*Ordination of Pastor Ryan Fitch at Camp Mount Luther in Mifflinburg*

How many Lutherans does it take to…? We’ve all heard the jokes. But there’s actually an important truth underlying the humor: we are not in this alone! We are called together in community for the vital work of the Good News, and together we can make things happen.

Collaboration occurs often within a congregation, but it can also occur across the three expressions of the ELCA—congregations, synods, and the churchwide organization—to meet the needs of ministry.

One example of this took place recently. Bishop Kusserow contacted me in the Office of the Secretary at the churchwide organization. (The Office of the Secretary has responsibility for maintaining the rosters of ministers in this church.) He had been contacted by Bishop Barbara Collins of the Upper Susquehanna Synod, who had a candidate for ordination who had discerned a call to serve as assistant director and camp pastor at Camp Lutherlyn.

Because we in the ELCA place a very high value on the education and formation of new pastors, there is a requirement in our constitution and bylaws that all new Ministers of Word and Sacrament serve for three years in a congregation before receiving other kinds of calls (e.g., chaplaincy, synod staff, camp ministry, etc.). However, there is room for exception to that requirement to be approved when it serves the Good News and the mission and ministry of this church.

Both bishops wanted to see what could be done to meet this ministry need while still ensuring that the candidate would receive the best formation possible as a pastor. Within a very short time, the bishops had written a formal request and affirmation to the Roster Committee of the Conference of Bishops, which considers such matters—so other bishops from across this church also stepped in to help. The candidate drafted a statement explaining how this ministry would serve the needs of this church and describing his gifts for this call. His Candidacy Committee in the Upper Susquehanna Synod, which had shepherded him through the process of being approved for ordination, provided a strong endorsement of his gifts and preparation.

*Installation as Assistant Director of Camp Lutherlyn in Butler*

One of the congregations in your synod then very generously stepped forward to agree to serve as a training site for the new pastor for those crucial initial years so his ministry could be rooted in a congregation where he will continue to develop his gifts for preaching, administering the sacraments, and providing pastoral care. Your synod’s First Call Theological Education program will also accompany this pastor for three years, helping to round out the first-class education the candidate had already received through an ELCA seminary. With all these voices and willing workers saying “yes!” the Roster Committee then met on an extraordinary basis to recommend an exception so the candidate could be ordained and begin to serve in the mission the Spirit was calling him to.

Now, some might say, “That’s bureaucracy!” But I think it actually is a very rich and agile response on the part of quite a number of people and of all three expressions of this church to respond to a need that was present. In this way, the camp’s ministry is enhanced by having a highly-trained Minister of Word and Sacrament; the new pastor’s formation is enriched both for his own development and for the good of this church and the people he will serve in the future; a local congregation’s ministry can be supported by having an extra set of hands at the same time that the congregation is helping to form a stronger pastor for the good of all Christ’s church; and we as a denomination can continue to maintain the highest of standards for ministry, because we know that developing well-trained leaders will serve God’s work into the future.

So, how many Lutherans did this take? I don’t have an exact count! But I do know that when God’s people work together, the Spirit can use us for building up the church and doing new things! Thanks be to God!

Collaboration Across the Church