In a letter issued today, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) National Bishop Susan C. Johnson encourages individuals and congregations to join with others throughout the Lutheran communion and pray for churches and communities affected by the Ebola crisis in Central and West Africa on Sunday, September 28.

The text of Bishop Johnson’s letter follows. A pdf version of the letter can be viewed here: https://www.elcic.ca/Documents/20140925PastoralletterEbola.pdf

September 26, 2014

Dear friends in Christ,

This Sunday, September 28, churches throughout the Lutheran communion are invited to join in prayers of solidarity for churches and communities affected by the Ebola crisis in Central and West Africa. I encourage you, individually and within your congregation, to hold in prayer our sister churches in this region this coming Sunday, and as you are able.

According to the World Health Organizations, over 2,900 deaths from the Ebola virus disease have been confirmed in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Lutheran World Federation General Secretary Rev. Martin Junge, speaking about the request for a day of solidarity in prayer says, “As we explore collaborative ways of supporting our brothers and sisters in these countries, let us continue to uphold them in our prayers. When one part of the communion is sick, mourning, suffering and distressed, this pain is shared by the entire communion.”

Bishops from Lutheran churches in the affection regions have expressed their appreciation for the global call for prayers. Evangelical Lutheran Church in Sierra Leone Bishop Thomas J. Barnett says, “We give thanks to God for sparing mercies and for the knowledge that there are others out there who continue to be with us in prayers.”

I invite you to please join me in praying this Sunday, September 28 for churches and communities affected by the Ebola crisis in Central and West Africa, with this or another petition:

Loving God, we lift up before you all the people, churches and communities affected by the Ebola crisis in Central and West Africa. Grant comfort and healing to all who suffer and all who mourn. We give you thanks for those who are providing care for those in need. Amen.

 

I also invite you to make donations to Canadian Lutheran World Relief who is working with partners, including the Christian Health Association of Liberia, to mitigate against and prevent further Ebola infections while encouraging the highest standard of health care for the people of Liberia. You can make donations at http://clwr.donorshops.com/product/0A12F05/ebolaoutbreakresponse.php

 

Yours in Christ,

The Rev. Susan C. Johnson
National Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada

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The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 145,376 baptized members in 594 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 Blank, Director of Communications
600-177 Lombard Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 0W5
204.984.9172
tgallop@elcic.ca

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

A statement from the heads of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, The Anglican Church of Canada, and The Episcopal Church, on Friday, September 19,  2014. To find this document in PDF format, click here.

We are united as Christian leaders in our concern for the well-being of our neighbors and God’s good creation that provides life and livelihood for all God’s creatures. Daily we see and hear the evidence of a rapidly changing climate. Glaciers are disappearing , the polar ice cap is melting, and sea levels are rising. incidents of pollution- created dead zones in seas and the ocean and toxic algae growth in water supplies are occurring with greater frequency. Most disturbingly, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is rising at an unprecedented rate. At the same time we also witness in too many instances how the earth’s natural beauty, a sign of God’s wonderful creativity, has been defiled by pollution and waste.

Many have reacted to these changes with grief and anger. In their outrage some have understandably focused on the neglect and carelessness, both in private industry and in government regulation, that have contributed to these changes. However, an honest accounting requires a recognition that we all participate both as consumers and investors in economies that make intensive and insistent demands for energy. In addition, as citizens we have chosen to support or acquiesce in policies that shift the burdens of climate change to communities that are most vulnerable to its effects. People who are already challenged by poverty and by dislocation resulting from civil war or famine have limited resources for adapting to climate change’s effects.

While an accounting of climate change that has credibility and integrity must include our own repentance, we find our hope in the promise of God’s own faithfulness to the creation and humankind and in the liberation that comes from God’s promise.

God, who made the creation and made it good, has not abandoned it. Daily the Spirit continues to renew the face of the earth. All who care for the earth and work for the restoration of its vitality can be confident that they are not pursuing a lost cause. We serve in concert with God’s own creative and renewing power.

Moreover, we need not surrender to political ideologies and other modern mythologies that would divide us into partisan factions – deserving and undeserving, powerless victims and godless oppressors. In Christ we have the promise of a life where God has reconciled the human community. In Christ God sets us free from the captivity of blaming and shaming. God liberates us for shared endeavors where we find each other at our best.

