Minutes Montana Synod Council September 22-24, 2016 New Hope Lutheran Church Great Falls, Montana

Transcription

1 Minutes Montana Synod Council September 22-24, 2016 New Hope Lutheran Church Great Falls, Montana The Montana Synod Council met in the New Hope Lutheran Church sanctuary with Chaplain Larry Stappler serving as Chaplain for the meeting. Bishop Crist presided at Holy Communion and installed Mary Hutchinson as a Synod Council member. Session I Welcome Call to Order Vice President Tom Gossack called the meeting to order at 9:15 a.m. Approval of Agenda Motion Second: Approve the Agenda SC VOTE: APPROVE THE AGENDA Introductions The Synod Council members and Synod Staff introduced themselves: Mary Hutchinson, Eric Nord, Tonya Erickson, Associate to the Bishop Pastor Jason Asselstine, Pastor Brenda Satrum, Lisa Jahraus, Director for Evangelical Mission Pastor George Karres, Pastor Mark Taylor, Pastor Larry Stappler, (Synod Chaplain for the meeting) Alex Tooley, Kristi Lobdell, Doug Allie, Neal Wedum, Treasure Sue Ost, Bishop Jessica Crist, Vice President Tom Gossack, Secretary Peggy Paugh Leuzinger, Executive Assistant Susan Hedahl, Administrator of Information Technology Colter McCarty Review of the Synod Benchmarks The Synod Council members reflected on the Benchmarks: First Benchmark: Meet the future boldly Pastor Brenda Satrum shared that someone in the congregation mentioned to her that she was supposed to take a sabbatical, so she did and the congregation made some decisions about money and worship time and they have been able to go forward. The congregation met the future boldly. First Benchmark: Meet the future boldly Susan Hedahl commented on how she felt that she met the future boldly finishing with Synod Assembly and working to get the Synod Office moved within two weeks. 1

2 First Benchmark: Meet the future boldly Alex Tooley went to Poland during the summer for world youth day. The Pope delivered a message that violence is not a way to meet violence. It was a life-changing opportunity. Third Benchmark: Deepen faith and witness -- Kristi Lobdell commented that her congregation celebrated their 100 th Anniversary and it was an amazing celebration as people shared stories and deepened faith and witness. Their celebration rippled out into the community. Fourth Benchmark: Promote Unity -- Mary Hutchinson shared how several of her family traveled to Italy with her new daughter-in-law and visited the Vatican and gained a new insight into the Catholic faith. Second Benchmark: Serve the world, especially the poor and those in need Tonya Erickson shared how a few women have started a dinner in Hungry Horse where all are welcome to attend. It is in a school and there is space to run and play, sit and eat and gather for community. Second Benchmark: Serve the world and especially the poor and those in need Pastor Linda Webster reflected that a servant group at Rocky Boy over the summer reorganized the Thrift Store and then another group did even more. It seemed like an overwhelming endeavor, but they just got it done; the store proceeds go to the youth ministry programs at Rocky Boy. Fifth Benchmark: Support Congregations Pastor Mark Taylor shared his benchmark. This is my fourth reflection; and since Tom asked that we choose one we haven t done I was left with Promote Unity or Support Congregations. It occurs to me that these two may have an awful lot in common, much like last night s Merlot and tonight s Cabernet: both very dark in color and full of ripe, red-fruit aromas... the wines, that is, not the benchmarks. Perhaps it is the lingering odor of fermenting Merlot that causes my nose to twitch ever so slightly, but it could also be the Galatians 5:13 scripture that accompanies this benchmark. If one knows anything about the context and purpose of this Pauline epistle, it is that there are troublemakers in Galatia who are misusing their freedom. If we are assuming that congregations can become fractured because of conflicts between legalists and libertines, and we have the resources for peaceful resolution, then provided we are fully informed, let us proceed in supporting congregations to live out their calling through mission, in networks of mutuality. As I was completing my annual report to the bishop last month, reviewing the joys and concerns of 2015 and anticipating the challenges of 2016, the idea of congregational support from the Synod loomed large. At PLC and throughout the NE Cluster, we need support and empowerment to live out our callings as centers of mission in the following ways: We need IT solutions for congregational participation in the global community that we might be more relevant in today s world. Most of us don t have the knowledge or training to be meaningful users of this technology. Some of us don t have the resources to purchase 2

