After much thoughtful, considerate and respectful discussion, reflection and prayer the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) voted to defeat a motion before delegates at the Eleventh Biennial National Convention to encourage Synods to develop ways “to best minister to people who live in committed same-sex relationships, including the possibility of blessing such unions”. The motion was voted on by secret ballot during the afternoon session on the third day of convention. The motion received 181 votes in favour and 200 votes in opposition.

Introduction to the motion by Roger Kingsley, Vice-President of the ELCIC, noted, that at the 2005 National Convention, after the defeat of a local-option for same-sex blessing, a motion was approved by delegates stating “That our church’s leaders, congregations and Pastors ‘seek to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace’ (Ephesians 4:3) rejecting all words and actions hostile to gays and lesbians in our churches and communities, and taking steps to create a more welcoming environment in this Church for gays, lesbians and their families.’”

The announcement of the motion was received by silence from the delegates.

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The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 174,555 baptized members in 620 congregations. It is a member of the Lutheran World Federation, the Canadian Council of Churches and the World Council of Churches.

Material provided through ELCIC Information is intended for reproduction and redistribution by recipients in whatever manner they may find useful.

For more information, please contact:
Trina Gallop, Manager of Communications
302-393 Portage Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 3H6
204.984.9172
tgallop@elcic.ca

Subscribe or unsubscribe to ELCIC Information by emailing info@elcic.ca with a short message.

A packed room. A full plate. An enthusiastic audience. A satisfying way to begin the third day of convention at the Evangelical Lutheran Women (ELW) / Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) women’s desk breakfast. Rev. Paul Gehrs, Assistant to the National Bishop for Synodical Relations and Ruth Vince, Executive Director of ELW hosted the breakfast, served to crowd of over 100 ELCIC members (women, men, lay and ordained) on Saturday June 23, 2007.

The breakfast opened with prayer and biblical reflection on Luke 4:14-21 in which Jesus goes to the Synagogue and reads from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah saying, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.” In true ELW fashion table groups were invited to reflect together on this reading, responding to the question, “What would it mean to my life if this proclamation came true?”

Following the brief Bible study, Ruth Vince spoke about ELW and its programs. The new planned giving resource, What’s Enough?, the newest Bible study, the Great ‘I AM’, and No Place Like Home, a new resource about homelessness were highlighted as some of the many offerings ELW currently has available for use within the ELCIC.

The enthusiasm for the new resources was tempered when Vince spoke about the harsh reality that the future of ELW is in jeopardy. With an aging constituency and a reluctance to change how ELW does its work and is seen within the larger context of the ELCIC, the future is unclear. The ELW board and staff, in partnership with the ELCIC, through the office of the Bishop’s Assistant for Synodical Relations, are currently engaged in a visioning process which will culminate at the 2008 National ELW convention. “Tough decisions are going to have to be made,” admitted Vince, “We need to find new ways of being ELW if we are going to exist in the future.”

In his address to the gathering, Gehrs clarified the role of the National Women’s Desk as a “portal to the bishop’s office.” “A call that comes through the women’s desk, about programs, resources, concerns or ideas is directed by the women’s desk, to the attention of the national bishop and a group of people, including women, are tasked with responding,” explained Gehrs. He went on to explain that there is a focus, within the Women’s Desk portfolio, on ordained ministry.

The breakfast ended with a standing ovation for Ruth Vince, for her tireless work as a leader within the ELCIC and a particular appreciation for her passion for ELW and its ministry.

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The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 174,555 baptized members in 620 congregations. It is a member of the Lutheran World Federation, the Canadian Council of Churches and the World Council of Churches.

Material provided through ELCIC Information is intended for reproduction and redistribution by recipients in whatever manner they may find useful.

For more information, please contact:
Trina Gallop, Manager of Communications
302-393 Portage Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 3H6
204.984.9172
tgallop@elcic.ca

Subscribe or unsubscribe to ELCIC Information by emailing info@elcic.ca with a short message.

The Anglican Church of Canada has chosen Bishop Fred Hiltz of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island as its 13th Primate or national leader.

Bishop Hiltz was elected by the church’s General Synod, meeting in Winnipeg, on the 5th ballot, from among four bishops nominated last April by a gathering of all Canadian bishops.

Bishop Hiltz, 53, will succeed Archbishop Andrew Hutchison, elected three years ago, who announced earlier that he would retire at the end of the General Synod gathering now underway.

Bishop Hiltz was elected assistant bishop of the diocese of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island in 1995 and elected diocesan bishop in 2002. He was a member of the Council of General Synod from 2001 to 2004 and, since, 2006, has served as the Anglican Co-Chair of the Anglican-Lutheran International Commission.

