Assembly 2015 Belonging Together in Christ Jesus

Transcription

1 Northwestern Pennsylvania Synod Newsletter July/August 2015 Assembly 2015 Belonging Together in Christ Jesus Inside this issue: Calendar 2 Update: Worship Supply Fee Update: Background checks Dr. Jones 5 New Cluster Reps 5 Wrestling with Jakob 6-7 Life of Faith Vocations th Anniversary 10 Assembly Continued 11 McCoid Order of Service Labyrinth Lutherlyn Ordination/Conference of Bishops World Hunger 19 Worship Workshop 20 WELCA 21 Local Happenings 22 Assembly time came and went for the year We had great turn out between the two Synods. Over 500 people came out in the rain to join us for worship, speakers, forums, fellowship, and food. During the assembly we were proudly able to conduct the Ordination of Randall Wayne Frenz, who is called to serve Grace, Franklin, Matthew Eric Dennison, who is called to serve St. Peter s, North East, and Beth Ann Reese Hawk of SWPA. Bishop Eaton was also in attendance for our joint assembly, taking time to visit with each Synod. She also spoke to us during our joint sessions speaking about the future of the church. The Rev. Dr. Philip H. Pfatteicher, who was our keynote speaker, was decorated by our Synod receiving the McCoid Order of Service, along with our very own, Rev. James R. Judy (See pg. 12). During our portion of the assembly we heard reports from agencies within our synod including an introduction of the new Administrator of the Lutheran Home in Kane, Megan Bolden. Barbara Debski, our Region 8 Portico Representative, spoke with us about keeping healthy in the mind, body, and spirit. As well as, reporting that our Synod reached its goal for our Health Assessments. This means every congregation in our Synod will receive a 2% reimbursement on benefits this year and the Synod will receive a 1% bonus to use on healthy synod initiatives. The Assembly Agenda was approved, along with the 2016 Synod Budget. A special thank you to all of the congregations that submitted and met their 2014 Commitments. Continued on page 11

2 P a ge 2 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 Calendar JULY 3 Office Closed 4 4th of July 12-Committee on Leadership Support 4PM (@ Dennys in Brookville) 21-German TEEM Twelve Apostles, Saegertown 24 Committee on Church Vocations 9-5 AUGUST 3 Free Rostered Leaders Family Lutherlyn 26 Region 8 Candidacy meeting Church music leaders John Ferguson and Anton Armstrong to lead hymn festival in August Augsburg Fortress, the publishing ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, is hosting a hymn festival at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, August 3, 2015, at Gethsemane Lutheran Church, Columbus, Ohio, and 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, August 6, 2015, at St. Paul s Lutheran Church, Ardmore, Pa., that is free and open to the public. Hymn festivals are a way of promoting congregational song in churches, as well as bringing communities together through music and liturgy. Let the Whole Creation Cry: A Hymn Festival follows a pattern for worship that includes hymn introductions and accompaniments, readings, reflections, and prayers prepared by John Ferguson, retired professor of organ and church music and cantor to the student congregation at St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minn. Congregational hymns and choral anthems will be led by Anton Armstrong, professor of music at St. Olaf College and conductor of the renowned St. Olaf Choir. In addition to the hymn festival, individuals and choirs are invited to participate in the festival choir led by Armstrong and accompanied by Ferguson in a rehearsal prior to the hymn festival from 6 to 7:15 p.m. No registration is required to attend the hymn festival or rehearse and sing with the festival choir.