3 expensive hardware and software to connect in productive ways. Still others are afraid of technology in general or uninterested in learning. We need help shifting our focus from the past to the future; from management to governance. We need vision to create long range strategic plans with well-crafted goals, and objectives that empower us to leave a legacy of grace. Encourage us to surrender control to the next generation. Give us tools to embolden the timid to speak out and the mettle to meet stubborn and persistent self-indulgence with steadfast love and resilience. Teach us how to teach the faith to our children. Broaden our understanding of mission and ministry. Connect us to partners new and old; to neighbors near and far. Assist us in understanding our identity by interpreting not only the scriptures and confessions, but also our constitutions and context. Give us the questions, not the answers. Provide organization and clarity of theological thoughts. Engage us in the process if you want us to buy into the results. Help us to appreciate what it means to be Lutheran and that our creedal, confessional, liturgical, and sacramental heritage and traditions matter. Did you know that if you live in NE MT there is a six month wait to be seen by a mental health expert? Did you know that in 2014, 40% of the babies born on the Ft. Peck Indian Reservation were addicted to crack cocaine? Did you know that MT has the highest suicide rate in the nation? Be an advocate for providing additional resources to relieve the community-crushing problems of poor mental health, substance abuse, human trafficking, poverty, and crime in rural Montana. And finally, help us re-imagine networks among clergy, lay leaders, and congregations. Clusters just don t seem to work anymore in NE MT. There was a time when people from 25 congregations looked forward to gathering together. But now there are only 9 left; many struggling to meet the future boldly, and some among the poor and those in need. Perhaps this is the commonality between promoting unity and supporting congregations a topic for another time and another bottle of fine wine! Fourth Benchmark: Promote Unity Pastor Peggy Paugh Leuzinger shared that her congregation has worshiped and will worship again with the Methodist church that is close by as a celebration that there is more that unites them than separates them. Fourth Benchmark: Promote Unity Eric Nord shared that the God s Work Our Hands Sunday was a great witness to the world of unity. Tom Gossack shared that at the Churchwide Assembly, Tom brought some woven sweetgrass for distribution to the Assembly. During the Assembly during the debate on the Repudiation of the Doctrine of Discovery, the sweetgrass was a powerful witness for all the benchmarks. Fifth Benchmark: Support Congregations Pastor George Karres shared that he and a team of four LPAs engaged in a ministry review in Choteau as a way to strengthen the congregation. He commented on how helpful that process seems to be. 3

4 First Benchmark: Meet the Future Boldly Pastor Linda Webster lamented that she was invited to go to Standing Rock and that she was saddened by the way that the Western ND Synod wasn t present in a supportive way. Secretary s Report Approval of Minutes from the June 2016 Synod Council meeting Motion Second: Approve the minutes from the June 2016 Synod Council meeting SC VOTE: APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM THE JUNE 2016 SYNOD COUNCIL MEETING Correspondence The thank you notes and letters from the Partners were noted and passed around to the Council. Treasurer s Report Treasurer Sue Ost presented her report: The first page of the financial reports shows the Mission Support through 8/31/2016 received by each Synod in Region I. The Montana Synod has received $577, as of that date, which is less than one year ago by $13, Earlier in the summer, that number was considerably higher - almost $38,000 behind 2015 at the end of June. It was decided that DEM George Karres would send a letter to each congregation with their quarterly giving statement. The letters were individualized, based on the congregation s giving compared with last year. The encouragement that George gave had an impact, and we are very grateful for his efforts. Both July and August Mission Support exceeded 2015 amounts. On the Consolidated Balance Sheet, you will notice that the Cash has increased significantly. Previously, we had a $50,000 CD listed under Long Term Investments. The funds are undesignated no special purpose had been assigned. When that CD came due in July, our Mission Support was lower than we like to see, as I stated above. We also have a significant amount left to raise for the new building. These two items led to the decision not to renew the CD, but to put the funds in our cash reserve. The funds are now available if needed to balance the budget at the end of the year, or to use in some capacity for the new building. If it s not necessary to use the funds for those purposes we will purchase another CD next year. On the next page is a list of the Restricted Funds and their balances. Notice that our new Disaster Response fund has almost $1,000 in it. Those funds can be used to respond to a disaster if needed. The Assembly Offering will be disbursed to the ELCA Campaign, designated for World Hunger. With the sale of our building, and continuing fund-raising, we now have a total of $607, for the new building (less the 10% that will be tithed to the Mission Venture Capital Fund). Since our last meeting, through August, the Campaign has brought in $16,

5 Next is the Analysis of Revenues and Expenditures, first the summary and then the detail. At the end of August, we are about 58% of the way through our fiscal year. Mission Support is at 55% of the budget, and expenses are just under 55% of the budget, so we are doing very well in that regard. If you have any questions about the budget, or the financial reports, I will be happy to respond. Thank you for your support. Sue Ost, Treasurer Montana Synod Sue invited the Council to look at the 2016 Financial Report for August and highlighted some details from the report for the Council. Motion Second: Receive the Treasurer s Report SC VOTE: RECEIVE THE TREASURER S REPORT Report of the Bishop Bishop Jessica Crist reviewed her report that was sent to the Synod Council. Greetings to Synod Council members, and welcome to new Council member Mary Hutchinson. We are in a new place for this meeting, both literally and figuratively. Since we last met as a Council, the Synod office has moved into a new location until we get our new Synod House built. New Hope Lutheran has been very gracious in inviting us in, sharing space, and adjusting some of their habits to accommodate us. We are grateful. We are grateful to Eklund s Appliances for lending us a truck for the move, and we are grateful to all the volunteers who lugged boxes and furniture across town for us. And I am especially grateful to the staff for their hard work and mostly gracious response to this disruption. When I announced to the staff 2 weeks before the Assembly that we had sold the building and would be moving in a month, I thought I might lose everybody. But they buckled up, carried out the Assembly, and then returned to 2 weeks of packing and discarding. Those of you who are at the meeting (also a change for us, since we had a misunderstanding with the Ursuline and had to change locale at the last minute), will see our new digs. We cannot complain. Colter has the front office, shared with New Hope s business equipment, and serves as de facto receptionist for the building. We like to think it is a service we provide. My office is also on the first floor formerly the senior pastor s office. Susan, Jason and George have offices in the basement, where we also have a room for files and office equipment, and another storage closet for paper. We find ourselves getting lots of exercise as we go up and down 2 separate staircases looking for each other. Being this far apart is a new experience. In the old building everybody in the building knew what everybody else was doing. Now we make conscious efforts to greet and connect, and we have instituted a 3 pm tea break to sit and chat, just to keep us all on the same page. 5

