wfn.org | re: SPAM-LOW: Wfn-editors Digest, Vol 11, Issue 21

["info@graceministriesinternational.in" <info@graceministriesinternational.in>]

The Beatitudes   {JESUS ]  began to teach them, saying:
"Blessed are t he poor in sprit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed ar e those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the me ek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger 
and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Bles sed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy,
Blessed are t he pure in heart,
for they will see GOd.
Grace ministries
ES R koti reddy
www.graceministriesinternational.in

---------- ------------------------------

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To day's Topics:

1. WARC delegation urges South African Reformed Ch urches to keep
hope alive in stalled unification (Franziska Surber)
 
2. Swiss Reformed church women honour Kenyan theologians
(Franziska  Surber)
3. UCC Immigrant Rights Sunday scheduled for May 3 2009
 (Worldwide Faith News)
4. Media advocates decry Grammy Awards liquor a d
(Worldwide Faith News)
5. ELCA Conference of Bishops Issues 'Pa storal Word' on Task
Force Documents (NEWS@ELCA.ORG)

------ ----------------------------------------------------------------

 
Message: 1
Date: Tue, 10 Mar 2009 09:49:11 +0100
From: "Franzi ska Surber" 
Subject: WARC delegation urges South African Reformed Chu rches to keep
hope alive in stalled unification
Message-ID: <49B6 377C.E0FA.0001.0@warc.ch>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" 

World Alliance of Reformed Churches
News Release
10 M arch 2009

WARC delegation urges South African Reformed Churches  to keep
hope alive in stalled unification talks 

Senior lea ders of the Reformed church movement, while lamenting
the painful diff iculties that have stalled unity talks among four
Reformed churches in  South Africa, hold out hope for
reunification to become a reality.  

A nine-member delegation headed by WARC?s president, Clifton
 
Kirkpatrick, had been invited to mediate the discussions between
tw o of the four South African Reformed churches engaged in a
process of  Reformed reunification. 

In a statement released after the discu ssions with the two
churches - the Uniting Reformed Church in Southern  Africa (URCSA)
and the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) -the WARC delegati on said,
?We lament the apparent breaking of once shining hopes. 
 
Nevertheless, we do not lose heart.? The other two churches
involve d in the unity process are the Reformed Church in Africa
(RCA) and the  Dutch Reformed Church in Africa (DRCA). 

Commenting on the disc ussions Kirkpatrick said, "While we deeply
regret the difficulties in  the church unity talks among churches
in the Reformed family in South  Africa, we give thanks to God
that the leaders of both the Uniting Ref ormed Church in Southern
Africa and the Dutch Reformed Church share a  common passion for
the unity of Reformed Christians and for restorativ e justice in
South Africa. Our conversations together last week moved  us all
closer to the goals of unity and justice. WARC has a long and 
continuing commitment to a post apartheid church and society in
 South Africa and we believe these agreements are a positive step
in th at direction."

WARC has been closely involved in the affairs of  the Reformed
churches of South Africa with respect to apartheid since  1964. 
In 1982, apartheid was declared a sin and its theological
 justification a heresy by WARC?s 22nd General Council in Ottawa,
Canad a.

As a way forward, the delegation is urging the churches invol ved
in the impasse to engage in a serious study of the Belhar
Con fession. Noting that the content of the Confession has been
recognized  by both churches as Biblical and that the problems
with receiving it  have to do with history, the delegation
suggests that the study addres s questions of historical context
and offers the services of WARC to c onvene a meeting to initiate
the study process and to provide resource s on the Confession from
other churches. The full statement from the W ARC delegation on
the URCSA-DRC discussions is attached.

Wh ile in South Africa, the delegation also held meetings with
leaders of  the Netherdutch Reformed Church of Africa (NRCA),
still under suspens ion in WARC, as part of evaluating their
readiness for re-admission. T he church had prepared a document
to indicate the NRCA?s stance in rel ation to what it would take
to become a member of WARC again. The dele gation found the
church?s document reflects the divided feelings of me mber of the
NRCA. It also came to the conclusion that while there are  many
who have made tremendous efforts to overcome the legacies of
 
apartheid, the church has yet to demonstrate that it is ready for
a dmission. 