3 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 P a ge 3 Changes in Worship Supply Fees as approved by Synod Assembly *$125 for 1 service, $25 for each additional service occurring on the same day *$125 per service occurring on different days or overnight accommodations and breakfast EXAMPLE 1: Saturday evening service = $125; Sunday morning service = $125 or EXAMPLE 2: Saturday evening & Sunday morning = $150 plus overnight accommodations and breakfast Mileage reimbursement according to the current IRS rate (57.5 cents effective January 1, 2015). Additional Lay Worship Leaders are Authorized for Service Four new Authorized Lay Worship Leaders are ready to begin their service to the congregations of the Northwestern PA Synod. The group concluded the 60 hours of instruction in May, having completed the required courses in the areas of Old and New Testament, Lutheran Confessions, Lutheran Worship & Liturgy, and Preaching. The classes were taught by the synod staff and the individuals were authorized by Bishop Jones. We welcome and congratulate Chris Curran, a member of Grace, Franklin; Jane Miller from Zion, Shannondale; David Pryber, a member of St. Mark s, Waterford; and Sandra Withington from Saron, Youngsville. The synod now has a cadre of 16 lay men and women authorized and available to provide pulpit supply. Their contact information can be found on the synod website ( Click on Resources and Pulpit Supply List.

4 P a ge 4 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 Update on Clearances for background checks Effective July 1, 2015, a person identified in section (relating to volunteers having contact with children) shall be required to obtain the certifications required by this chapter every 36 months. (Act 153 of 2014) By July 1, 2016, if they were approved as a volunteer before July 1, 2015, and had not received a clearance because they previously were not required to obtain clearances. (PA Department of Human Services backgrounder on who needs background checks) Beginning July 1, 2015, volunteers are required to obtain background checks, including the Child Abuse History Clearance, issued by the DHS, and the Criminal History Record Check, issued by the PSP. (Governor Tom Wolf press release, June 10, 2015) Beginning July 1, 2015, volunteers having contact with or responsibility for children will be required to submit a child abuse and state criminal history clearance prior to approval as a volunteer and every 36 months after. Federal history clearances are not required provided all of the following conditions are met: The position is unpaid. The individual has been a PA resident for the past 10 years. The individual *swears or affirms in writing that he has not been convicted of any of the crimes or equivalent crimes in any other jurisdiction listed under section 6344 (c) of the Child Protective Services Law. Note: No one is grandfathered in. Anyone in the categories above must obtain the required clearances in order to comply with the law. (Pennsylvania Family Support Alliance Summer Newsletter, June 10, 2015) A person identified under section without a certification or who was previously not required to have a certification shall be required to obtain the certifications required by this chapter no later than July 1, (House Bill 1276 as introduced) *Form supplied by LAMPa for Swearing and Affirming available on our webpage or visit

5 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 P a ge 5 2 Dr. Jones The Rev. Dr. Sandra Jones earned a Doctor of Education (Ed.D) degree from the Graduate Theological Foundation of Mishawaka, IN. Her doctoral project was entitled, The Praxis of Bivocational Ministry: A Survey of Bivocational Pastors and the Congregations They Serve in the Northwestern Pennsylvania Synod, ELCA Using Appreciative Inquiry. The degree was conferred on May 8, 2015 Pictured above is The Rev. Dr. Ralph Jones, Bishop and The Rev. Dr. Sandra Jones Congratulations to the new Synod Council Representatives: EAST ERIE CLUSTER Rev. Matthew Dennison JEFFERSON CLUSTER Rev. Jean Caudill INDIANA CLUSTER Gary Alsop WARREN CLUSTER Tim Passinger