While the challenge may seem daunting, the Spirit ‘s abundant gifts for service empower us to find common cause with people who exercise countless insights and skills, embodied in hundreds of occupations and trades. We have good reason to hope in all the ways God’s grace is at work among us. We can commend ourselves to the work before us with confidence in God’s mercy.

Opportunities to act imaginatively and courageously abound in all our individual callings. The Holy Spirit’s work in us leads us as faithful consumers and investors in a global economy to make responsible choices to reduce energy use, carbon emissions, and the wasteful consumption of water and other natural resources. As citizens, we have voices to use in educating children about the climate and in shaping public and corporate policies that affect the environment. The Spirit has also given us our voices to contribute our witness to public discussions of just and responsible use of natural resources.

We also have the resources and responsibility to act together for the common good, especially for those most vulnerable to the effect of climate change in the spirit of the seventh Millennium Development Goal, “to ensure environmental stability”. World leaders will meet this month in New York for a Climate Summit, and in December in Lima, Peru, to discuss global cooperation on climate change. Working under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), participants in the UNFCCC’s negotiations hope for an agreement in 2015 that will move toward reduction of carbon emissions, development of low carbon technologies, and assistance to populations most vulnerable to the effects of a changing climate.

We encourage you to take the initiative to engage decision-makers in this godly work in all areas of public life – in government and business, in schools and civic organizations, in social media and also in our church life. We are not powerless to act and we are not alone. “We have the power of the Holy Spirit and the indwelling Spirit of Christ to give us hope and courage.”

The present moment is a critical one, filled with both challenges and opportunity to act as faithful individuals and churches in solidarity with God’s good creation.

Bishop Elizabeth Eaton
Presiding Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori
Presiding Bishop and Primate, The Episcopal Church

The Most Rev. Fred Hiltz
Primate, Anglican Church of Canada

Bishop Susan Johnson
National Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada

In a letter to the church sent out today, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) National Bishop Susan C. Johnson encourages ELCIC members and congregations to, “consider making time between now and October 1 for an intentional time of prayer, reflection and action for climate justice.”

Several resources for individual and congregational use are included in the letter to the church.

The text of Bishop Johnson’s letter follows. View a pdf version here: https://www.elcic.ca/Documents/201409ClimateAction.pdf

September 11, 2014

Dear friends in Christ,

Grace to you and peace in the name of Christ our Saviour!

I am writing today to invite you and your congregation to consider making time between now and October 1 for an intentional time of prayer, reflection and action for climate justice.

As I travel across our church and visit with our partners, I am aware of how many people share a concern for climate justice. Most recently, at the June 2014 Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Council meeting member churches were challenged to increase awareness of climate justice issues.

On the first day of each month, I – along with many people in our church and globally – participate in a fast (#fastfortheclimate) and pray for climate justice and for the people most affected by climate change. This regular discipline keeps climate justice issues close to my heart and mind.

Government leaders from across the globe will be meeting in New York City for a one-day United Nations climate summit on September 23. There is a growing movement to encourage the work of these leaders, both with prayers and with a massive, united call for climate justice and a strong climate treaty. This includes a Global Day of Action on September 20-21.

Through our ecumenical partners, there are a variety of ways for you to engage these matters:

• Consider participating in the People’s Climate March (peoplesclimate.org/global) on September 21 as a way of expressing a united call for climate justice. KAIROS has several suggestions for engagement (kairoscanada.org/sustainability/climate-justice/peoplesclimatemarch/).
• On Sunday, September 21 – consider what could take place at your congregation through worship, prayer and reflection. Citizens for Public Justice (cpj.ca), in collaboration with the Canadian Council of Churches, have created resources for faith communities (cpj.ca/climate) specifically related to the UN Summit.
• Join me in prayer on the first of every month through the #fastfortheclimate campaign. Visit the Canadian website for climate fast (climatefast.ca).
• Share your good practices for becoming sustainable and eco-friendly, on the LWF Climate Justice Facebook page (facebook.com/LWFforclimatejustice?ref=br_rs).

Climate change is an issue that involves us all. I encourage you to consider ways to get involved both individually and with your congregation in prayer, reflection and action for climate justice.