In commenting on the meeting with the NRCA, Nyomi sai d, ?We
appreciate the efforts that have been made so far and the real 
division of opinions and sentiments in the church on this issue
 but had to come to the conclusion that the proposed formulation
did no t go far enough.? 

?As Christians when we recognize something as  sin, we are called
to confession,? says Nyomi. ?So evidence that the  church indeed
has rejected apartheid will be stronger if guilt of the 
complicity in it is also confessed. This is more a matter of
int egrity of relationship with God rather than fulfilling the
letter of c onditions required by WARC.?

***

The World Alliance o f Reformed Churches (WARC) brings together
75 million Reformed Christi ans in 214 churches in 107 countries -
united in their commitment to m aking a difference in a troubled
world. The WARC general secretary is  Rev. Dr. Setri Nyomi of the
Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Ghana. WA RC's secretariat is
based in Geneva, Switzerland.

Contact: 

Kristine Greenaway 
Executive Secretary, Communications
 
World Alliance of Reformed Churches
150 Route de Ferney
P.O. B ox 2100
1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland
tel. +41.22 791 6243
fax:  +41.22 791 6505

web: www.warc.ch ( http://www.warc.ch/ ) 
 e-mail: kgr@warc.ch

------------------------------

Me ssage: 2
Date: Tue, 10 Mar 2009 16:08:55 +0100
From: "Franziska S urber" 
Subject: Swiss Reformed church women honour Kenyan theologians 
Message-ID: <49B69084.E0FA.0001.0@warc.ch>
Content-Type: text/pl ain; charset=UTF-8

Communiqu? de presse en fran?ais ci-dessous 

*****************

World Alliance of Reformed Churche s
News Release
10 March 2009

Swiss Reformed church wom en honour Kenyan theologians

Women in the Reformed churches of S witzerland are honouring two
Kenyan women theologians whose work is ai med at overcoming
barriers to the ordination of women in the Reformed  Church of
East Africa. Esther Mombo and Dorcas Chebet Wamalwa received  the
Sylvia Michel prize of USD 5?000 at a celebration in the Canton 
of Argovia in eastern Switzerland on International Women?s Day
( March 8).

Claudia Brandixen, President of the Reformed Cantonal  Church of
Argovia, says the award was created to draw attention to wom en
who work in the church. ?We wanted to spotlight a project that
 
would make women?s leadership visible.? The project in Kenya was
se lected from among 32 proposals Brandixen says because it is
clearly-de fined and is already showing results. 

The initiative created by  Mombo and Wamalwa focuses on the
justifications used for refusing to  ordain women in the Reformed
Church of East Africa: exclusionary inter pretation of Biblical
texts; the cultural beliefs of the tribes in the  Rift Valley area
where the church is located; and the denomination?s  constitution
which limits ordination to pastors who are ?biologically  male.? 

Mombo, a professor of church history at St. Paul?s Colle ge,
Limuru, and Wamalwa, a lecturer in theology at St. Philip?s
C ollege, have initiated a multi-phase project which seeks to
offer wome n theological and leadership training so that they can
make the case t hemselves for the ordination of women. ?It is
better to challenge from  inside through sensitization seminars
and debate in church decision-m aking circles than to advocate
from without,? says Mombo. 

 Mamalwa, one of the first of St. Paul?s female graduates in
theology,  is preparing to lead seminars to encourage church
member to re-examine  the justifications for excluding women from
ordination. For Mamalwa,  this project has a particular urgency.
She wishes to be ordained, as i s her husband. ?When I see him
put on his robes,? she says, ?I want to  put them on too.? 

With the support of funding from the World A lliance of Reformed
Churches (WARC) 15 women from the Reformed Church  of East Africa
have received theological diplomas and degrees through  St. Paul?s
College since 2002 and there are three active requests for 
ordination. Discussions are now underway in the church Synod to
 challenge the constitutional provision that only men can be
ordained. 

The Sylvia Michel award, established in 2007, is to be given
 
every two years to an organization or individual working to
promote  women as leaders. A jury of women presidents of the
Reformed Cantonal  Churches in Switzerland and the executive
secretary for gender progra mmes of the World Alliance of Reformed
Churches (WARC) select the winn ing submission.

Sylvia Michel, in commenting on the role of WARC  in promoting
women?s leadership in churches worldwide says, ?The beau ty of
WARC is it can tell other churches about the Kenyan project and 
to ask ?What is the situation in your church??