6 Synod House: To answer the unasked question, namely, wouldn t it just make sense to stay at New Hope, the answer is no. We are committed to moving forward with the Synod House, space that was designed for us and our needs. While we are extremely grateful for this temporary landing place, we do not think it a good idea to scrap our other plans in order to avoid another move. We are moving forward with the Synod House on several fronts. Fundraising: We are nearly half-way to where we want to be. There will be a report later in the meeting. MIF Loan: We have been approved for a loan, should we need it. City Regulations: We have met with the City Planning Department and are on a course to apply for a conditional use permit in order to have Mission Builders RVs on site. We are in the process of getting letters of support from all our neighbors (all of whom have given oral support). This week the Neighborhood 5 Council voted to support our request and will provide a letter of support and attend the hearing. We are working with the architects to apply for the conditional use permit. It should take a few months. From the Planning Office it goes to the Planning Commission and then to the City Commission. Building the building: This week we have had reports of drilling on the site by the engineers. Tom and I, (along with Alex Bostic from Bethel, who has agreed to be our go-to guy with the architects) have a meeting this week to talk about HVAC. We will be having regular meetings with the architects from now on. Meanwhile, life and ministry go on: Congregations in transition This summer and fall we have been able to place 5 seminary grads in congregations, and oversee their ordinations and installations. They include Tonia Fisher (a TEEM candidate raised up by St. James in Columbus and ordained at the Synod Assembly); Carol Seilhymer (called to First Plains and Our Savior s Thompson Falls), Robin Luckey (called to Bethany, Dutton), Lue Moua (called to Valley of Christ, Frenchtown); Jean Hay (called to Bethlehem, Billings). We were fortunate to have access to this many first call candidates. The pool of candidates is drastically smaller than it was even 10 years ago. Next week I will be going to Chicago to an Assignment in which there are only 42 available candidates (and 65 synods). We expect more in February, but this past February yielded about half of what was normal a decade ago. So, how did we get so lucky? (Do you really want to know how the sausage is made?) We combined 2 congregations in one case to make it a viable full-time call. We found a candidate who was willing to work part-time if spouse could be employed full-time. We found another candidate who could work part-time because of proximity to family. We found another candidate who had been waiting for a call for a decade. And we grew one of our own. TEEM continues to work well for us, as we find viable candidates who fit the program. 6

7 We have several other congregations in transition in various stages of finding interims, forming call committees, interviewing candidates, etc. Raising up and supporting leaders: I have already mentioned the shortage of candidates for ordained ministry. Some synods are intentionally starting programs to recruit, and to cultivate a culture of call. Campus ministry, youth ministry, and camps are natural places for these conversations to take place. But there are other places as well congregations, men s and women s groups, etc. We have a good Candidacy Committee, staffed by Pastor Bob Quam. The LPA program is another way that we raise up and train leaders. LPAs serve in their own congregations, and in other congregations. They also serve in other ways in the synod on councils and committees and in a variety of leadership roles. Some of our rostered leaders (pastors and AIMs) started as LPAs and found they were called to more. We have another large class of LPAs starting in October. Pastor Asselstine will tell you more. First Call Theological Education takes place in early November. Rostered leaders who are in their first, second and third year of ministry come together for learning, camaraderie and information. It is a good way to orient new clergy to the synod and to one another. Leadership in congregations is another area where we can assist. At the request of some folks, we are in the preliminary stages of planning a workshop for congregational treasurers. We are also providing support for congregations for updating their constitutions. And we are publicizing an ELCA webinar on the new Fair Labor Standards Act and overtime. Support to congregations: In addition to the regular ways we support congregations through prayer, mobility, consultation and visitation, we have 2 relatively new approaches. The first, which has already begun, is the Congregational Review process initiated by Pastor George Karres. Using a model from Churchwide, George and a couple of LPAs do a comprehensive ministry review of a congregation. So far they have done 3 Our Saviour s Rocky Boy, Redeemer Great Falls, Trinity Choteau. We think this is a very promising opportunity for congregations to assess their ministry. The other new approach we are beginning is systems training. The ELCA is offering a Systems Academy to train synods in new and different ways to deal with congregational conflict. Using family systems theory (Bowen and Friedman), the academy teaches participants on how to reframe conflict, and also teaches them to teach others. We have several people in our synod who are trained in family systems and have been helpful in some situations. We have signed up Pastor Jason Asselstine to be part of the Academy, which meets several times a year over the course of several years. He will be able to work with a group, the core of which will be the Consultation Committee. We are enthusiastic about this approach. 7