6 P a ge 6 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 Wrestling with Jakob A word from Pastor Jake Jacobson I m Weird A couple weeks ago I took a Face Book quiz entitled, How Weird Are You? I scored 94%. That is probably not a great surprise to most of you who are reading this but it was for me not that I scored 94% but that it was so low! Most of my life (except for a short stint in Gettysburg) I have felt out of place weird crazy. In the closing soliloquy of The Man of La Mancha, Don Quixote muses on the theme of insanity (which is the theme of the musical and Cervantes book). The final line of this soliloquy has haunted me my entire life, Maddest of all is to see life as it is and not as it should be. It seems that I have been planted in a place that can only see life as it is. In fact most days this place takes great pride in celebrating its cynical outlook on life and the world around it. I encounter it in the media, in community transformation gatherings and in conversations with congregations. While lip service is played to a need for change so long as it involves us we want no part of it. At the same time we keep telling a story about ourselves that no longer exists. Since my call as Director of Evangelical Mission focuses around starting and renewing existing congregations in the synod I have done considerable study on helping communities change. One of the seminal works in the field is Peter Block s book, Community: the Structure of Belonging. I commend this to pastors and lay leaders alike (both only if you are serious about change). I would like to share what I thought to be some very interesting insights from this work and others in the field of community change that are critical for the church today. We are communities that see ourselves as problems that need to be solved. How to get a pastor? How to keep our buildings open? How to get more people in the pew (especially young ones). These are the questions that dominate congregational conversations in our synod, spoken or unspoken. We look for leaders to fix these problems. It is part of our Western Civilization DNA to approach the world as a problem to be solved but the problems are only symptoms of a deeper reality. As long as we focus on the problems nothing really ever changes. We are communities of fear. We live in a culture of fear. Our news media, whether Fox News or NPR, peddles fear like a luscious commodity. Fear paralyses! It opens the door to fundamentalism, scape-goating (from presidents to socio-ethnic-economic groups), and a focus on trying to ramp up oversight and restraint. We are communities that believe if we try harder doing the same things we have always done we will work ourselves out of this mess. All we are achieving these days is a lot of very weary leaders. What Peter Block and others call for in response to this stuckness is the gathering of accountable

7 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 P a ge 7 and engaged people who are willing to see beyond problems, face the fear mongering, to engage the communities in which we live, and be willing and daring to write a new story. I don t know about you but it sounds to me to be a description of the church perhaps not as it is in NWPA but as it should be. The problem solving agenda keeps us from remembering that our call is not about filling pastoral vacancies or keeping buildings open but rather about how to proclaim Christ crucified. Perhaps we are being called to do this in new and creative ways today. What if that became the council agenda each month? There is a reason that the Bible is filled with the injunction, Do not be afraid. God knows how debilitating fear can be to the faith journey. Fear can only exist in a world where we think that it is all about us. When we are able to see the world as God intended it and has promised to be in the work of reconciling it to that vision then fear has no power over us. Fear operates when we abandon faith. What would it look like to be a community of faith that believes the future is in God s hands (even if it doesn t meet our agenda or vision)? What if we saw ourselves as communities (we might have to invite others to join us in this process) as being called and empowered (given all we need) to change the world in which we live? Sounds a little like Pentecost. Finally how do we engage in a new conversation? How do we tell a new story? Like the gospel! The truth is that it is our future that shapes our being and action in the present. The early Christian movement was an eschatological movement future focused. The great mystery of our faith, Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again makes this future story shaping our present clear. Ok, maybe I m weird but I believe that God has a plan for the future of the church in NWPA. It may not be (and probably isn t) our plan but it is the plan. God has also called and empowered us as faith communities to live into this plan, engaging the communities in which we live to be part of this transformative effort. There is probably no doubt about it now I am weird but I promise that I will continue to be a weird and an often irritating presence among you in the words of Garth Brooks (The Change) I hear you saying, You ll never change things and no matter what you do it s still the same thing But it s not the world that I am changing. I do this so, this world we know never changes me What I do is so, this world will know that it will not change me. Have no fear, I will continue to joust at windmills, dream impossible dreams and live into the world as it should be and I invite you to join me! --Pastor Jake Jacobson

8 P a ge 8 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 This year, the NWPA Synod Committee on Leadership Support is leading a focus on vocation called Life of Faith: God s call. Your Vocation. In the year ahead, the Committee on Leadership Support will provide articles and activities meant to help foster thought and discussion. This article is a brief introduction to the concept of vocation. (The article first appeared in the Mayport Lutheran Parish Newsletter) No more pencils, no more books! Summer s here and schools are out for summer vacation. New graduates are thinking about what comes next jobs, college Many start asking the question, What does God want me to do with my life? That s not a bad question for all of us to ask, whether we re graduating from somewhere or not. A helpful word for the question, What does God want me to do with my life? is VOCATION. Vocation is not the thing that families do at Disney World or Outer Banks during the summer. Vocation means calling and it s about what God calls us to do in our lives. Before the Reformation, the word vocation was pretty much used for religious orders such as monks and nuns and priests. These were commonly seen as the work that was most pleasing to God. But the reformers, including Martin Luther, started reading the Bible and realized that many of the people God chose to do his work were not priests, but carpenters, shepherds, farmers, teachers, fashion designers, mothers, and fishermen. There were folks from every walk of life who God was able to use and with whom God was pleased. As Luther writes:. Hence when a maid milks the cows or a hired man hoes the field provided that they are believers, namely, that they conclude that this kind of life is pleasing to God and was instituted by God they serve God more than all the monks and nuns (Luther s Works, Vol 3). As long as someone is serving God through what they do, any occupation is holy to God.

