 1 – Conference of Bishops, Chicago
• March 5 – Ash Wednesday
• March 5 @ Synod Office
• March 5 – St. Paul, Coudersport
• March 6 – Luther Memorial Academy, Etiquette Luncheon, Erie
• March 12 @ Synod Office
• March 15 – Synod Council
• March 17 – Region 8 Churchwide Assembly Voting Members Zoom
• March 19 @ Synod Office
• March 23 – Twelve Apostles, Saegertown
• March 26 @ Synod Office
• March 27 – Lutheran Home at Kane Board Meeting, Kane
• April 2 @ Synod Office
• April 9 @ Synod Office
• April 12 – Synod Council
• April 13 – Palm/Passion Sunday – Saron, Youngsville /Berea, Pittsfield
• April 15 – Chrism Liturgy
• April 16 @ Synod Office
• April 17 – Maundy Thursday
• April 18 – Good Friday
• April 19 – Easter Vigil
• April 20 – Easter Day
• April 23 @ Synod Office

 
Sunday Supply Dates:
NOTE: Please email to myself and Ellen at the office your Sunday bulletin by Thursday prior to my supplying at your congregation. February 16, 23; March 16, 30; April 6, 20; May 18; June 1
 
Churchwide Events:
 
Other ELCA Information:
 
Ecumenical Events:
 
Region 8:

• Preaching Grants Available to Local Worshiping Communities. The Vital Worship, Vital Preaching grants program of the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship provides awards of up to $25,000 for one-year projects to strengthen preaching and worship in the United States and Canada. These funds are available to local congregations in addition to our synod grant from the Compelling Preaching Initiative.  Innovative projects that connect public worship with faith formation are an excellent way for pastors and teacher-scholars to grow their work within congregations, parishes, schools, retreat centers, and other worshiping communities. These grants are to promote preaching-related work in the local context. Pass along this opportunity and encourage folks to apply—the next proposal deadline is April 25. The link for the Vital Worship, Vital Preaching Grant application is: Vital Worship, Vital Preaching Grants | Calvin Institute of Christian Worship

 
Other Continuing Education Opportunities:
 
Camp Lutherlyn:

• Registration for SUMMER CAMP 2025 starts on February 1. Visit www.lutherlyn.com/summercamp for the schedule and details. Remember, first-time campers get $100 off the camp fee with coupon code FIRST (visit Lutherlyn.com/first for details and exclusions).

 

• The 2025 schedule of retreat and events at Lutherlyn can be found at www.lutherlyn.com/2025.  There is something for everyone and we hope you will join us at Lutherlyn sometime this year.

 

• Lutherlyn is hiring the 2025 Summer Staff. If you know a potential applicant, please direct them to www.lutherlyn.com/summeremployment for details and the application. Working at camp is more than just a summer job; it is a great opportunity to grow in faith, make a difference in the lives of children, develop leadership skills, and make life-long friends.

 
ULS:
Upcoming Events Through March 2025
Ø  January 27 at 7 pm EST For Rostered Leaders who need advice on income tax returns and retirement planning online with Jim A. Dunlop of Advent Partners. Register here.
 
Ø  February 2 & 3 at 6 – 8:30 pm EST, Boundary Training for Rostered leaders, online (both nights are part of the same training). Click here to register.
 
Ø  February 3 & 6 LGBTQ Pastoral Care online with Rev. Dr. Beth Toler, MDiv, ThD., LMFT. Click here to learn more and register.
 
Ø  February 7, 10 am – 3 pm EST online or in person at Grace Lutheran Church, Broomall PA. “Respecting our Body Knowledge as a Healing and Liberative Practice” with Rev. Dr. Bridget Piggue of Emory University. Register here.
 
Ø  February 11, 10:30 am – 12 pm EST, “Preaching Across the Divide” with Rev. Dr. Angela Zimmann. This 90-minute online seminar provides practical insights and strategies for faithfully preaching in a community with widely divergent political leanings. Click here to register.
 
Ø  February 18, 10 am – 3 pm EST LGBTQIA+ Training for Rostered leaders. Click here to register.
 
Ø  February 19, 10 am – 3 pm EST Toward Racial Justice Training for Rostered leaders. Click here to register.
 
Ø  February 20, 10 am – 3 pm EST Boundary Training for Rostered leaders. Click here to register.
 
Ø  February 23 & 24 at 6 – 8:30 pm EST, Toward Racial Justice Training for Rostered leaders, online (both nights are part of the same training). Click to register.
 
Ø  February 25 at 1:30 pm EST, Online or in person on the Gettysburg campus. Aging Grace-Fully Author Series presents a Conversation with Margaret Renkl, author of Late Migrations. Click here to register.
 
Ø  February 27, 10 am – 3 pm, online or in person on the Gettysburg campus. Lenten Survival Kit for Rostered Leaders with Karen and Travis Webster from Healthy Seminarians, Healthy Church. Click here to register.
 
Ø  February 27 – March 1, in person on the Gettysburg Campus. “Reclaiming the Narrative” Women’s Retreat: “In Like A Lion; Unlocking the Strength of the Divine Feminine” This event is LGBTQIA+ affirming and BIPOC inclusive. Register here.
 
Ø  March 3 & 6, When God Disappears: The Spiritual Struggle of Depression online with Rev. Dr. Beth Toler, MDiv, ThD., LMFT. Click here to learn more and register.
 