In a statement after his nomination for the primacy, Bishop Hiltz described the Primate as "a servant of the people of God (whose) ministry is the gather the Church, to unite its members in a holy fellowship of truth and love, and to inspire them in the service of Christ’s mission in the world."

He is married to Lynne Samways and they have one son.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is currently proceeding through the balloting process for the election of a new National Bishop as well. For information and balloting results, please view the following link: https://www.elcic.ca/In-Convention/2007-Winnipeg/Friday-Highlights.cfm

As of the dinner break on Friday, delegates at the Eleventh Biennial National Convention of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) had not yet elected a new National Bishop. Just prior to the two-hour break, delegates cast their fifth ballot for Bishop.

The fifth ballot for Bishop included the following three nominees:
– Bishop Cynthia Halmarson
– Rev. Susan Johnson
– Rev. Edward Skutshek

In order to declare the election of a Bishop on the fifth ballot, a majority of votes need to be received for one individual.

Information on the balloting process, which began on Thursday evening, is available on the ELCIC website: www.elcic.ca (click on the link to Convention 2007)

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The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 174,555 baptized members in 620 congregations. It is a member of the Lutheran World Federation, the Canadian Council of Churches and the World Council of Churches.

Material provided through ELCIC Information is intended for reproduction and redistribution by recipients in whatever manner they may find useful.

For more information, please contact:
Trina Gallop, Manager of Communications
302-393 Portage Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 3H6
204.984.9172
tgallop@elcic.ca

Subscribe or unsubscribe to ELCIC Information by emailing info@elcic.ca with a short message.

Delegates at the Eleventh Biennial National Convention of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) have elected Rev. Susan Johnson, Assistant to the Bishop of the Eastern Synod, as the new National Bishop of the ELCIC. The election occurred on the sixth and final ballot for Bishop.

Bishop-elect Johnson will succeed National Bishop Raymond Schultz who announced in January of this year that he will retire as of September 1, 2007. Bishop Schultz has been serving as National Bishop for six years. He was elected for a four-year term at the 2005 Convention but announced his retirement half-way through the term due to personal and health reasons.

Bishop-elect Johnson is not new to the work of the National Office, from 2001-2005, she served as Vice-President of the ELCIC. In addition to her role as Assistant to the Bishop of the Eastern Synod (which she has served since 1994), Bishop-elect Johnson has served as an advisor to The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Council since 1998, as a member of the North American Regional Committee for LWF since 2005, on the Leadership Development Task Force from 2005-2006 and on a variety of boards and committees both at the national and synodical level.

"I’m just overwhelmed and honoured by this incredible honour," said Bishop-elect Johnson upon the announcement. "I promise to be all that I can to help us together to be In Mission for Others."

Delegates have been deliberating on the election of the National Bishop for most of Friday; business sessions on other matters, such as the introduction of a new Stewardship of Creation Initiative (an environmental action plan for the church) and greetings from a number of international partners and guests have been interspersed between ballots.

Further information of the Eleventh Biennial National Convention is available online at: https://elcic.ca/In-Convention/2007-Winnipeg/default.cfm
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The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 174,555 baptized members in 620 congregations. It is a member of the Lutheran World Federation, the Canadian Council of Churches and the World Council of Churches.

Material provided through ELCIC Information is intended for reproduction and redistribution by recipients in whatever manner they may find useful.

For more information, please contact:
Trina Gallop, Manager of Communications
302-393 Portage Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 3H6
204.984.9172 / 204.782.8618
tgallop@elcic.ca

Subscribe or unsubscribe to ELCIC Information by emailing info@elcic.ca with a short message.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) has set the stage for its next 10 years In Mission for Others by renewing its commitment to one of the church’s foundational documents, Evangelical Declaration, at its Eleventh Biennial National Convention, which is taking place in Winnipeg, June 21-24. The convention of clergy and lay delegates voted overwhelmingly in favour of renewing the document which included a title change to reflect the church’s mission strategy, In Mission for Others: An Evangelical Theology of Mission – Evangelical Declaration.
 
The declaration was originally adopted at the ELCIC’s 1997 National Convention as a statement of mission for the decade ending 2007. Ratifying it again reaffirms the church’s theological foundation for the coming decade, said Bishop Ray Schultz. The statement was adopted with very few changes from the original 1997 wording.
 
Schultz said he took the near-unanimous approval of the declaration as a strong motion of confidence. “I interpret it to mean that the direction by which we’re defining mission and the strategies we’re defining around it are strongly appreciated by this delegation,” he said.
 
