Title: ELCA Council Acts on Resolution on Racism, Other Proposals ELCA NEWS SERVICE
April 18, 2008
ELCA Council Acts on Resolution on Racism, Other Proposals 08-048-JB
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) adopted a resolution on racism, asked for a formal proposal for full communion with the United Methodist Church, commended occasional services materials to the church, set the site and date of the 2011 ELCA Churchwide Assembly, and acted on several other proposals.
The Church Council is the ELCA's board of directors and serves as the legislative authority of the church between assemblies. The council met here April 11-13. Assemblies are held every other year; the next is Aug. 17-23, 2009, in Minneapolis.
The council's actions and discussions included:
+ Racism: In response to "amplified conversations about racism" and the 15th anniversary of the ELCA social statement, "Freed in Christ: Race, Ethnicity, and Culture," the council adopted a resolution on this topic. The resolution noted that the National Council of Churches USA issued a call to observe May 18 as a "Sacred Day of Dialogue and Discussion." The council said it seeks God's forgiveness "for our complicity in perpetuating individual, cultural and institutional racism," and reaffirmed its commitment to become increasingly antiracist. It invited ELCA members to join the commitment and engage in sustained dialogue. The council asked churchwide staff, in consultation with the Office of the Presiding Bishop, to develop discussion materials that would use the social statement to help guide ELCA members in their conversations about racism.
+ Full communion: The council asked that a formal proposal for full communion with the United Methodist Church be presented to it at its November 2008 meeting. The council is expected to consider transmitting the proposal to the 2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly. The UMC General Conference, meeting in Fort Worth, Texas, April 23-May 2, will act on a proposal for full communion with the ELCA.
+ Occasional services materials: The council commended "Evangelical Lutheran Worship: Pastoral Care" for use by pastors and lay people involved in the ELCA's ministry of care. "Evangelical Lutheran Worship" is the primary worship resource of the church and is the center of a "family" of worship resources. Evangelical Lutheran Worship: Pastoral Care is the first of two volumes of materials related to occasional services, and the council expressed gratitude to the "many people who helped shape and refine" its content and encouraged the completion of the second volume of materials related to occasional services in the ELCA.
+ 2011 Churchwide Assembly: The council approved the site for the 2011 ELCA Churchwide Assembly, which will be held Aug. 14-20 at the Marriott World Center, Orlando.
+ Presiding bishop's report: In his report, the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop, said the ELCA is now 20 years old, and he called for the church to consider its mission in the world. "We are maturing. We are deepening a sense of our own identity. We continue to claim the gifts that we received from predecessor church bodies in the first 20 years of our life. We are discerning the gifts but beginning to shape an understanding of how those gifts might be used for the sake of mission in this context -- this diverse, changing, challenging world," Hanson said. The presiding bishop asked ELCA members to consider how to engage "God's mission for the sake of the gospel and the life of the world." In addition, the Rev. Susan Johnson, national bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, Winnipeg, gave an update on the ELCIC's priorities. Hanson presented her with an official gift: the "Savior of the World Cross."
+ Spending authorizations: The council approved a revised 2008 fiscal year current fund spending authorization of $82 million, and it approved a revised 2008 fiscal year ELCA World Hunger spending authorization of $20 million. Christina Jackson-Skelton, ELCA treasurer, said the "record" performance of the 2007 ELCA World Hunger Appeal supported an increase of the 2008 budget.
+ Book of Faith initiative: Dr. Diane L. Jacobson, professor of Old Testament, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minn., and director, Book of Faith initiative, provided an update on the five-year Bible-reading initiative adopted by the ELCA 2007 Churchwide Assembly. "Sometimes you need a vision bigger than yourself to get you to do what you know you should do," and continuous Bible learning keeps the church active in God's mission, she said. In talking with pastors and other teaching theologians, Jacobson said she's heard the church hasn't done well in teaching its leaders to teach the Bible, and the way to improve is to listen closely to those who do it well. Augsburg Fortress, the publishing ministry of the ELCA, Minneapolis, provided council members "Opening the Book of Faith: Lutheran Insights for Bible Study," the first publication associated with the initiative.
+ Independent Lutheran organization: By a vote of 18-13, the council acknowledged Lutheran CORE (Coalition for Reform), as an independent Lutheran organization that relates to the ELCA through the Vocation and Education program unit. Lutheran CORE applied for the acknowledgment, and the Rev. Stanley N. Olson, executive director, ELCA Vocation and Education, recommended the relationship be established. Before voting, some council members raised specific concerns about the proposal, noting that the WordAlone Network, which has been critical of the ELCA churchwide organization and its leaders, is a member organization of Lutheran CORE.
+ Communal discernment proposal: The council appointed "a communal discernment task force" to help the ELCA "engage emotional and divisive issues, seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and make difficult decisions as a church body in ways that will increase mutual trust, build respect for each other as the Body of Christ and deepen spiritual discernment." It allocated up to $25,000 and set guidelines on who should serve the task force as members and advisors. It asked that the task force convene by July 1 and provide the council in November with a preliminary report on "the scope" of the task force's work. The proposal was developed from a recommendation of the ELCA Southwestern Minnesota Synod.
+ Social statement conversation: The council engaged in a conversation on the Draft Social Statement on Human Sexuality, released March 13, sharing their affirmations as well as observations about the document.
+ Elections: The council elected people to fill vacancies on two ELCA boards and the Church Council. The year in which the term ends is in parentheses. ELCA Church Council: Baron D. Blanchard, Bismarck, N.D. (2011); Board of Trustees, ELCA Mission Investment Fund: Julie E. Swanson, Roanoke, Va. (2013); Board of Trustees, ELCA Foundation: John H. Saeger, Lancaster, Pa. (2013).
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org http://www.elca.org/news ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog