JERUSALEM (RNS) — Ultra-Orthodox leaders on Sept. 28 removed barriers separating men and women from a Jerusalem street after Israel’s High Court of Justice ruled that the tall screens were illegal. Representatives of the Eda Haredit, an ultra-Orthodox organization that…

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (RNS) — Doug De Vries describes Sunday evening worship as “a lot less formal” than the morning service at Plymouth Heights Christian Reformed Church. It’s also a lot less crowded. Plymouth Heights is in step with a…

Two tornadoes with winds of up to 125 miles per hour struck parts of Brooklyn and Queens in New York City Sept. 16, damaging structures at two LCMS schools and churches. They were just the ninth and 10th tornadoes to…

By James Heine The LCMS Council of Presidents (COP) has approved the placement of 214 church workers. The number includes 34 pastors and 180 commissioned ministers. Also, the council assigned 29 men to vicarages, including 23 men engaged in the…

“Bach at the Sem,” the Sunday afternoon concert series at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, begins its 19th season this fall. Four concerts will be performed in the seminary’s Chapel of St. Timothy and St. Titus — all begin at 3…

Concordia University Chicago invites the public to join its faculty, staff and students for a free workshop exploring the principles of “servant leadership” and “why traditional top-down leadership is no longer appropriate or effective for most contemporary organizations.” The workshop…

From now through Reformation Day (Oct. 31) Concordia Publishing House is offering Lutheranism 101 at a special introductory Web-only price of $14.99, plus shipping.  The book’s regular price is $24.99. Whether you’re a lifelong Lutheran, a newcomer to the faith…

Convention Proceedings 2010 — the official record of the 64th Regular Convention of the Synod that met July 10-17 in Houston — is online in downloadable PDF format at http://www.lcms.org/proceedings. In line with Synod Bylaw 3.1.10.1, the printed Proceedings will…

(RNS) — The basic text used for Alcoholics Anonymous programs, known as “The Big Book,” initially used stronger religious language but was reduced to appeal to a wider audience, The Washington Post is reporting. Hazelden, a nonprofit addiction treatment center,…

WASHINGTON (RNS) — Religious minorities — especially Muslims — figure prominently in religious freedom investigations by the Justice Department, a new report shows.  “Jewish synagogues and schools, African-American churches, and, increasingly, Muslim mosques and schools are particularly vulnerable to discriminatory…

Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, Ind., invites nominations and applications for the position of executive director of Campus Ministries. The executive director of Valparaiso University Campus Ministries is responsible for the management and direction of the various campus ministries of the university,…

Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, has exceeded by more than $3 million the $77 million goal set in 2005 for its “How Will They Hear?” campaign. As of the campaign’s end on June 30, the five-year effort has received $80,010,613 in…

At its Sept. 10-11 meeting in St. Louis, the Synod’s Board of Directors began its work in the new triennium by electing Board officers and organizing its subcommittees, hearing reports and taking several actions that included revising the national church…

By Joe Isenhower Jr. and Paula Schlueter Ross  The two new mission boards formed out of sweeping structure changes adopted by this summer’s Synod convention met for the first time during a Sept. 9-10 orientation in St. Louis for all…

Robert “Bob” Uthoff of St. Louis joined the Lutheran Church Extension Fund staff Aug. 23 as vice-president of its new Loan Resolution Group — a component of the LCEF Loan Department. According to an Aug. 25 LCEF news release, the…

Dr. Gerhard F. Bode, president of the LCMS Oklahoma District from 1978 to 1988, died Sept. 15 at the age of 96. Dr. Bode died in Houston at the retirement home where he lived, after suffering complications from a stroke.  …