9 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 P a ge 9 Some people can get hung up on choosing the right career. But really God is much more interested in how we choose to do the job we do (with integrity, with love, in service to God and others) than in which job we choose (doctor, lawyer ) The calling or vocation to love, serve others, serve God, is a calling in whatever roles we have. In fact, what God wants us to do - isn t just about our jobs. It s about all our relationships. As Rolf Jacobson writes, actually, we all have more than one vocation. Our Christian vocations include our jobs, our roles as family members, our roles as friends, as neighbors, as citizens, and so-on. Vocation is all about loving the neighbor and serving in God s name. (Crazy Talk, Augsburg Fortress, Minneapolis, 2008 pg. 179). God calls us into many ways of service. So, let s get out there and hear God s calls to us. Enjoy your summer vocation! - Rev. Jim Steingass This raincoat was left in the Theater after assembly on Saturday. Size L the logo KOPPEN on the left side of chest. If its yours please contact Ellen at the Synod office to arrange pick up/drop off.

10 P a ge 10 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August th Anniversary of Ordination of Women in the ELCA In 1970, the Lutheran Church in America and the American Lutheran Church voted in their conventions to allow for the ordination of women to the ministry of Word and Sacrament is the 45th anniversary of women s ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. We give thanks to God for the ministry of our sisters in Christ! Female Rostered Leaders in the Northwestern Pennsylvania Synod Rev. Jean Caudill Ordained: 2013 Rev. Julia Fraser Ordained: 1984 Rev. Kimberly Hirsch Ordained: 1984 Rev. Deborah Jacobson Ordained: 2005 Rev. Sandra Jones Ordained: 1994 Rev. Karen Lundwall Ordained: 1979 Rev. Brenda Martin Ordained: 2011 Rev. Kristen Papson Ordained: 2015 Rev. Karen Parsh Ordained: 2007 Rev. Sandra Samuel Ordained: 1998 Rev. Nancy Schwanke Ordained: 1994 Rev. Arlene Schweitzer Ordained: 1996 Rev. Maureen Seifried Ordained: 2008 Rev. Jane E. Strohl Ordained: 1975 Rev. Jayne Thompson Ordained: 1983 Rev. Julie Walz Ordained: 1986 Rev. Gail Zackrison Ordained: 1983 Female partners in Ministry: Nancy Gabler, Diaconal Minister JoAnn Piatko, TEC Susan Scofield, TEC Heather R. Smith, Diaconal Minister Female candidates for rostered ministry: Malinda Brown Sister Heidi Cowey Judith Gosnell-Lamb

11 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 P a ge 11 Assembly 2015 continued... Elections were held for several positions including cluster representatives (see pg. 5), board positions at various agencies, and positions for churchwide representatives for our synod at the Churchwide Assembly being held in New Orleans in An approval for Worship supply fee also took place at assembly, adding an increase that was long over due (see pg. 3). We also celebrated the 50th Anniversary of Rostered Leaders including three from our Synod; The Rev. Emery (Scoop) E. Okerlund, The Rev. Frederick G. Keller, The Rev. J. David Mumford II. Thank you to those who attended assembly. We look forward to this shared event in the future. If you would like to read reports or check out videos of the assembly please visit our webpage and go to the Assembly 2015 tab. A Whole Pile of Bishops!!! Bishop Kusserow, Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod Bishop Eaton, Presiding Bishop ELCA Bishop Jones, Northwestern Pennsylvania Synod Bishop Elizabeth Eaton Bishop Ralph Jones Pastor Sandra Jones The 2016 Synod Assembly will take place at Thiel College on June 16-18, 2015

