NEW ORLEANS (RNS) — Wearing a monk’s robe, Abbot Justin Brown climbed into the witness box on June 6 and said the only people who ever opposed his abbey’s bid to sell handmade caskets were funeral insiders who stood to…

Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC) opened its ninth triennial convention June 3-6 in Hamilton, Ontario, with a march through the city’s downtown streets to Christ’s Church Cathedral for the opening worship service.  About 400 delegates, guests and members of local Lutheran congregations…

Each LCMS congregation will receive this summer a free copy of a new Bible study on the Synod’s threefold “Witness, Mercy, Life Together” emphasis, including a video version on DVD. The mid-July mailing, funded by a donor, also will include…

A new campaign sponsored by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans seeks to raise Americans’ awareness of ways to improve their finances. Titled “Do One Thing Differently,” the campaign asks the question, “Would you do one thing differently to improve your financial…

Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, Ind., will host the International Loehe Society Theological Conference III July 26-30. Founded in 2005, the International Loehe Society seeks to promote the study of Wilhelm Loehe (1808-1872), a Bavarian pastor and churchman who…

By Adriane Dorr Heavy rain in the Midwest and above-average snowmelt out West have caused extensive flooding in Iowa, South Dakota and Montana. As rivers continue to rise, Lutheran families and LCMS churches in the affected areas are beginning to…

Reservations are required by July 1 for a 12-day tour of Germany hosted by Synod President Dr. Matthew C. Harrison and Rev. Jon Vieker, senior assistant to the president.  Produced by LutherTours, the Nov. 30-Dec. 11 tour coincides with the…

Medical volunteers are urgently needed to work at the clinic operated by Immanuel Lutheran Church in Joplin, to treat those injured by the devastating May 22 tornado in the southwest Missouri town. At the request of the congregation, LCMS World…

Carol Tobias, a member of Immanuel Lutheran Church, Albuquerque, N.M., is the new president of the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC), the national federation of 50 state affiliates and more than 3,000 local chapters. Tobias, the eighth NRLC president…

Rev. Dennis Konkel of Des Moines, Iowa, is the new executive director of the Lutheran Deaf Mission Society (LDMS).  He is the first deaf director of the LDMS. Konkel, 62, was elected by the society’s Board of Directors May 5. …

By Kim Plummer Krull Even a disaster-response veteran like LCMS World Relief and Human Care’s (WR-HC) Rev. Glenn F. Merritt says the devastation after the deadly tornado in Joplin, Mo., surpasses what he has seen after most other disasters. “This…

TORONTO (RNS) — A group of Catholic and Jewish parents is taking the province of Quebec to court to challenge a government ban on religious teachings at subsidized daycare centers. The parents say a Quebec policy that prohibits religious instruction…

(RNS) — Religious leaders are hoping to hit a home run in a campaign to get Major League Baseball players to ban tobacco use on fields and dugouts of the national pastime. More than two dozen members of the coalition…

By James Heine Acting as the Board of Assignments, the LCMS Council of Presidents (COP) April 30 assigned first calls to 149 candidates certified for ministry by Concordia Seminary, St. Louis; Concordia Theological Seminary (CTS), Fort Wayne, Ind.; Concordia Lutheran…

By Joe Isenhower Jr. FORT WAYNE, Ind. — At its May 18-19 meeting here on the campus of Concordia Theological Seminary, the Synod’s Board of Directors adopted a national-Synod operating budget of $76,748,812 for the 2011-12 fiscal year that starts…

By Sarah Schafer Harold and Harriet Fritz were two of dozens of volunteers from across the country to help with tornado relief at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Martin Luther School in Joplin, Mo., over Memorial Day weekend. “It’s the least…