Brindixen a grees. ?How can we in Switzerland live as if we are
alone in our small , happy world? If we don?t connect with the
broader world, we are inco mplete. God wants us all connected and
sharing.?

********** 

Alliance r?form?e mondiale
Communiqu? de presse
le 10  mars 2009

L??glise r?form?e suisse rend honneur ? des th?ologie nnes du
Kenya 

Les femmes des ?glises r?form?es de Suisse r endent un hommage ?
deux th?ologiennes du Kenya, dont le travail vise  ? surmonter les
barri?res qui emp?chent l?ordination des femmes au sei n de
l??glise r?form?e d?Afrique de l?Est. Esther Mombo et
Dorcas  Chebet Wamalwa ont re?u le prix Sylvia Michel de USD 5?000
lors d?une  c?l?bration tenue en Argovie, Suisse, ? l?occasion de
la Journ?e inte rnationale de la femme, le 8 mars.

Claudia Brandixen, Pr?sidente  de l??glise r?form?e du Canton
d?Argovie, rappelle que le prix avait  ?t? cr?? pour attirer
l?attention sur des femmes ?uvrant dans le cadre  de l??glise.
?Nous voulions faire valoir un projet qui rende visible  le
leadership des femmes.?

Le projet au Kenya a ?t? choisi  parmi 32 candidatures, indiqua
Claudia Brandixen car il est clairement  d?fini et a d?j? obtenu
des r?sultats.

L?initiative cr??e  par Esther Mombo et Dorcas Wamalwa se
concentre sur les justifications  utilis?es pour refuser
l?ordination des femmes ? l??glise r?form?e d? Afrique de l?Est
: une interpr?tation exclusiviste de textes bibliques ; les
croyances culturelles des tribus de la r?gion de la Vall?e du
 
Rift, o? se situe l??glise; et la Constitution de la
d?nomination,  qui limite l?ordination aux pasteurs qui sont
?biologiquement m?les.?  

Esther Mombo, professeur d?histoire de l??glise au Coll?ge St. 
Paul, ? Limuru, et Dorcas Wamalwa, enseignante en th?ologie au
C oll?ge St. Philippe, ont r?alis? un projet en plusieurs phases
chercha nt ? offrir aux femmes des formations en th?ologie et de
leadership de  fa?on ? ce qu?elles puissent ?laborer elles-m?mes
la pr?sentation de  dossiers sur l?ordination de femmes. ?Il est
pr?f?rable de lancer le d ?fi depuis l?int?rieur aux centres de
d?cisions de l??glise, que de pr omouvoir cette cause depuis
l?ext?rieur?, a d?clar? Madame Mombo. 
 

Dorcas Mamalwa, l?une des premi?res femmes ? avoir re?u un titre 
en th?ologie ? St. Paul, pr?pare actuellement l?animation de
s?m inaires pour encourager les ?glises membres ? r?examiner
les justifica tions mise en avant pour exclure les femmes de
l?ordination. Pour Mada me Mamalwa, ce projet est
particuli?rement urgent. Elle souhaite ?tre  ordonn?e, comme
l?est son mari. ?Quand je le vois mettre sa robe? dit- elle, ?je
veux la mettre aussi.? 

Avec le soutien financier  de l?Alliance r?form?e mondiale (ARM),
15 femmes de l??glise r?form?e  d?Afrique de l?Est ont obtenu des
dipl?mes et des grades en th?ologie  au Coll?ge St. Paul depuis
2002 et trois demandes d?ordination sont e n cours actuellement.
Les discussions ont ?t? amorc?es au Synode de l? ?glise pour
d?fier la clause constitutionnelle limitant l?ordination a ux
hommes.

Le prix Sylvia Michel, fond? en 2007, est attrib u? tous les deux
ans ? une organisation ou ? des personnes ?uvrant ? l a promotion
des femmes comme leaders. Le projet gagnant est choisi par  un
jury compos? des femmes pr?sidentes des ?glises cantonales
r? form?es de Suisse et de la Secr?taire ex?cutive de
l?Alliance r?form?e  mondiale (ARM) pour les programmes de
genre.

En commentant  le r?le jou? par l?ARM dans la promotion du
leadership des femmes dan s le monde, Sylvia Michel d?clara : ?la
beaut? de l?ARM c?est qu?ils p euvent expliquer le projet du Kenya
? d?autres ?glises et leur demande r ?quelle est la situation dans
votre ?glise??