“We understand that the present reality of the world involves significant changes in our society, economy and culture,” the declaration reads. “Technological innovations, globalization, economic and political uncertainties and shifting morals and values have increased the sense of insecurity for many people. We further understand that the needs of the world and our opportunities for mission are found on our doorsteps and not simply at a distance.”
 
The document goes on to say: “We believe that the reality of Christ is that God promises to be with us unconditionally in the midst of the changes of our world. The church is called to name those things that cause us to be less than human. The church is called to proclaim the truth of the gospel to others and to live according to it as a community. The church is called to stand in solidarity with, and to welcome into its midst, all those who are marginalized because of sin and who experience injustice. The cross of Christ stands opposed to any ideology that treats people as commodities or proclaims that people can earn salvation by hard work or positive thinking.”
 
The declaration commits the ELCIC over the next decade to: discerning means of faithful living, equipping people to be members in mission, encouraging advocacy for the unjustly treated, sharing gifts with the whole people of God, communicating with others and responding to opportunities for mission.

Calling on all members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) to take actions to reduce their environmental footprint and to create "greening congregations", the ELCIC took steps towards becoming a green church by adopting an environmental stewardship initiative, Stewardship of Creation, during its Eleventh Biennial National Convention which is taking place in Winnipeg, June 21-24.
 
“We commit ourselves as a church to answer the call to respect the integrity of God’s creation through an environmental stewardship initiative engaging our national, synodical, congregational and individual member expressions,” the statement adopted by delegates read in part.
 
A key part of the initiative is the establishment of an accreditation process for congregations wanting to be recognized as “green congregations.” The National Office will create the accreditation process after hosting a consultation meeting in the spring of 2008. The initiative will be promoted through local or regional Stewardship of Creation groups and congregations will carry out “green” activities through their own groups and individual members.
 
Ryan Andersen, Assistant to the Bishop for Stewardship in Public Life, said it was his hope that, "congregations will designate persons to lead them in environmentally sustainable practices, suggest options for such practices and share their experiences with other congregations."
 
“What it means is that we’re going to be more self-disciplined as a community of church members across Canada to attend to these issues and to develop the kind of practices that will give us a credible voice,” Bishop Raymond Schultz said in an interview following the introduction of the initiative. “We’re expecting that, by engaging the church beginning with grassroots congregational members, this will heighten awareness so that at regional conferences and synod conventions initiatives will begin to arise.”

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The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 174,555 baptized members in 620 congregations. It is a member of the Lutheran World Federation, the Canadian Council of Churches and the World Council of Churches.

Material provided through ELCIC Information is intended for reproduction and redistribution by recipients in whatever manner they may find useful.

For more information, please contact:
Trina Gallop, Manager of Communications
302-393 Portage Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 3H6
204.984.9172
tgallop@elcic.ca

Subscribe or unsubscribe to ELCIC Information by emailing info@elcic.ca with a short message.

During a break from the business sessions taking place at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC)’s Eleventh Biennial National Convention, many delegates had an opportunity to hear more about the ELCIC’s work In Mission for Others in the world at the ELCIC Mission in the World (MIW) Luncheon which was held on Friday, June 22, 2007 at the University Club on the University of Manitoba campus. The event gave MIW  coordinators an opportunity to highlight recent accomplishments and new initiatives in this important work which included Program Coordinator Kelvin Krieger’s announcement that Sr. Monica Denk has been appointed as International Volunteer Coordinator of the ELCIC and Canadian Lutheran World Relief.
 
International highlights on the work being done by skilled and gifted people of faith included: Erika Parker’s completing five years of service in Bratislava; Rev. Dale and Donna Finch will be working in Jerusalem at Augusta Victoria Hospital and within the school system in Jordan and the Holy Land; Margaret Sadler and Marcus Busch are working for a year in Cambodia with the Lutheran World Federation; and Fran Schmidt has just become a long term missionary in Peru.
 
Edelvis Iraida Rodriguez Cadillo, Treasurer of the Peruvian Lutheran Evangelical Church brought greetings and thanks from her church council and congregation in Peru. Many congregations have become established in Lima and as well as other communities. Through a translator, she extended particular thanks to Rev. Katherine Bergbusch for her mission work and she also expressed a wish to host more visitors from Canada in her homeland.
 
