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CHICAGO (ELCA) - The Rev. Claire Burkat was re-elected May 4 to serve a second six-year term as bishop of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). She was re- elected on the first ballot at the synod assembly in Telford, Pa. Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., Burkat earned a bachelor's degree in education from City University of New York, and a Master of Divinity degree from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, one of eight EL...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - The Rev. D. Jensen Seyenkulo was elected bishop of the Lutheran Church in Liberia. Elected April 28 on the first ballot at the denomination's 14th biannual convention, Seyenkulo is a program director at the churchwide ministries of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). "This is a great honor for me, and I am humbled by this election," Seyenkulo said in a May 1 interview. "I have dreamt that I would be able to return home and make a contribution to ...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - The Rev. Shelley R. Wickstrom, Seattle, was elected April 27 to a six-year term as bishop of the Alaska Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Wickstrom was elected on the third ballot during the synod's assembly April 26-28 at Joy Lutheran Church in Eagle River, Alaska. Since 2007, Wickstrom has been coordinator for missional leadership in the ELCA's Region 1 office based in Seattle. Of the 67 votes needed for election, Wickstrom rece...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - The Rev. James W. Gonia, West Dundee, Ill., was elected April 28 to a six-year term as bishop of the Rocky Mountain Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Gonia was elected on the fifth ballot during the synod assembly April 26-28 in Colorado Springs, Colo. Gonia is program director for West Africa, Tanzania and Madagascar, at ELCA churchwide ministries. He will be installed as bishop Sept. 23 at Bethany Lutheran Church in Denver. On ...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - The Rev. Kevin S. Kanouse was re-elected April 27 to serve a third six-year term as bishop of the Northern Texas-Northern Louisiana Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). He was re-elected on the first ballot at the synod assembly in Irving, Texas. Kanouse was born in Berwick, Pa.  In 1975, he graduated from Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, Pa., and in 1980 he earned a Master of Divinity degree from Lutheran Theological Seminary at Ge...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), joined with other national church leaders in urging members of Congress and President Obama to enact U.S. immigration reform "as soon as possible" in April 24 letters. The leaders wrote that state and local governments have taken measures to fill the void in the absence of one federal immigration system. "As political candidates debate immigration policy and courts de...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) approved a revised 2012 current fund spending authorization of $65,498,135, an increase of more than $1.3 million, and it approved a revised total ELCA World Hunger spending authorization for 2012 of $19,900,000, an increase of $1.4 million, when it met here April 13-15. The council serves as the ELCA's board of directors. According to council member John Emery, Fond du Lac, Wis., chair of ...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) are extending their observance of "World Malaria Day" from April 25 to May 1 with a goal of raising $200,000 to help end death from malaria. Gifts to the ELCA Malaria Campaign will allow the church to expand its anti-malaria work to include Liberia. Malaria, a preventable and treatable disease, is a leading cause of death in Africa, claiming the life of a child every 45 seconds. In Liberia, malaria a...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), shares an Easter message with the 4.2 million members of this church. The full text of the presiding bishop's message follows: Christ is risen! Imagine the power in those words of promise. When the disciples first heard Jesus speak of his death and resurrection, "they kept the matter to themselves" (Mark 9:10). But the news is too good to keep to ourselves. The life ...

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Sahel region of West and Central Africa is in a growing food crisis. Inadequate rainfall, poor harvests and rising food costs have left nearly 15.5 million people, particularly children, in need of emergency food assistance. Members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) are working to provide food and other life- sustaining necessities like medical supplies, hygiene kits and more to people affected. According to ELCA Disaster Response, the c...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - Some congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) have growing concerns about the presence of U.S.immigration officials outside churches before and after services, making many parishioners afraid to attend worship for fear that they will be detained or separated from their families. This concern is expressed in a "Statement of Interest" developed by the ELCA and Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, which is part of a brief submitted t...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - At a March 26 signing ceremony, representatives of Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory, N.C., and Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary in Columbia, S.C., celebrated the decision to merge the two institutions, effective July 1. The merger is the first such combination of an Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) seminary and university since the founding of this church in 1987. The ceremony took place at the Martin Luther Statue on Shaw Plaza in Hickory. ...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - The shooting death of Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla., has called members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America(ELCA) to engage in the work of "restoring and reconciling communities, pursuing justice and peace no matter how long the journey or wide the chasm," said ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson. "The deep sorrow of Trayvon Martin's family has become our shared public lament," he said. "The tragedy of Trayvon's death must move us to ask searching q...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - Two universities and one college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) have elected new presidents. There are 26 colleges and universities in the United States affiliated with the ELCA. Carthage College The board of trustees of Carthage College in Kenosha, Wis., elected Gregory Woodward to serve as the college's 19th president. Woodward, dean of the School of Music at Ithaca College in Ithaca, N.Y., will succeed F. Gregory Campbell -- Carthage...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - Every week it's a shot in the dark for how much food Harry and Eunice Burch will need to prepare. But one thing both Harry and Eunice agree on is that it will be a while before they prepare beef stew again. Harry stood and cut beef for four hours one evening and has the blisters to show for it. The Burch's organize Trinity's Table, a community outreach ministry of Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), will join Jewish and Islamic leaders on a panel discussion at the Coexist Prize Ceremony March 20 in New York City. Joining Hanson is Rabbi David Saperstein, director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, and His Excellency Sheikh Ali Gomaa, the grand mufti of Egypt. The panel discussion is part of the Coexist Foundation's inaugural Coexist Prize Ceremony...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - When one of the strongest earthquakes on record struck off the coast of Japan a year ago, the 4.2 million members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) took immediate action, contributing $2.9 million to ELCA Disaster Response. These funds have provided food and clean water, care and counseling to help sustain earthquake survivors and support for programs that address disaster preparedness, sustainability and the redevelopment of communities and ...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is addressing issues in the U.S. criminal justice system. The perspective of an ELCA task force on the topic is featured in the "Draft Social Statement on Criminal Justice" released to ELCA members and to the public March 15. While commending positive aspects of the system, the draft conveys some dissatisfaction with many areas about the criminal justice system that urgently need reform. "The task force was form...

ITASCA, IL. (ELCA) - According to the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is a "church that is deeply rooted and always being made new." In his March 3 report to the ELCA Conference of Bishops, the presiding bishop noted ways in which the 4.2 million members of this church together engage in life-changing ministries, impacting communities both locally and internationally. The ELCA Conference of Bishops is an advisory body of the church that in...

CHICAGO (ELCA) - Representatives of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and The Consulate General of Israel to the Midwest, both based here, met Feb. 29 to discuss one another's understanding of the "Arab Spring" developments, especially concerns for minority religious groups in the Middle East, and the official Israeli-government position regarding the situation in Syria. The request for the meeting came from Bahij Mansour, who directs the inter-religious affairs...