Title: Lawrence Wohlrabe Elected Bishop of ELCA Northwestern Minnesota Synod ELCA NEWS SERVICE
June 11, 2007
Lawrence Wohlrabe Elected Bishop of ELCA Northwestern Minnesota Synod 07-103-MS*/JB
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Lawrence R. Wohlrabe, Our Savior's Lutheran Church, Moorhead, Minn., was elected June 10 to a six-year term as bishop of the Northwestern Minnesota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Wohlrabe was elected on the fifth ballot for bishop, 350-209, over the Rev. Richard J. Foss, bishop of the ELCA Eastern North Dakota Synod, Fargo.
The synod assembly was held June 8-10 at Concordia College, Moorhead, Minn. Concordia is one of 28 ELCA colleges and universities.
Wohlrabe, 52, will succeed the Rev. Rolf P. Wangberg, incumbent bishop of the synod who has served in that role since 2001.
Wohlrabe trailed on the fourth ballot for bishop by 18 votes -- 225 votes for Foss and 207 votes for Wohlrabe. Wangberg received 161 votes on the fourth ballot. There were 83 names on the first or nominating ballot.
Wohlrabe will assume the role of bishop on Sept. 1. The date and location of his installation as bishop is to be announced.
Born in Mankato, Minn., Wohlrabe received a bachelor's degree in speech pathology from Mankato State University, Mankato, Minn., in 1977. In 1981 he received a master of divinity degree from Luther Theological Seminary (now Luther Seminary), St. Paul, Minn. In 2003 he received a doctorate from Luther Seminary, one of eight ELCA seminaries.
After he was ordained in 1981, Wohlrabe served congregations in Willmar, Minn., and St. James, Minn. He was director of admissions at Luther Northwestern Seminary (now Luther Seminary) and assistant to the bishop of the ELCA Southwestern Minnesota Synod, Redwood Falls, before he became senior pastor at Our Savior's in 2003.
Wohlrabe and his wife, Lajoy, are parents of two adult children. The Wohlrabes reside in Moorhead.
The ELCA Northwestern Minnesota Synod has 109,145 baptized members in 272 congregations. The synod office is in Moorhead.
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Information about the ELCA Northwestern Minnesota Synod is at http://www.nwmnsynod.org/ on the Web.
*Michael J. Stein is communications director for the ELCA Northwestern Minnesota Synod.
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