Rev. Bergbusch has announced her retirement after thirteen years of mission work in Peru, the last 3 years in the Amazon jungle. She was inspired to undertake the work by the efforts of others in the field and a desire to share a better awareness of the rest of the world. Rev. Bergbusch describes her work as "accompaniment – not ahead or behind but beside – arm in arm as a partner". She also clarified that she felt more appropriately in mission "with" others and cherishes the friendships she gained in Peru.
 
Kelvin Krieger and Rev. Paul Johnson, ELCIC Assistant to the Bishop for Ecumenical Relations, encouraged prayer for the partner churches around the world and the opportunity to live out Jesus’ call for the faithful.

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The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 174,555 baptized members in 620 congregations. It is a member of the Lutheran World Federation, the Canadian Council of Churches and the World Council of Churches.

Material provided through ELCIC Information is intended for reproduction and redistribution by recipients in whatever manner they may find useful.

For more information, please contact:
Trina Gallop, Manager of Communications
302-393 Portage Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 3H6
204.984.9172
tgallop@elcic.ca

Subscribe or unsubscribe to ELCIC Information by emailing info@elcic.ca with a short message.

The Anglican Church of Canada has chosen Bishop Fred Hitz of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island as its 13th Primate or national leader.

Bishop Hiltz was elected by the church’s General Synod, meeting in Winnipeg, on the 5th ballot, from among four bishops nominated last April by a gathering of all Canadian bishops.

Bishop Hiltz, 53, will succeed Archbishop Andrew Hutchison, elected three years ago, who announced earlier that he would retire at the end of the General Synod gathering now underway.

Bishop Hiltz was elected assistant bishop of the diocese of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island in 1995 and elected diocesan bishop in 2002. He was a member of the Council of General Synod from 2001 to 2004 and, since, 2006, has served as the Anglican Co-Chair of the Anglican-Lutheran International Commission.

In a statement after his nomination for the primacy, Bishop Hiltz described the Primate as "a servant of the people of God (whose) ministry is the gather the Church, to unite its members in a holy fellowship of truth and love, and to inspire them in the service of Christ’s mission in the world."

He is married to Lynne Samways and they have one son.

—————————————————————–
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 174,555 baptized members in 620 congregations. It is a member of the Lutheran World Federation, the Canadian Council of Churches and the World Council of Churches.

Material provided through ELCIC Information is intended for reproduction and redistribution by recipients in whatever manner they may find useful.

For more information, please contact:
Trina Gallop, Manager of Communications
302-393 Portage Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 3H6
204.984.9172
tgallop@elcic.ca

Subscribe or unsubscribe to ELCIC Information by emailing info@elcic.ca with a short message.

Over 620 delegates, visitors and volunteers filled Winnipeg’s University of Manitoba Plenary Hall on the evening of Thursday, June 21, 2007 for the official opening of the Eleventh Biennial National Convention of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC).
 
The service began with the ritual filling of the font with water borne by a representative from each synod and poured into the font by the Synodical Bishop. Prayers of thanksgiving and bidding were offered and the community joined voices in song.

National Bishop Raymond Schultz began the Bishop’s Charge by recalling the words of Albert Schweitzer: "Even if it’s a little thing, do something for others – something for which you get no pay but the privilege of doing it." Bishop Schultz praised the work of Gordon Jenson and Judy Wry whose 1995 report on Future Directions Task Force on Mission became the Evangelical Declaration which marks its 10th anniversary this year. He added, "It is a document that defines what it means to be the church in mission and what it means to live as the church in the world".
 
From the declaration comes the theme for this convention "In Mission for Others: A People Called". In celebration of this 10th anniversary Bishop Schultz announced "a stewardship initiative for creation" will be introduced at convention. Lutherans have come to Canada "by the calling of God" said Bishop Schultz, and like Abraham and Sarah, "Lutherans are to be a blessing in the land to which they have been sent".
 
Drawing from a sidebar comment in the Evangelical Declaration, Bishop Schultz reminded delegates that opportunities for mission abound "right on our doorsteps and… that God promises to be with us unconditionally in the midst of the changes in our world".

The convention will offer the opportunity to learn more about international and ecumenical partners, as well as celebrate the work of ELCIC seminaries, Evangelical Lutheran Women, and the work that resulted from the ELCIC’s participation in the development of the new worship resource, Evangelical Lutheran Worship.
 
Bishop Schultz concluded: "I charge you with the words of St. Paul: ‘…live in a way that is worthy of the people God has chosen to be his own. Always be humble and gentle. Patiently put up with each other and love each other. Try our best to let God’s Spirit keep your hearts united. Do this by living at peace. All of you are part of the same body. There is only one Spirit of God, just as you were given one hope when you were chosen to be God’s people’" (Ephesians 4:1-4)