Claudia Brin dixen est d?accord avec elle. ?Comment pourrions
nous vivre en Suisse  comme si nous ?tions seuls dans notre petit
monde heureux? Si nous ne  sommes pas connect?s avec le monde
ext?rieur, nous sommes incomplets.  Dieu veux que nous soyons
tous en connexion et en partage.?

 
***

The World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) brings tog ether
75 million Reformed Christians in 214 churches in 107 countries  -
united in their commitment to making a difference in a troubled
 
world. The WARC general secretary is Rev. Dr. Setri Nyomi of the
Ev angelical Presbyterian Church, Ghana. WARC's secretariat is
based in G eneva, Switzerland.

Contact:

Kristine Greenaway 
 
Executive Secretary, Communications
World Alliance of Reformed Chur ches
150 Route de Ferney
P.O. Box 2100
1211 Geneva 2, Switze rland
tel. +41.22 791 6243
fax: +41.22 791 6505

web: w ww.warc.ch ( http://www.warc.ch/ ) 
e-mail: kgr@warc.ch

--- ---------------------------

Message: 3
Date: Tue, 10 Mar 20 09 11:18:27 -0700
From: Worldwide Faith News 
Subject: UCC Immigr ant Rights Sunday scheduled for May 3 2009
To: wfn-editors@wfn.org
 
Message-ID: 
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"; form at=flowed

Welcoming the stranger: Immigrant Rights Sunday sche duled for May 3

Written by Staff Reports
March 3, 2009
 

The United Church of Christ will observe its 
first "Immigran t Rights Sunday" May 3, 2009. 
Although the UCC has been a long-time a dvocate 
for just immigration policies that guarantee 
legal righ ts entitled to every person living in 
the United States, this is the  first time a 
Sunday has been designated in the UCC to recognize immig rants.

Welcoming the stranger is an edict from God to 
the  people of God (Deuteronomy 10:17-19.) But too 
often the strangers amo ng us are rejected and treated like enemies.

Congregations are e ncouraged to include stories 
about immigrants in their worship servic e on the first Sunday in May.

Organizers the Rev. Art Cribbs and  the Rev. Daniel Romero write:

One recent story follows the live s of two 
brothers, Benigno and Ronald, who find themselves 
caug ht in a legal limbo as they seek to make it 
through the maze of immig ration bureaucracy.

Brought to the United States from Guatemala  
by their mother as small children, they are now 
24 and 28 years  old. When their mother became a 
legal resident through marriage, she  petitioned 
for her sons to become residents as well. 
Unfortuna tely, they sought help from a notario, a 
notary public posing as a la wyer, who charged 
them a few thousand dollars to do the paper work. 

There are many unscrupulous individuals who 
engage in the  unauthorized practice of 
immigration law and leave their clients hop eless 
and helpless. In this case, Benigno and Ronald 
"think" th ey may have petitions pending. Even if 
they do, as unmarried children  of a legal 
resident from Guatemala, it may take up to 7 
years  for visas to become available for them to achieve their dream.

W ishing to marry, Benigno has postponed 
doing so because he knows the  laws are different 
for married and unmarried children of permanent  
residents. Both these young men have no 
experience of living in  Guatemala and if forced 
to leave, they would be fish out of water. 

They have been raised in this country, gone 
through the e ducational system, and are fully 
bilingual with very promising future s. Their 
story is repeated time and again with children 
who, by  no decision of their own, find themselves in legal limbo.

There  are millions of immigrants and stories 
about strangers who reside ne ar our local UCC 
churches. Immigrant Rights Sunday is an 
opport unity to learn their stories and share them.

Immigrant Rights Su nday is intended to help 
overcome fears about the strangers among us,  and 
to work on their behalf to make life safer in the 
United S tates. Promoting draconian policies and 
militarizing our borders do n ot protect or serve 
anyone's best interests. Too many families have  
been divided and too many lives have been lost 
because our coun try has failed to properly address the needs of immigrants.

It i s time for us to honor God's instruction 
to feed, clothe, and love "t hose who are 
strangers, because you yourselves were strangers?"
 