Ø  March 7 & 8, Hope in a Divided World: Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s This Worldly Christianity as an Antidote to Christian Nationalism, in person on the Gettysburg campus in partnership with LAMPa. Click here for more information.
 
Ø  March 13, 20, 27. April 3 & 10, 7 – 8:30 pm EST online. “Liberating our Dignities, Saving Our Souls as we walk the path of the Cross and Beyond the Grave” with Dr. Beverly Wallace, founder/director of the ELCA Womanist Initiative and sponsored by the Delaware-Maryland ADLA and Lower Susquehanna Justice Ministries task forces. Register here.
 
Ø  March 21, 9 am EST, Prophetic Witness in the Face of War and Occupation with clergy from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land. All proceeds from this event will go to support the ministries of our Lutheran congregations in the Middle East. Registration available soon.
 
Ø  March 26, 7 pm EST via livestream or on the Philadelphia campus: Dr. Emilie Townes of Boston University presents “Premeditated Indifference: Facing (In)Justice with the Power of Hope” This is part of the Lazereth Lecture Series. Attendance is free. Learn more here.
 
Ø  March 27 at 1:30 pm EST, Online or in person on the Gettysburg campus. Aging Grace-Fully Author Series presents a Conversation with Rebecca Chopp, author of Still Me. Click here to register.
 
A Sneak Peek at Summer
Looking ahead to Spring and Summer, here’s some save-the-date items that I hope you’ll pencil in:

• April 30th, Spring Convocation: “Everyday Stewardship: Consecrating the Ordinary” on the Gettysburg Campus with Rev. Dr. Mark Allan Powell, author of Giving to God and the Rev. Louise Johnson, Executive for Vision for the ELCA
• June 16 & 17 Pride Month Events, featuring The Bruesehoff Family, authors of Raising Kids Beyond the Binary and A kid’s Book about Being Inclusive and Jeff Chu, author of Does Jesus Really Love Me?: A Gay Christian’s Pilgrimage in Search of God in America.
• June 29 – July 3: Wine, Cheese, and Chocolate. A week of respite for rostered leaders with the Rev. Jim Hazelwood, author of Everyday Spirituality: Discover a Life of Hope, Peace and Meaning.
• July 13-18: Theological Education with Adults. A week of learning and fellowship for lay people featuring lectures from the Rev. Dr. Allison deForest on the Gospel of John.
• August 10 – 15: Summer Ministry Institute: “Sighs Too Deep for Words; Worship in Times of Lament” This week of learning is available to anyone involved in the worship life of congregations, with church musician Richard Bruxvoort Colligan and Dr. Deanna Thompson, Director of the Lutheran Center for Faith, Values, and Community at St. Olaf College.

Walking Together as Synod:
 
Lutheran Home at Kane:
 
PORTICO:
 
LAMPa
Save the NEW Date for Lutheran Day! Join advocates from across Pennsylvania on Tuesday, May 13, for Lutheran Day in the Capitol! We are grateful for the flexibility of our hosts at Trinity Lutheran Church in Camp Hill that allowed us to reschedule for a day when the General Assembly is in session. More information and registration coming soon!

• WE NEED YOUR STORIES! In this survey, you'll find questions to let LAMPa know about the important work of your hunger ministry, which will shape and strengthen our collective advocacy to end hunger in PA and beyond. Please send stories/reports of the need you are witnessing by February 14, so that they can inform our in-person state budget advocacy in Harrisburg and on-going Federal advocacy. Stories can also be shared at [email protected].

 

• Join the National Immigration Project on Wednesday, January 29 at 5pm ET for a free webinar for community defenders, advocates, and impacted community members to go over the basics of what you can do to protect yourself and your community in the face of potential immigration enforcement.We'll go over what immigration policies have changed in the first week of the Trump administration; a primer on your Fourth Amendment rights; and ways for families to prepare in case of an arrest by immigration officials. Our 1.5-hour program is meant to address your most burning questions and to remind you of the protections you already have. As policies change, we will continue to provide community defenders with the information and trainings they need to fight back and to keep their people ready to face whatever comes. We will have simultaneous interpretation in Spanish and Haitian Creole during this webinar and we will consider requests for interpretation in other languages as we receive them. Register here.

 
Congregational Vacancies:  Are congregations not working on Ministry Site Profiles

1. Berea, Pittsfield
2. Bethany, Sheffield
3. Bethlehem, Ohl
4. First English, Punxsutawney
5. Gethsemane, Port Allegany
6. Jerusalem, New Bethlehem
7. Mt. Zion, Punxsutawney
8. Mt. Zion, Tionesta
9. Mt. Zion, Trade City
10. Saron, Youngsville
11. St. John's, Emlenton
12. St. John's, Emporium
13. St. John's, Erie
14. St. Mark’s, Waterford
15. St. Mark's, Eddyville
16. St. Paul's, Galeton
17. Trinity, Reynoldsville
18. Trinity, Smethport

 
Congregations in Transition: Are congregations working on Ministry Site Profiles (MSP)
 
The following congregations have an active Ministry Site Profile (MSP):

1. Christ, Sharon
2. Grace, Brookville
3. Grove Chape, Indiana
4. Harmony Grove, Creekside
5. Holy Trinity, Hermitage
6. Hope, Homer City
7. New Life, Marion Center
8. St Paul Drakes Mills, Cambridge Springs
9. Tabor, Kane
10. Twelve Apostle’s, Saegertown
11. Zion, Mayport