Yours in Christ,

The Rev. Susan C. Johnson
National Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada

—————————————————————–
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 145,376 baptized members in 594 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 Blank, Director of Communications
600-177 Lombard Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 0W5
204.984.9172
tgallop@elcic.ca

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

Have you heard of the #icebucketchallenge? View ELCIC National Bishop Susan Johnson’s #icebucketchallenge video.

Excitement is high for the upcoming gathering of hundreds of Canadian Lutheran and Anglican youth at CLAY 2014. From August 14 to 17, upwards of 600 of the most passionate and talented 14- to 19-year-olds from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada and the Anglican Church of Canada, will convene in Kamloops, BC.

CLAY is held every two years and is one of the strongest showings of full communion relationship between the ELCIC and ACC.

This iteration of CLAY features worship, fellowship over food, service-based learning events, inspiring keynotes, and late night high-energy and low-key social times. Youth will further work on a national youth project on the right to water among First Nations, explore their relationship with social media through the lens of faith, and discern together what church means in this time and place.

Participants will enjoy a range of experiences of God, church, and their faith from ancient forms of worship to collaborative multimedia explorations of issues of concern to youth.

CLAY 2014 invites all those who gather to consider the theme “Worth It.” This simple, but evocative, theme challenges participants to consider what secular culture considers ‘worth it’ and what a rich Christian faith might value instead.
 
Devon Goldie, the Anglican representative on the planning team, is thrilled CLAY 2014 is finally on the horizon, “I love reconnecting with the national Anglican-Lutheran youth community. It’s such a blessing to be able to learn, worship, work and play with like-minded people. Totally WORTH IT!”

Hannah Shirtliff, communications coordinator for the gathering planning team, shares in the enthusiasm for the upcoming gathering. “I’m excited to see CLAY 2014 is finally here,” says Shirtliff, who is also excited for what youth will take away with them from the gathering. “I hope youth will come away with a deeper relationship with God and a deeper appreciation of their own home church community and the wider church community. And I really hope it inspires them to get more involved with their own churches, and the wider church as well!”

It is not just the youth who are gearing up for CLAY! Sara Stratton, Member Relations/Campaigns Coordinator at KAIROS, is eager to join in as leader of a ministry project on responsible resource extraction. “Participants will have the opportunity to learn more about the impact of Canadian mining on a community in Guatemala, to reflect on their role in it as consumers, and to think about how their faith compels them to challenge injustice,” she says. “That’s really what KAIROS is all about, and to get to do it at CLAY, with this engaged and dedicated new generation of church leadership is a fantastic opportunity.

To keep in touch with the happenings in Kamloops follow:

Facebook http://www.facebook.com/claygathering
Twitter: @claygathering
Instagram @claygathering
Storify http://storify.com/claygathering

Those who are interested can also search for social media content using the #clay2014 hashtag and read longer blog posts from youth participants at claygathering.ca.

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The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 145,376 baptized members in 594 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 Blank, Director of Communications
600-177 Lombard Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 0W5
204.984.9172
tgallop@elcic.ca

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

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) National Bishop Susan C. Johnson wrote to Prime Minister Stephen Harper today and called on the Government of Canada to provide leadership to end the crisis in Gaza. In her letter, Bishop Johnson urged the government to build a strategy on Gaza to address: "the need for an immediate cessation of hostilities; the protection of civilians ensuring respect for international humanitarian law, respecting the principles of distinction and proportionality; the need for humanitarian access for life-saving and emergency assistance which is urgently needed, among them medicines, water and repairing of electricity and water infrastructure; and the need for a long lasting solution to this conflict."

A pdf version of the letter can be viewed here: https://www.elcic.ca/Documents/20140801ELCIClettertoPrimeMinisteronpeaceinGAZA.pdf

The text of the letter follows:

The Right Honourable Stephen Harper
Prime Minister of Canada
Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A2

August 1, 2014

Email: pm@pm.gc.ca

Re: Seeking your immediate attention to end the crisis in Gaza

Dear Prime Minister,

On behalf of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC), I am writing to ask for your attention and leadership to end the crisis in Gaza.