12 P a ge 12 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 A Letter from The Rev. James R. Judy Bishop Donald J. McCoid Order of Service Recipient June 23, 2015 Dear Bishop and Colleagues in Ministry, I want to acknowledge once again my gratitude in receiving the Bishop Donald J. McCoid Order of Service at this past Synod Assembly on June 13. To say I was overwhelmed and incredulous is, I think, an understatement. I am still trying to wrap my whole being around my worthiness to accept such and award. But it would be equally disingenuous for me not to acknowledge the pride I feel at being so recognized by such a multitude of my peers. Over these many year of fellowship in this community of faith called the Northwestern Pennsylvania Synod, I have been nurtured spiritually by so many of you who have been my mentors. Thanks be to God! So many of you have traveled with me in my spiritual journey, and I always have felt the presence of the Holy Spirit as third set of footprints on the way. How blessed I have been personally and in my ministry. Many of you have kept me theologically curious, and spiritually uplifted. Still others have also served as a personal pastor to me and my family. I will always count myself blessed that we have broken bread together and offered thanks to the God of creation, and of all hope and grace, truly the community of believers. I shall continue my journey of faith to my dying breath. I ask your continued prayers that I might grow in faith and share my love of Christ in all that I do. You have brought me so far on that journey, and I live in full confidence that the paths of life are such that we will come face to face again and gain. That will be of great comfort to me as my human penchant for glory tends to strike at me. I would be so bold as to share two abiding hopes for the next part of the journey-they were my parting challenge Agape Cluster. 1) I pray for the day when we can be an inclusive synodwelcoming all just as Jesus did in his ministry and teaching: and 2) I pray as we approach the

13 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 P a ge th anniversary of Martin Luther's challenge to the Church, that we can find a way to accepting fellowship among all Lutherans as a first step toward Lutheran unity, and Christian unity beyond that. God speaks to us in so many ways let us listen and respond. I share this honor bestowed on me with each of you who indeed demonstrate that sense of commitment and dedication to the service of our Lord in your lives and in your ministries. May God continue to bless you as you proclaim the Gospel to all. Grace and Peace, The Reverend James Judy If you wish to keep in touch- James Judy 3700 N. Capitol St. NW#551 Washington, D.C jjudy3234@gmail.com Pictured is The Reverend James R. Judy at his Ordination on March 27, 2010 and his wife and partner in ministry Margretta Judy who died on Nov. 21, 2014

14 P a ge 14 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 Labyrinth Dennis Yarian following the forklift to the office! Flatbed truck delivering our pavers! Home and Hearth unloading the heavy pavers for us. Mark Kingston, Owner of Allegheny Valley Landscaping, will be doing the groundwork and overseeing the installation of our Prayer Labyrinth when weather and time permits.

15 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 P a ge 15 1 down 9 to go! The perfect spot to build. David from Klapec Trucking That s a lot of rocks!

