By Paula Schlueter Ross John Edson, chairman of the new LCMS Resolution 8-07 Task Force, has a message for the Synod’s 35 districts: Please don’t worry about what the task force is doing. We’ll consult with you on a regular basis…
Mission Advancement debuts new magazine in September
By Jeni Miller Next month, the LCMS is launching a new bimonthly publication to inform, inspire and involve church workers and contributors in the life of the church. Its title, Lutherans Engage the World™, conveys what this publication seeks to…
Official notice: college president nominations (August 2012)
Concordia College–New York, Bronxville, N.Y., issued a call for nominations for individuals to serve as the college’s ninth president. The following 14 individuals have consented to stand for nomination: The Rev. Dr. Scott A. Ashmon, Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.Dr. Eric…
Black ministry's 'new song' envisions new engagement
By Joe Isenhower Jr. GREENSBORO, N.C. — Participants in the 2012 Black Ministry Family Convocation here July 11-15 heard plans for a new association of congregations and individuals in black ministry to stay connected and remain as a driving force…
Official notice: requests for reinstatement (August 2012)
HEATHER CHILDRESS, Shattuc, Ill.; MELINDA JAYNE HANKE, Ballwin, Mo.; JANET B. HEIEN, Peoria, Ill.; MEREDITH MATTERN, Spring, Texas; DAWN M. MUELLER, Wheaton, Ill.; LA RAYNE NEWTON, Saginaw, Mich.; JAMES GRANT RUSH II, Flint, Mich.; JAMES A. SCHEUER, Milwaukee, Wis.; and…
Pressure Points (August 2012)
With Dr. Bruce Hartung Q: Again and again I see the young people in our youth group at church on their cell phones. I think they are texting because they are not doing much talking into their phones. Even when…
Aurora congregations respond to shooting tragedy
By James H. Heine By now, much of the world is aware of the senseless tragedy that unfolded in a movie theater in Aurora, Colo., in the early morning hours of Friday, July 20. A young man armed with multiple…
LCMS pastor dies in accident
By Adriane Dorr The Rev. James Haugen — former pastor of Zion Lutheran Church, Columbia City, Ind., and current pastor of Living Water Lutheran Church, Wolf Lake, Ind. — died Thursday, July 19, 2012, as a result of injuries inflicted after accidentally…
Seventh-day Adventists file suit over door-to-door solicitations
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (RNS) — Seventh-day Adventists have filed a federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of two ordinances in an Alabama city that the church says bars it and other religious groups from door-to-door solicitations unless they first register and pay…
July 20 is last day to register for Int'l LLL convention
Those who wish to attend the 94th International Convention of the International Lutheran Laymen’s League — July 26-28 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada — may still register through Friday, July 20. The theme for the convention is “Sonrise to Sunset,” based on Psalm 113:3 —…
Lithuanian Lutherans dedicate church with LCMS ties
The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Lithuania dedicated on July 14 a new church in Palanga, Lithuania, with ties to The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod. The new church, the Palanga Evangelical Lutheran Church, took seven years to build and its construction was made…
Churches shifting summer worship to Wednesday nights
SALEM, N.H. (RNS) — As New England sweltered in early July, Sunday mornings came and went without a single soul showing up for worship in the hot, stuffy sanctuary of First Congregational Church of Salem, N.H. Even the pastor stayed…
Gallup reports new low in religious confidence
(RNS) — Americans’ confidence in organized religion, slowly but steadily declining since the 1970s, slipped to a new low in the latest survey, the Gallup Organization reported. Today only 44 percent of Americans have “a great deal” or “quite a lot”…
Synod commissions 29 new missionaries for service
By Paula Schlueter Ross Twenty-nine new missionaries will soon be starting work in more than a dozen countries on behalf of The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod. The missionaries — who range in age and experience from recent college graduates to mid-career couples —…
Lutheran Blind Mission, Braille Workers merge
Two LCMS Recognized Service Organizations that have served blind and low-vision people for many years — both in the United States and worldwide — pooled their resources July 1 to become one entity. Leaders of both Lutheran Blind Mission (LBM), based…
KFUO website redesign provides new look
Visitors to the website of KFUO, the Synod’s radio broadcast ministry, will notice that it has changed in appearance during the past year. “We wanted a fresh, new look that would appeal to our listeners and to make it easier…
