By Paula Schlueter Ross Missionary Erin Mackenzie says she was “very excited” to hear that a photo she took — of an American teenager hugging a young Mexican boy — received the most votes in the Facebook-based LCMS World Mission…

By Kim Plummer Krull After members of Faith Lutheran Church participated in a workshop to better tune into needs in their Groton, Conn., neighborhood, the congregation started a food kitchen that now serves more than 75 families weekly. Two years…

By Albert B. Collver On Oct. 28, a delegation from the LCMS consisting of Dr. Albert Collver, the Synod’s director of Church Relations — assistant to the president; Dr. Joel Lehenbauer, executive director of the LCMS Commission on Theology and…

The 2010 children’s Christmas program from Concordia Publishing House, “God’s Love at Christmas,” is based on the children’s Christmas hymn, “God Loves Me Dearly.”  The hymn was originally written in 1852 by Rev. August Rische, a German Lutheran pastor who was working with…

By Gene Edward Veith Do atheists know more about religion than religious people do?  That was the conclusion of recent news reports on the U.S. Religious Knowledge Survey conducted by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, which released…

(RNS) — When asked about Christianity’s recent contributions to society, Americans cited more negatives than benefits, according to a new survey. The negative contribution cited most was hatred or violence in the name of Jesus, according to the Barna Group…

NEW ORLEANS (RNS) — Even with the deep-sea oil hemorrhage halted and much of the fishing in the Gulf of Mexico reopened, major charity groups say the needs of impacted families remain dire. Officials from the local affiliates of Second…

The completion of the first phase of a 45,000-square-foot expansion of the Walther Library at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, will give the institution more space for library services than it has had since the seminary moved in 1976 from…

By Kim Plummer Krull Ten months after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake devastated Haiti, news stories report how little has changed, including that more than 1 million survivors remain homeless and that none of the U.S. government’s pledged $1.15 billion in…

Two Concordia University System schools have received major grants from the U.S. Department of Education. Concordia College, Selma, Ala., is one of 96 historically black schools that were awarded grants in the Strengthening Historically Black Colleges and Universities Program. The…

LCMS World Mission is seeking two short-term missionaries to serve as soon as possible in Slovakia. The missionaries would serve for about three months as English teachers at a high school in Kosice, Slovakia.  Duties will include teaching English grammar,…

The Synod’s policy of full financial disclosure provides for making available to members of the Synod (congregations, pastors, teachers and others on the roster), on written request, the salary grid scales of all Synod and district officials, staff and faculty…

Note:  Reporter cannot accept notices about items offered for sale or that people wish to purchase.  Items described as “Wanted” or “Available” are sought or may be obtained for shipping costs only. Available The Lutheran Hymnal, CPH 1941, approximately 150…

LEROY W. MASON, Browns Valley, Calif., has applied for reinstatement to the Ministers of Religion-Ordained roster of The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod. CORINNE M. BIELENBERG, Willmar, Minn.; KYLE BRYAN CHUHRAN, Shelby Township, Mich.; and LINDA N. ERKKINEN, St. Louis, Mo., have…

In response to Res. 4-03 of the 2010 LCMS convention, “that each November, the Vice-President-Finance–Treasurer of the Synod use widely available means (i.e., The Lutheran Witness, Reporter, LCMS website) to state the financial position of the Synod in a form…