16 P a ge 16 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 The Future of Lutherlyn Yes, Lutherlyn has a future. All of us at Lutherlyn believe that it is a bright one. That message didn t float to the top of my message at the Assembly of our Synods. I know very well that it was a blunt speech. It was not my intention to offend anyone, though I am aware that I did offend some folks. I apologize for that. Three staff songs and a handful of minutes to talk, doesn t allow much time for subtlety and nuance, but there are things you need to know. Enron taught us that organizations need to be transparent. CEO s need to tell their stakeholders the truth. Every western Pennsylvania ELCA Lutheran is a stakeholder in Lutherlyn because this is a corporation with two members our two synods. That means that every member of our synods is a stakeholder and deserves needs to know what s going on. Here s what I want you to know. Lutherlyn s prime directive going back to 1948 or so, is to help shape leaders for our church. When I consider the cohort of those who will be ordained at assemblies in 2025, I realize that they are 15 years old this summer. I wonder: Where are they? What is currently shaping their faith and sense of vocation? According to Project Connect research, 70% of those people will have been significantly influenced by camp experiences. That s part of what I meant in saying that our children are the future of the church. The other part is: who will be the lay delegates to those assemblies and beyond? Our children are the church of today, to the extent that we empower them to be that. There has been a cultural shift. No doubt about that. Clearly, these days, America is a polarized nation in which faith in God is but another option. Many parents seem more willing to build the family schedule around sports than around the things that form faith. More people identify as religious affiliation: none than ever before. We all face this. Yet, there are those who do care; who do want their children to grow up in the faith. They want them to go to Sunday School and confirmation and participate in Sunday Night Live, Stay at Home Work Camp, Bible Bowl, Convo, and camp. For their sakes and for the sake of the future of our church, whether there are 1,000 campers at Lutherlyn or 100, whether the future is fewer or a new boom, Lutherlyn needs to be strong. There is a plan to make it so. It is multi-pronged. We have the legal details worked out for the natural burial cemetery and a group is pursuing its start up. We are building an indoor riding arena so that our horses can finally pay their way year around. We need to evolve and re-purpose. We need everyone s help to do that. In 1988 we began the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program. It helped schools meet the PA environmental education requirements for graduation. We can t talk about God the Creator with public school students. We can help them care for the gift of the earth. We can and do talk about

17 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 P a ge 17 God with private and parochial students. It is missional. It helps our income streams. These other new projects will help too. What we have in mind now is a very large effort in the arts. Why? We read stories to our children. We read them poetry. We sing them lullabies. We buy them crayons and coloring books and markers and watercolors. We hang their work on refrigerator doors. When they have been traumatized we utilize the power of art therapy to help them express their deepest hurts in the language of the soul. At some level we all get that art is connected to the health of the human heart. Yet it is disappearing from the curriculums of many of our schools as if we outgrow this innate aspect of being human. There are individual and cultural consequences to this. Our goal is to launch Woodland Center for Arts and Crafts. To offer art camps for children and retreats and classes for all ages year around. This is a big project and it will take time and lots of work. We think that it is worth it. We think that it is missional because it celebrates and nurtures the creativity we were each born with; the creativity of the God in whose image we are made. We have a good start. A lot of people have thought that Lutherlyn has been raking in cash from shale gas and that there is no need to continue their financial support. That is so not true. The market has collapsed. There is one well. The net is virtually nothing. The next four to five years will be hard. We are applying for grants. We are building networks. We are developing programs. We have incurred debt. We have launched fledgling programs. In the meantime, we have only camper fees and donations to work with. Camper numbers (and fee income) have declined since We have asked our Trinity Pines Club donors to do more. We need our stakeholders our congregations; our people to help do this new thing. With God s blessing and your help, we will not fail and Lutherlyn will have a strong and enduring future. May God bless us all in ministry together, Randy Gullickson

18 P a ge 18 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 Ordination Announcement We would like to congratulate the new Rev. Kristen Papson on the celebration of her Ordination on Sunday June 28, 2015 at Luther Memorial Church in Erie, Kristen has been called to serve Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church in Erie. Her installation will take place at a later date Pennsylvania Conference of Bishops An Open Letter In Support of Fairness for All Pennsylvanians June 17, 2015 They shall not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain. (Isaiah 11:9) Attached you will find a copy of the letter stating the proposed legislation that would update the 1955 Human Relations Act.