Reports from our partner churches and agencies indicate that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is dire, and needs commitment from the international community to ensure protection and safety of civilians and all objects protected by international humanitarian law such as hospitals and clinics, schools and places of worship. To alleviate the suffering of people in this conflict, which has also seen fighting in the West Bank and Jerusalem, unconditional humanitarian access needs to be provided.

The world cannot remain silent; neither can it afford to be neutral when people are dying with little attention given to the international principles of distinction and proportionality in warfare. The number of casualties among women and children continues to rise every day. These are not just statistics; they are innocent and precious lives that need to be preserved. The people of Gaza continue to live in fear of their own lives. The war on both sides must end now. It seems likely that it will not happen without significant international pressure, pressure which the Government of Canada needs to provide.
 
The widening gap of the psychological barrier between the Israelis and the people of Gaza cannot be allowed to continue and be passed on to future generations. This is detrimental to finding a peaceful solution to the crisis and contributes to creating security risks of both regional and global proportions. There will be no peace in Gaza, if there is no peace in Israel, and vice versa.

We call on the government to build a strategy on Gaza in view of the following considerations:

The need for an immediate cessation of hostilities.
The protection of civilians ensuring respect for international humanitarian law, respecting the principles of distinction and proportionality.
The need for humanitarian access for life-saving and emergency assistance which is urgently needed, among them medicines, water and repairing of electricity and water infrastructure.
The need for a long lasting solution to this conflict.

At our 2009 National Convention, the ELCIC adopted a “Resolution on Peace in the Holy Land” (https://elcic.ca/Public-Policy/documents/600.52009-ELCICResolutiononPeaceintheHolyLand.pdf.) that formally commits our church to promote peace in the Holy Land and to regularly pray for peace for all people in the region, especially the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL). As National Bishop, I have personally visited the Holy Land several times. I count ELCJHL church leaders among my friends and I have been inspired by their vision for community development that leads to hope and peace. News of death, war and destruction touches my heart most deeply and lends urgency to my prayers.
I urge you to offer leadership for peace.

Yours in Christ,

The Rev. Susan C. Johnson
National Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada

c.c. The Honourable John Baird, Minister of Foreign Affairs
The Honourable Thomas Mulcair, The Leader of the Official Opposition
Justin Trudeau, MP, Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada
Elizabeth May, MP, Leader of the Green Party of Canada
Mario Beaulieu, Leader of the Bloc Québécois

—————————————————————–
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 145,376 baptized members in 594 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 Blank, Director of Communications
600-177 Lombard Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 0W5
204.984.9172
tgallop@elcic.ca

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

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) National Bishop Susan C. Johnson wrote to Prime Minister Stephen Harper and expressed her deep concern for the people of Mosul. In her letter, Bishop Johnson urged the Government of Canada "to call for an end to violence, intimidation and expulsion," and provide humanitarian aid to those forced to flee as refugees.

A pdf of the letter to the Prime Minister can be viewed here: https://www.elcic.ca/Documents/ELCIClettertoPrimeMinisteonMOSULexpulsion20140730.pdf

The text of the letter follows.

The Right Honourable Stephen Harper
Prime Minister of Canada
Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A2
Email: pm@pm.gc.ca

July 30, 2014

Re: Expulsion of Christians in Mosul

Dear Prime Minister Harper,

I am writing to express my deep concern for the people of Mosul, who are living with intimidation and violence. In particular, I hear of Christians being targeted with threats and expelled from their homes and communities.

I am also concerned about reports that the Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) is destroying holy sites. This represents an atrocious and long-term violation of religious freedom.

Patriarch Louis Raphael Sako, the Chaldean Catholic Patriarch of Baghdad, and Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, the General Secretary of the World Council of Churches, have called on Christians around the world to express their solidarity with those who are suffering. A report by Amnesty International indicates that violations of international humanitarian law are being carried out by all sides, including ISIS and Iraqi Government forces.

The world seems to be in danger of ignoring this tragic situation.

I urge the Government of Canada to take every opportunity to express its concern for the people of Mosul, and to call for an end to violence, intimidation and expulsion. And I encourage the Government of Canada to provide humanitarian aid to those forced to flee as refugees.

My prayers are with all who suffer the effects of war, violence and expulsion. And my prayers are with you and the Government of Canada as you seek to promote peace, human rights and religious freedom around the world.