8 New Models: A good bit of staff time is taken up working with congregations where the old models do not work anymore. An example would be the Upper Musselshell Parish Harlowton, Barber and Lennep. No longer able to afford a full-time pastor as a 3 point, they are now without a pastor and cannot afford an interim even at ¾ time. Furthermore, one of the 3 Barber has decided to withdraw from the parish, leaving a 2 point and a lone congregation, all in need of pastoral services they cannot afford. We have proposed, after much deliberation, a Pastor of Record supplemented by lay preachers. This is an example of one of the ways we need to continue to be flexible as we move forward and support ministry. More and more we will be looking at new and alternative models for ministry in the synod. And we are in a deeply divided political year: The ELCA has provided some excellent resources to guide congregations and pastors on political discourse. We are sending it out to the synod on Friday morning. It contains a document from the ELCA, one from the Pew Trust, and one from the IRS. Assemblies past and present: Synod Assembly 2016: Focusing on Deepen Faith and Witness, we had workshops and keynotes on the impact of the Reformation on the church today and tomorrow. A forum on the Repudiation of the Doctrine of Discovery was well attended and informative, and helped answer questions. Another pre-assembly forum gave voting members a chance to delve more deeply into the budget. Both were helpful in keeping the agenda going and getting things passed without too much discussion. At our Assembly we installed Pr. Mark Donald as Director of Christikon; recognized a group of LPAs who had completed their training; ordained a pastor (Tonia Fisher.) Thanks to all who helped keep the Assembly on track and the Voting Members oriented. Synod Council, you were a real help to us! Synod Assembly 2017: As we follow our Benchmarks, 2017 will be our year for Promote Unity. That can go in a lot of directions, from church harmony to ecumenical and interfaith relations to civil harmony. Our keynote speaker this year will be Dr. Michael Trice, of Seattle University (formerly from ELCA Ecumenical and Interreligious.) In addition, Bishop Larry Kochendorfer, from the Synod of Alberta and the Territories, will be our guest and one of the preachers. As an ELCIC delegate to the LWF, Bp. Kochendorfer can update us on the LWF commemoration of the 500th Anniversary, as well as reflect on ministry as our closest neighbor. At the Assembly we will be passing a number of constitutional amendments, made necessary by decisions at the Churchwide Assembly. So we ll probably have a forum ahead of time to give the constitutionally inclined a chance to discuss the changes Churchwide Assembly: You ll be hearing from some of the voting members from our Synod later in the meeting. I want to reflect on a couple of items that will have impact on our Synod. Constitutional Changes: A great number of constitutional changes adopted by the CWA will be passed to synods and congregations. We have memos out to offer assistance to congregations, and we will be working on synod amendments, as well. A good many of the changes come as a result of the vote to collapse Associates in Ministry, Diaconal Ministers 8

9 and Deaconesses into one roster. Another is a change of the term ordained minister to minister of word and sacrament (in contrast to minister of word and service, ). An additional set of changes makes the participation in the Lutheran World Federation part of the Constitution. You may wonder why you should care. Your congregation may be either bored or hostile. Why should we bother to change our constitution? Who says we have to? We are here in this building because a congregation did not pay attention to its constitution. After 2 votes, 4 years of lawsuits and a supreme court decision, Faith Lutheran had to give up their building to New Hope because they had not paid attention to their constitution. The courts decided that we are a denomination that has constitutions and that has accountability. So if there is ever a conflict between a congregation s constitution and the updated constitution of the synod and ELCA, the updated constitution prevails, regardless of whether the congregation has bothered to update theirs. Roster of Word and Service: As mentioned above, the Churchwide Assembly voted to adopt the recommendation to merge the 3 lay rosters into one. The existing rosters had various origins. Deaconesses were part of the Lutheran Church in America. Associates in Ministry were invented at the time of the merger and were a bit of a catchall category for lay church workers. Diaconal Ministers were instituted upon the adoption of the Study of Ministry. For consistency and clarity, and after a lot of study, the CWA voted to make a single roster and call it Deacon. As of January 1, 2017, all our AIMs (unless they opt out) will become Deacons. Declaration on the Way: Lutherans and Catholics have been in dialogue for over 50 years, and numerous studies have resulted. Most significant was the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification, adopted in 1999 by the Lutheran World Federation and the Vatican. It was significant both because of the content agreement on the formerly church-dividing issue of justification and because it was officially adopted. Now, US Catholic and Lutheran scholars have produced a document Declaration on the Way, that catalogues 32 areas of theology and ecclesiology on which we have agreement. This is a recognition of a mile stone in our relationship. The declaration was received by the Conference of Bishops (ELCA), and the Catholic counterpart. And it was received by the ELCA Church Council and the Churchwide Assembly. So what does this mean? It means that Lutherans and Catholics are not using the 500th anniversary of the Reformation to throw darts at each other. Pope Francis will be at the ceremony in Lund, Sweden. And in Montana, Bishops Warfel and Thomas will join me in a joint service at the Helena Cathedral on October 30, See you there! Repudiation of the Doctrine of Discovery: Our Synod voted for the repudiation and sent the memorial along to the Churchwide Assembly, who voted for it. There was more attention paid to Native Americans at this assembly than previous ones. The assembly was opened by prayers from local tribes, with the acknowledgment that the land on which we were meeting was originally tribal. Unlike 2013, when a resolution on indigenous people was referred to 9