As we learn the stories of others, we can 
tell our stories also ; the stories of our 
families' journeys to America. We can remember  
what it felt like to be received or rejected in a 
new land. The n, we will discover the practical 
reasons why God instructed us to ta ke care of 
immigrants, foreigners, and strangers.

Nobody s hould be left in a legal limbo to 
fend alone or fall prey to individu als, systems, 
or institutions that abuse them and deny their 
hu man dignity. If we forget our own experiences, 
we may mistreat others  who are going through what 
we once knew to be a frightening and unwe lcoming period in our lives.

We can do better to make God's enti re family 
feel welcome and at home. Hospitality is a 
hallmark o f our faith. Every human life is 
precious and the "loving image of Go d."

For more information about Immigrant Rights 
Sunday, co ntact Wally Ryan Kuroiwa or Edie Rasell 
at the UCC's Justice and Witn ess Ministries, 
(216) 736-3700. Worship resources are available 
 
at 

------------------------------

Message: 4
 
Date: Tue, 10 Mar 2009 11:16:02 -0700
From: Worldwide Faith News  
Subject: Media advocates decry Grammy Awards liquor ad
To: wfn-e ditors@wfn.org
Message-ID: 
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=" iso-8859-1"; format=flowed

Media advocates decry Grammy Awards  liquor ad

Written by Jeff Woodard
March 4, 2009

 
The United Church of Christ?s Office of 
Communication, Inc. has jo ined 28 other 
religious, public-policy and substance-abuse 
orga nizations in signing on to a letter to 
CBS-TV, expressing disappointm ent over the 
network?s recent airing of a hard-liquor ad on it 
 largest stations and affiliates.

During the broadcast of the 51s t Grammy Awards on 
Feb. 9, CBS broke its long-standing, voluntary 
 
ban of spirits advertising on broadcast TV by 
airing an ad for Abs olut Vodka. Affiliates in 14 
leading markets ran a 30-second spot tit led 
"Hugs" in the third hour of programming, marking 
the first  time a commercial for a 
distilled-spirits product has appeared on any  
CBS-owned local broadcast stations.

?It is extremely disa ppointing that CBS has 
reversed its long-standing position on alcohol  
advertising,? said the Rev. J. Bennett Guess, OC, 
Inc. executi ve director and UCC director of 
communications. ?We are deeply concer ned that the 
network will begin to expand alcohol advertising 
t o the detriment of public health and safety.?

The Grammy show fe atured teen music idols Taylor 
Swift and Miley Cyrus, drawing a large  underage 
TV audience. ?We understand that the vodka ad 
reached  an estimated 31 percent of all U.S. TV 
households,? states the lette r, addressed to 
Leslie Moonves, President and Chief Executive 
O fficer of CBS Corporation. ?This expansion of 
alcohol advertising on  broadcast network programs 
will increase youth exposure to alcohol  
advertising and undermine efforts to reduce 
underage drinking.  We call on CBS to act in the 
interest of public health and safety, an d reverse this decision.?

According to the U.S. Surgeon General,  drinking 
results in 5,000 deaths per year in the 
21-and-under  population. In 2004, underage youths 
accounted for more than 142,000  alcohol-related 
visits to the emergency room. In addition, youth 
 
who begin drinking by age 15 are four times more 
likely to develop  alcohol dependence as an adult 
as those who begin at 21 or older, th e Surgeon General says.

The letter said that the Center on Alcoh ol 
Marketing and Youth (CAMY) at Georgetown 
University found th at from 2001 to 2007, youth 
exposure to alcohol advertisements on tel evision 
increased by 38 percent. The letter went on to 
cite a C enters for Disease Control and Prevention 
(CDC) statistic showing tha t liquor is especially 
popular among underage girls who consume alcoh ol.

?We are also concerned that CBS affiliates? 
acceptance  of liquor ads is testing the waters 
for the expansion of liquor adve rtising into its 
parent network, obliterating CBS? longstanding 
 
voluntary ban on such advertising,? the letter 
continues. ?Given t he toll of alcohol problems in 
this country ? 85,000 deaths and nearl y $200 
billion in economic costs each year ? piling 
hard-liquor  promotions on top of the $725 million 
in beer advertising already on  television 
represents an assault on public health and 
safety,  and an obstacle to plans for prevention-oriented health care reform.
 