Yours in Christ,

The Rev. Susan C. Johnson
National Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada

c.c. The Honourable John Baird, Minister of Foreign Affairs
The Honourable Thomas Mulcair, The Leader of the Official Opposition
Justin Trudeau, MP, Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada
Daniel Paillé, MP, Leader of the Bloc Québécois
Elizabeth May, MP, Leader of the Green Party of Canada

—————————————————————–
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 145,376 baptized members in 594 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 Blank, Director of Communications
600-177 Lombard Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 0W5
204.984.9172
tgallop@elcic.ca

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

Members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) are invited to join with the ecumenical global community and pray for peace and reunification of the Korean Peninsula on Sunday, August 10.

At the World Council of Churches (WCC) Assembly in Busan, South Korean at the end of 2013, delegates adopted a Statement on Peace and Reunification of the Korean Peninsula. This statement presents a mandate for the WCC to accompany the peoples of North and South Korea in their struggle for justice, peace and life.

“The World Council of Churches, of which we are a member, is the broadest expression of the Christian Church that comes together,” says ELCIC National Bishop Susan C. Johnson. “WCC’s recent efforts towards peace and reunification between North and South Korea are not something we can do on our own. Through the breadth of churches and organizations that partner with the World Council of Churches, this work is happening and we play a part in it.”

“I encourage all ELCIC members and congregations to lift up in prayer the peoples of North and South Korea,” continues Johnson. “We pray for all who live under the threat of violence.”

A 2014 South-North (North-South) Joint Prayer for Peace and Reunification on the Korean Peninsula has been prepared by the WCC. ELCIC members and congregations are encouraged to use this prayer, or others, on Sunday, August 10.

To find the prayer in PDF format, click here: https://www.elcic.ca/Documents/JointPrayerforKoreanPeninsula.pdf

—————————————————————–
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 145,376 baptized members in 594 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 Blank, Director of Communications
600-177 Lombard Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 0W5
204.984.9172
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) and Canadian Lutheran World Relief (CLWR) issue an appeal for prayers and financial support to treat Palestinian civilians injured as a result of hostilities between Palestinians in Gaza and Israel.

"We stand with all the people in the Holy Land and keep them in our prayers," says ELCIC National Bishop Susan C. Johnson. "We pray for peace for all who are affected by this violence and devastation. Gracious God, comfort all those who live in fear. May you bring mercy, compassion and grace to all in need and strengthen the will of those who can impact negotiations and bring peace."

Donations will provide urgently needed medical supplies to civilians receiving treatment at the Augusta Victoria Hospital, a program of the Lutheran World Federation in East Jerusalem.

“Hospitals in Gaza are under great pressure as they suffer from an acute shortage of essential drugs, medical supplies and fuel to provide power,” said CLWR Executive Director Robert Granke. “The Palestinian health sector is relying heavily on the services of Augusta Victoria Hospital on the Mount of Olives,” he added.

Lutherans are encouraged to participate in the appeal through prayer and financial support.

Remember the people who live in the Holy Land and all those who yearn for peace in your prayers, especially on the 24th of every month (a date set aside for a regular global ecumenical call to prayer initiated by ACT Alliance), until a just and lasting negotiated resolution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict occurs. Please visit actpalestineforum.org/vigil/ to sign up and see worship resources.

Donations to the “Medical care for Palestinian civilians” appeal may be made in the following ways:

1. By making a designated offering donation through any ELCIC congregation.

2. By giving online at www.clwr.org/donate. Click on Emergencies and select “Medical care for Palestinian civilians.”

3. By calling CLWR at 1.800.661.2597 (locally at 204.694.5602) to donate by credit card.

4. By sending a cheque made payable to CLWR and mailed to CLWR, 600-177 Lombard Avenue, Winnipeg, MB R3B 0W5. Please indicate that you wish to contribute to “Medical care for Palestinian civilians.”

Further information on the region can be found in a release by The Lutheran World Federation issued earlier today: www.lutheranworld.org/news/holy-land-lutheran-bishop-younan-pleads-end-revenge-and-bloodshed
—————————————————————–
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada is Canada’s largest Lutheran denomination with 145,376 baptized members in 594 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, Director of Communications
600-177 Lombard Ave. Winnipeg MB R3B 0W5
204.984.9172
tgallop@elcic.ca

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