10 the Church Council, the assembly considered and passed it. VP Tom Gossack was one of the people speaking for the resolution. So what does this mean? Within a month of the end of the Assembly, there was a major event at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, possibly the largest gathering of Native Americans in this century. The issue is over water and whether a pipeline can be built across the Missouri. Although many ELCA people were there, including the leadership of the ELCA s American Indian Association, and Pastors Linda Webster and Ron Martin-Dent of the Montana Synod, the official response from the Presiding Bishop was muted and late. This week (September 20), the Chippewa Cree had a rally in Great Falls in support of the Standing Rock Sioux. Pastor George Karres and I attended, as did Council Member Neal Wedum, Our Saviour s member Loni Whitford, and local Pastors Tammy Bull, Barb Gwynn and Natalie Faltin. We prayed and reflected on the sacredness of water. Israel and Palestine: Two actions and much debate on Israel and Palestine. Ultimately the Assembly voted to promote and protect human rights in Palestine, recognize the Palestinian state, and create a human rights filter for investments in companies. So how does this affect us? Soon after the assembly ended I heard from a prominent member of the MT Jewish community, quoting an article that accuse the ELCA of re-embracing Luther s anti-semitism (that we had formally repudiated), condoning the Holocaust, and advocating for the elimination of the state of Israel. None of these accusations is true. But because of our 1995 agreement with the Montana Association of Jewish Communities, I cannot simply ignore them. I have been in touch several times with this person, and have received angry s from others. So I decided to ask Amanda Liggett (our LEIRN representative) to gather a select group of people to respond, in light of our 1995 agreement, reaffirmed in Relationships matter. Racial Justice: There were various initiatives concerning racial justice. One that will affect us is the establishment of the expectation that synods will offer anti-racism training at least every two years. How we set this up and enforce it here is yet to be determined. We had an anti-racism team some years ago, but it has been dormant. Perhaps we will alternate it with boundaries training. There were many other actions taken at the Churchwide Assembly. You can read about them at or listen to your colleagues later tonight. I am grateful to the 10 people who donated a week of their lives to serving and learning about the church. Some reflections on benchmarks from the last week or so: Meet the future boldly: Whenever we encounter an obstacle, a problem, a challenge, we say to one another Meet the future boldly. We don t always succeed, but we remind each other regularly. Colter pushes us regularly to leave the 20th century behind and embrace technology for the sake of ministry. When we propose something to congregations that evokes But we ve never done it that way before, we say Meet the future boldly. As we 10

11 talk to people about why we think the Synod House is a worthwhile project, we repeat, Meet the future boldly. Serve the world, especially the poor and those in need: Our synod was excited about having Pastor Edwina come from South Africa for 2 months, and were disappointed that her visa was denied. Pastor Peggy Paugh Leuzinger will be attending the election of a new bishop there. In Bolivia, the children s center in Cobija was hit by a flood and needs major repair. Congregations have been making contributions. In our new home at New Hope, we get to see Head Start children and families gather to wait for the bus. And we watch New Hope s ministry unfold with this new opportunity. Deepen faith and witness: taking seriously the teaching role of the bishop, I have been taking on the ELCA s social statements in my weekly Words from the Bishop in the e- news. After I finish all 13 I will take a break, but resume eventually and periodically with the social messages. Promote unity: Last week I was able to be a part of the Installation of the new United Methodist Bishop, Karen Oliveto. In 2 weeks I will bring greetings to the Episcopal Diocesan Convention. We value our full communion partners. Strengthen congregations: We are about to send out our Here we are packet to congregations, with resources on stewardship as well as mission support. Much of what we all do strengthens congregations. Susan in particular advises congregations as they prepare their letters of call and definition of compensation forms, and deal with Portico. A few final personal thoughts: People often ask, How are you doing? That is very thoughtful. I am doing fine, as is my family. Turner is healthy and well, busy with various projects. Our daughter, Rhiannon, in in her 5th year of teaching at Rhodes College in Memphis. She teaches religion and chairs the Gender Studies program. Her book, Are we Not Men? Unstable Masculinity in the Hebrew Prophets will come out in January, published by Oxford. Rhiannon and her fiancé Kurt will get married in June. (I convinced them to get married the week after Synod Assembly rather than the week before.) Our son Raphael has completed his clerkship in Billings with the chief judge of the 9th Circuit, and has moved to Seattle where he will begin a practice with a firm in October. I am always touched when I hear that people are praying for me, both as a person and as a bishop. I so appreciate when congregations include the Presiding Bishop and the Synod Bishop in their prayers. And I appreciate when people say, I am praying for you. That must be why I am doing fine. On December 31 I finished my term as Chair of the Conference of Bishops. That relieved me of a lot of planning, and of some extra meetings. But vacuums rarely stay that way. I have been appointed to the Theological Education Advisory Committee to help determine 11