19 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 P a ge 19 WORLD HUNGER NEWS On behalf of the Northwestern PA Synod Committee on World Hunger, I want to thank the congregations and individuals of the synod for your generous support of the ELCA World Hunger Appeal in Last year we gave a total of $102,388. Our average giving per baptized member was $ 4.93 which places us in second place in our region. While we are gaining on decreasing hunger throughout the world the need is still great. Therefore, I encourage your faithful giving through the remainder of Hopefully we can improve over last year's giving. We are growing closer to reaching the $ 2,000,000 mark in our support of world hunger since the year I also want to thank you for your attention to our climate change presentations at the plenary session and participation in the climate change forum at the Synod Assembly in June. We will strive to keep you up to date on climate change and how it is affecting hunger throughout the world. Please pay attention to legislation on bills affecting hunger both nationally and in our state. The ELCA's national office in Washington reminds us from time to time on hunger-related issues. Please write to you representatives on bills that favor the relief of hunger. Likewise, in Pennsylvania the Lutheran Advocacy Ministry of PA keeps us informed on hunger issues in the state. Contacting your local representative to support hunger relief will be helpful. For the World Hunger Committee, Pastor Ken Laber, Chair

20 P a ge 20 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 Please note that Bishop Jones is on sabbatical July-September. Any questions or issues will be handled by Pastor Jones, Pastor Jake, and Ellen at the Synod Office. A worship workshop on creative worship planning for the Advent-Christmas- Epiphany cycle will be held on Sunday, Aug. 30, from 3-5 p.m. at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Greenville. A light meal will follow the workshop. The Rev. Jayne Thompson, campus pastor at Thiel College, will share ideas for the season. We will also sing through some of the ELW hymns for the season that might be more unfamiliar to us but that might be worth learning in our congregations. The cost of the workshop is $5. Rostered leaders will be receiving a brochure with more details early in July. Any questions regarding the Worship Workshop please contact Pastor Brenda Martin at bmartin983@aol.com Registration is due by: August 19, 2015 Please visit and fill out the registration form on our Home Tab. IF you are registering a GROUP of people all at once please Ellen directly at nwpasynod@nwpaelca.org (do not fill out the online form) and label the Worship Workshop and list the names of the attendees and the meal count. Thank you.

21 NWPA SY NOD NEWSL ET T E R July/August 2015 P a ge 21 Registration is due by Aug 25, 2015 Attached is the registration form and signup sheet Fall Retreat September 18-20, 2015 at Camp Lutherlyn Theme: God Satisfies Our Hungry Heart Bible Verse: Pslam 147:3 He heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds Bible Study Leaders: The Rev. Blair Morgan, Chaplain Christine Rotella and The Rev. Sandra Jones Saturday Evening: Healing Service led by the Rev. Peggy Suhr-Barkley Sunday Morning: Celebrate the Eucharist on Chapel with Rev. Jones Workshops on Saturday: Katie s Fund, Abiding Ministries, Glade Run and Bethesda s Children's Home Funshops are Sit& Be Fit The Weight of Sin, Lutherlyn Walk, The Backpack Story & Craft and Service project join in packing school kits for Glade Run and Bethesda. Please bring some of the following school supplies: Pencils, Markers, Glue sticks, Construction Paper, Black Pens, Sticky Notes, Inexpensive Calculates, Erasers, Notebooks (no-metal spirals) and Folders (no-metal inside) Enjoy the music and singing led by Donna Dupont and Heather Goncz. For more information or questions please contact: Andrea Dubler, retreat chairperson Barbara Marts, Registrar herbandrea@aol.com blmartz@live.com We are asking ALL ATTENDEES to bring: Items collected for your synodical unit s designated offering Northwest.VA Healthcare Clinic Southwest.FCCM Bridge House

22 Northwestern Pennsylvania Synod, ELCA Titusville Road P. O. BOX 43 Pleasantville, PA Phone: Fax: A Word from Ellen Summer is upon us, that is, if it ever stops raining, and I had my first experience with Synod Assembly. All in all I think it went pretty well! Thank you to everyone for the kind words of encouragement, especially to Bishop Jones, Pastor Jones and Dennis Yarian. They have given me a wonderful opportunity to grow and learn! Hopefully at this time next year I will be a synod assembly expert. I hope to have all the kinks worked out and things will be back to normal. Have a wonderful summer! Ellen Northwestern PA Synod, ELCA Local Happenings Oil Heritage Festival July Come join Oil City for food, fun, games, and the parade!! Pleasantville Community Festival July Pleasantville Fire Hall 6pm-11pm Food, Games, Midway