Affiliates will run the Absolut ad at their own 
discretion, sai d a CBS representative. "Each of 
our local station general managers i s responsible 
for evaluating the suitability of ads. In this 
ca se, they determined that the creative for this 
particular spot is tas teful and appropriate for 
the stations' late-evening audiences."
 

The "Hugs" spot, built as the TV extension of a 
brand campai gn that launched in spring 2007, 
aired after 10 p.m. local time Feb.  9 in New 
York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston and 10 other 
top-20  markets, a local buy reaching 31 percent of U.S. TV households. 

 
------------------------------

Message: 5
Date: Tue, 10  Mar 2009 15:11:07 -0500
From: 
Subject: ELCA Conference of Bishop s Issues 'Pastoral Word' on Task
Force Documents
To: 
Messag e-ID: 
Content-Type: text/plain

Title: ELCA Conference of B ishops Issues 'Pastoral Word' on Task Force Documents
ELCA NEWS SERVIC E

March 10, 2009 

ELCA Conference of Bishops Issues ' Pastoral Word' on Task Force Documents
09-061-JB

ITASCA, Il l. (ELCA) -- Reporting that its own conversations
"expressed the diver sity of opinion that is common throughout the
church," the Conference  of Bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America (ELCA) addres sed the church in a "pastoral
word" concerning the contents of two ELC A documents.
Last month the Task Force for the ELCA Studies on Sexuali ty
released a proposed social statement on human sexuality and a
 report recommending changes to ministry policies that could make
it po ssible for people in committed same-gender relationships to
serve as E LCA associates in ministry, deaconesses, diaconal
ministers and ordain ed ministers.
The conference issued its pastoral word at the conclusio n of
its March 5-10 regular meeting here. Members met in closed, off- 
the-record sessions discussing the proposed social statement,
"H uman Sexuality: Gift and Trust," and the "Report and
Recommendation on  Ministry Policies." The ELCA Churchwide
Assembly will consider recomm endations related to both documents
when it meets Aug. 17-23 in Minnea polis.
The ELCA Conference of Bishops is an advisory body of the
 church, consisting of bishops who lead the 65 synods of the ELCA,
plus  the ELCA presiding bishop and ELCA secretary.
In its pastoral word, t he conference said its members are
convinced of two things: that the t ime of preparation for the
2009 Churchwide Assembly "is a hopeful time " and that the Holy
Spirit is guiding deliberations. "This same Spirit  increases our
ability to listen patiently and speak honestly to one a nother,"
the conference wrote.
Referring to the proposed social s tatement, the conference
said it rejoiced in "the strong affirmation o f the gift of
marriage, sexuality and family," and it affirmed "the fa ithful
exposition of Holy Scripture and Lutheran Confessions." The
 
conference said it supported the proposed statement's "bold
confron tation of the commercialization of human sexuality" in the
culture and  acknowledged "the unity of the Church is the Holy
Spirit's continuing  gift."
Referring to the report and recommendation on ministry
po licies, the conference said "this document articulately names
the brea dth of opinion on the possible rostering of persons in
committed, fait hful same-gender relationships." Rostering refers
to structures and pr ocesses by which people are approved for the
ELCA's official church mi nistry.
"Further, it presents one option for working through a
pr ocess for discernment and decision-making. We recognize that
both the  content of the resolutions and the proposed process for
considering th em arise from the task force's deep respect for the
faithful diversity  they find present in this church," the
conference wrote.
"We pra yerfully trust that God will guide this whole church
in the coming mon ths as we walk together in our deliberative
processes," the pastoral s tatement said. "We know that our human
decisions are often imperfect,  but we are confident of God's
persistent forgiveness. We are deeply co mmitted to the unity of
this church. Whatever decisions the assembly m akes, we trust that
God's Spirit will form the wisdom of God's faithfu l people
gathered in deliberative assembly. We are prepared to stand 
together united in our continued service to the Church."
The con ference expressed gratitude for the faithful work of
the Task Force fo r the ELCA Studies on Sexuality, which produced
the report and propose d social statement. Its "work over the past
eight years has been a pro found gift to this church," the
statement said.
---
The full  text of "A Pastoral Word to the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in Americ a from the Conference of Bishops" is at
http://tinyurl.com/54cu99 on t he ELCA Web site.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Dir ector (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news
EL CA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog

-------------------- ----------

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