12 how the church can best support continuing education on all levels. With my history with NRIT and the LPA program, plus my service on the Luther Seminary Board and my previous service on the Theological Education Coordinating Committee for the ELCA, I am pretty well suited to serve. I have been asked to take on a few other responsibilities in the larger church, including being the Assignment Bishop from Region 1, and serving on several other advisory boards. I would like to take a sabbatical the summer of In terms of travel, I am going to Israel/Palestine with a group in January for a week. I may go to South Africa for the Consecration of the new Bishop, depending on the timing. And I am still scheduled to go to Germany in May. Conclusions: It is a privilege and a joy to be in ministry together. Thank you for your service on the Synod Council and in the other ways you serve. Jessica Crist, Bishop Including Future Directions and Constitutional changes Bishop Crist introduced the Future Directions: Called Forward Together in Christ document and encouraged the Council to look at it. (Located on the ELCA.org website; Link: d_forward_together_in_christ.pdf?_ga= ) Update on Pastor Edwina Letshwiti Pastor Peggy Paugh Leuzinger reported that although plans had been made for Pastor Edwina Letshwiti, from the Douglas Parish in the Cape Orange Diocese to come to the Montana Synod for September and October, she applied and was denied a visa to enter the U.S. not once, but twice. Peggy will see her when she goes to the Cape Orange Diocese Synod (the term they use for their assembly) in October. The hope is that she will be able to come in the spring for about a month. Report of the Vice President Tom shared some of the details of the Churchwide Assembly. He encouraged all to examine the Future Directions document and thought that there is much in it to ponder. Tom also shared his report with the Council: 2016 Churchwide Assembly Reflections from Tom Gossack Even though I was in great anticipation of attending the 2016 Churchwide Assembly in New Orleans I wasn t looking forward to doing it in August. This rather large example of northern European heritage doesn t do well in hot weather with matching humidity. New Orleans didn t disappoint on either account. As expected the assembly once again proved to be another major milestone in my faith journey and just the thought of walking outside the hotel caused my glasses to fog up! 12

13 As with any event one attends, we were given name badges, meal tickets, voting cards (both electronic and paper), schedules and seating assignments. For me, the work started at noon on Sunday the 7th with a meeting of the vice-presidents from throughout the ELCA. We discussed various topics and discussed the work, Called Forward Together in Christ, a consultation paper on the future directions of the ELCA. If you ve never heard of it or haven t read it, you can find it in the ELCA website by copying and pasting this link in your browser, d_forward_together_in_christ.pdf?_ga= I would encourage all congregations to spend some time studying and discussing the content then discerning where your congregation might find room for change. For me, the monumental moment of the assembly was when the voting members overwhelmingly voted to accept the Declaration on the way: Church, Ministry and Eucharist. This signifies that along with the Catholic Church, we affirm 32 statements of agreement that have been drawn from international and regional dialogues over the last 50 years. Having a father who was raised Catholic, then married to my wife who was also raised Catholic and also the Son-In-Law of a past president of the Helena diocesan council, I have lived these differences and celebrate the efforts of the distinguished group that has worked so hard on this. I, like Bishop Denis J. Madden, auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, look forward to the day when we can share the cup. This document can also be found on the ELCA website by copying and pasting this link into your browser. The Declaration on the way is a huge milestone in the church and I encourage everyone to become familiar with it and discuss it at Sunday School or over coffee. During the plenary portions of the assembly, we elected William B. Horne II as the new vicepresident along with about 60 other positions within the church. We voted to repudiate the doctrine of discovery and addressed a whole host of other memorials brought forth for our consideration. In support of our endorsement to repudiate the doctrine of discovery, I brought along bundles of sweetgrass for our delegation and for others as a show of spiritual support of our native brothers and sisters. Pastor Brad Ulgenes from St. John s Lutheran in Helena and I also honored the Houma nation by presenting them sweetgrass from Montana and thanking them for sharing their ancestral home for our assembly. It was a very humbling experience for both of us. No assembly would be complete without having a cadre of vendors selling everything from books and vestments to woodcarvings and investments. Because my mind wanders (sometimes severely) I kept noticing that a lot of the voting members had little buttons with letters on them and it wasn t until the last Saturday before I asked someone where they got them and was told that one of the vendors put out a different letter each day and if you got them all you could spell ELCA. How Cool! As I passed a table in the entry hall I saw a table with all the leftover pins on it so I went through and found a C, then an A and 13

14 finally an L but there wasn t an E to be found even though it was one of the first letters handed out. My conundrum then was to figure out what to do with the three letters without the E. The best I could do was to pin them to my nametag spelling out ALC. I thought about mixing them around during the day by spelling LCA but nothing felt right without the E. It wasn t until the assembly ended that Pastor Tammy Bull from Great Falls and I were talking when she turned around and said, Well here s an E that someone left on the table. I finally had my E and I could spell ELCA on my name badge. On the trip home I had plenty of time to reflect back on the events of the week and I kept coming back to my search for the E. Even though I finally had the letter, I realized that not only I but we need to keep searching for the E in our faith journey. E for me meaning E vangelism and E cumenism. I heard that the old meaning of evangelism for the church was When they want us or need us, they ll know where to find us. Those days are over. It was a model for the church that is no longer sustainable. If we are to truly engage in the fundamentals of being part of church and community, we need to facilitate change by evangelizing outside the brick and mortar by taking the gospel, mission and the church to the streets and neighborhoods of our communities and beyond. I say this in full knowledge that there are a million jokes out there about how Lutheran s resist change but at this point in time, we need to force ourselves to ask some hard questions and make some difficult decisions in order to take the church to where it s needed most today. In the year of the 500th anniversary of the reformation, let s work hard at finding and living out the E in ELCA. Tom Gossack Report of the Executive Committee: Salary Guidelines: Housing Equity guidelines are also on the MT Synod Website but right now they are 3 years out of date. Treasurer Sue Ost is pursuing more current figures to include in the Guidelines. (See proposed guidelines attached to the end of these minutes.) Motion Second: Recommend to the Synod Council to approve the proposed 2017 Salary Guidelines SC VOTE: RECOMMEND TO THE SYNOD COUNCIL TO APPROVE THE PROPOSED 2017 SALARY GUIDELINES FLSA Conversation The Executive Committee reviewed the information regarding who will be eligible for this; Colter McCarty is the only staff person who may be affected by this. He submitted his hours for the last 2 months. The Committee requests that Colter continue to record his hours and travel through November to have more information regarding his time, and the committee will revisit this before December 1 st. Sabbatical for Pastor Jason Asselstine Motion 14

15 Second: Grant an exception to the Synod s Personnel Policies for Pastor Jason Asselstine to take some sabbatical time in 2017 SC VOTE: GRANT AN EXCEPTION TO THE SYNOD S PERSONNEL POLICIES FOR PASTOR JASON ASSELSTINE TO TAKE SOME SABBATICAL TIME IN 2017 Cell Phone Expenses for Staff Motion Second: Pay $10 per month for Colter for use of a cell phone as he travels and $20 for Susan for the month of the Synod Assembly, beginning in the next fiscal year EC.SC VOTE: PAY $10 PER MONTH FOR COLTER FOR USE OF A CELL PHONE AS HE TRAVELS AND $20 FOR SUSAN FOR THE MONTH OF THE SYNOD ASSEMBLY, BEGINNING IN THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR Chaplain Larry Stappler led the Council in table prayer and the Council recessed for lunch. Session II Report of the Associate to the Bishop Pr. Jason Asselstine Pastor Asselstine thanked the Council for the call to serve the Synod. He loves his job! Mobility and Call Process: Pastor Asselstine talked about how strengthening congregations is what he does and is what the Synod does. He mentioned that he has had the chance to be creative with congregations in dealing with pastoral vacancies. It was good to be in Plains on Sunday as he had been with them throughout the whole process from their pastor leaving to installing a new pastor. LPA Program: For the next class, he has 34 people signed up to begin in a couple weeks. He has brought in The Great Courses as a new option for class learning. He is excited about the new class. Youth Focus: A Snow Retreat will be held in Feb in Billings with David Scherer-- Agape. The theme will be Freedom The Truth will Set you Free Jason will also be working on a Youth Leadership event during Synod Assembly next June. This will mostly be for Youth Leaders in small congregations. The vision is to send a youth or two along with a Youth Leader to this event. Keith Weatherford, Paul Goodman, Dick Hardel, along with Jason will be coordinators. He received a Hetzel Grant to help cover the cost. Congregational Preaching and worship leadership: Jason has been able to go to a number of congregations to just be a presence. It is great. First Call Theological Conference: This year the focus is on leadership. 15

16 Other Duties, as assigned: Systems Academy Jason will be going to the Academy and will be able to come back into the Synod and will be able to train the consultation committee. It is a 4-year program. Lutheran Disaster Update Dick Deschamps Dick was present via skype to present his report. It has been over a year (June 2015) since Bishop Jessica asked me to attend a meeting of the Montana VOAD (Volunteer Organizations Active in Disaster). I eventually found out that the Synod had a seat at this table representing Lutheran Disaster Relief (LDR). This was previously held by Lutheran Social Services (LSS). Since LSS no longer fills that role in Montana, we needed to develop a model where the synod provides support to this worthwhile endeavor. I, serving at the pleasure of the Bishop, now fill that role. Of the five competencies identified by ELCA-LDR, I feel we can address three. Emotional and Spiritual Care This may be our strength in responding to a disaster. We have Pastors and lay leaders in all areas of Montana and Northern Wyoming, and should be able to respond providing spiritual and emotional support to first responders and victims. Several years ago, Pr. Dave Peters, provided training titled Spiritual Accompaniment In Disaster (SAID). Pastor Amanda Liggett and I are scheduled through NRIT to revamp and provide this training in this 2016/2017 year. The dates have yet to be determined. This will be face to face training, but then I also hope to provide this resource electronically for unlimited access. Once the training is completed, I would like to try to organize a group of trained individuals (a jump team, if you will) who could travel to a disaster affected area where this resource is not readily available. Volunteer Coordination Other organizations that respond to disasters are effective at this task of coordination. I am not sure we have a role to play here, but considering the number of ELCA members we have in the synod, we may be able to help provide an already coordinated response force, at least on a local basis. It is my third priority to explore and get something up and running. Community Resiliency The first response to any disaster should be preparedness. There are many resources out there from organizations such as the Red Cross, and disaster and emergency management agencies, which help communities and individuals prepare for disaster. Working with the synod (Colter), the plan is to provide a page on the synod website which provides a clearing house and easy access to these resources. Second would be to start a conversation with pastors and lay leaders encouraging them to work within their communities to help them be prepared for an eventual disaster. At the Synod Assembly in May 2016, Amanda Liggett and I provided a workshop, using the experience of the community of Roundup, MT facing back-to-back flood and fire disasters. The community produced a video showing what happens and encourages other to be 16

17 prepared in the event disaster strikes. Full preparedness is not possible, but some important steps can be taken. Also worthy of note is the establishment of a Disaster Response fund. This is not a synod budget item, but is maintained by the synod and relies on donations. The fund was established in response to the tornado disaster in Baker, MT earlier this year. The intent was to have a fund available for disaster victims who have unmet needs resulting from the disaster. There is about $1000 currently in the fund, and there have been no requests/distributions to this point. The function of disaster response, is addressed in the Montana Synod Strategic Benchmarks 2 and 5 primarily. Victims of disaster find themselves poor, poor in spirit and sometimes neglected, where on the day before the disaster, they would not have considered themselves as such. By working in the spirit of community and reaching out to these victimized sisters and brothers, we serve the world. Similarly, as the synod, we can work side-by-side, and in support of congregations, helping them to lend a hand in a time of disaster. When things are going well, community sometimes does not feel as important, and we almost feel we can go it alone. But when diversity strikes, a strong community buoys us up until we can start to stand on our own again, ready to help the next person. Respectively submitted: Dick Deschamps Report of the Director for Evangelical Mission Pastor Karres shared his written report. September 23, 2016 As Director for Evangelical Mission, I am a deployed staff person of the ELCA s Domestic Mission (DM) unit to serve the Montana Synod and its congregations in three basic areas of ministry (through which I am assisted and advised by the three Legs of the Mission Table): Synodical Missional Strategy ministries with Native Americans, Freedom in Christ Prison Ministry, ecumenical partner relationships, encouraging and supporting Area Mission Strategies through our Mission Venture Capital Fund, etc. Since our last Synod Council meeting in June, highlights in this area have been: Native American Accompaniment The Synod Assembly passed a Resolution calling on the ELCA to Repudiate the Doctrine of Discovery which was indeed passed by the ELCA at its Triennial Churchwide Assembly in August in New Orleans. But more needs to be done especially in the area of education. We will be looking at this with our Native American Accompaniment Committee. Also, we hope to have a conference in October 2017 with our Canadian neighbors they hosted us in Airdrie, Alberta, Canada last year and this will be our turn perhaps on the Fort Peck Reservation. Delivering our Synod s Apology to the Tribes is an on-going effort. It takes time but we will continue reaching out to the Tribes. Not just to apologize, but to seek to begin a new 17

18 relationship with the Tribes as the Church participates in God s work to break down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. (Eph. 2:14) Prison Ministry we continue to support the Freedom in Christ Prison Ministry at the Montana State Prison in Deer Lodge, MT. We are trying to broaden our ecumenical support for this ministry. For example: Episcopalians have been invited to be on the FIC Council; we also are having conversation with the Yellowstone Conference of the UMC of what ministries we might be able to support together (Women s State Prison in Billings, Healing Ministries for released inmates, etc.) Mission Venture Capital Fund In 2016, we have given funds to FLBC for doing youth ministry in small congregations during the year, to Faith Lutheran Church, Ronan to purchase books for a community bookstore. Before that, the MVCF provided start-up support for the Friendship Café youth coffee house ministry in south Billings. Other innovative ideas for new ministries are welcome! Stewardship/Mission Support helping people and congregations to grow in stewardship and in their understanding and support for ministries being done in the Montana Synod and ELCA. In the fall of 2016, I will be leading Consecration Sunday programs for at least two congregations. This program emphasizes first fruits giving as a means of spiritual growth, and I strongly encourage it. Last week, I teamed up with Beth Adams, Region 1 representative for the ELCA Foundation, and Marsha Goetting from MSU Bozeman to present an Estate and Gift Planning Workshop at American Lutheran, Billings. 18 persons attended, and it was very well received! Fall Mission Support packets will be sent out to congregations to help inform and encourage them to remember and support the ministries we do together through the Montana Synod and the ELC hopefully as first fruits giving. As we have done this year and before, we will plan to have a Procession of Intents at next summer s Synod Assembly as a visible demonstration that we do ministry together. Congregations New Starts and Renewal - plan for and support the development of new congregations in the Montana Synod and to encourage and support the renewal of existing Montana Synod congregations. New Starts Bozeman is one of the fastest growing Micropolitan areas in the country. Bishop Crist and I had an information meeting at Christ the King on September 12. Concerns were expressed by the pastor and some members of Hope Lutheran that a proposed New Start in the Four Corners area and north towards Belgrade could have a negative impact on Hope. At our Mission Table s Congregation New Starts and Renewals Leg (WebEx) meeting on September 14, it was reaffirmed that although we need to be attentive to concerns that were raised on September 12 we need to Meet the Future Boldly. I will be sharing more information and look forward to discussion about this at our Synod Council meeting. 18