Friday, April 30, 2010 - Blog 2

Keynote Key Notes

Many hearers of the words of Pr. Stephen Bouman in his keynote address Friday afternoon commended his call for refocus on the “love songs” of the forebears who shaped our lives from an early age, and the need to get our “evangelical muscle” back. But in the end his emphasis was on the imperative of looking forward, not back.
He described the “first love” within the ELCA as the joy of planting and renewing congregations, “that evangelical joy when the Gospel of grace first shows up.”
One listener, also a member of the clergy, said later in the day that he wished Bouman “had focused on the need for new songs.”
In a way, he did: “We need a better paradigm than we’re living right now; we’ll never be on the same page on all things,” Bouman said. “Any organization that can’t renew itself is a dead thing.”
That’s the fundamental premise of “Together in Mission,” the current ELCA initiative that’s all about “planting” and “growing” new congregations to serve new communities across America. Yes, you can say it’s the embodiment of the Great Commission. It’s also the only way there will be an Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in another generation or so.
How is it going? This year already 41 new congregations have been started in the ELCA, 25 of them intended to serve immigrant communities, Bouman said.

Note-ably Absent

A Synod Assembly music insider said on Friday that the decision was made to do without the traditional pick-up choir at this year’s gathering because of “uncertainty about available resources.” As in not enough folks indicated in their online registrations that they would like to take part. If you miss the choir music, keep that in mind when it’s time to register for next year’s assembly.

Notable Return

Even in an era of unprecedented belt tightening, time is money. Or vice versa.
Last year the decision was made to do without personal electronic voting devices because reverting to the use of hand-held green (yea) and red (nay) cards saved the synod thousands of dollars. The upshot was that every time somebody called for “division of the house” (which in the heat of debate over sexuality issues occurred repeatedly), a time-consuming and patience-testing count of the cards ensued.
This year there are far fewer resolutions (absent a flurry from the floor), but the mini-voting machines are back. The explanation given: the large number of elections – for 2011 Churchwide Assembly voting members as well as for synod positions. Office support staff have plenty to do just running off bio sheets for nominees from the floor without having to run off ballots at the last minute, too. And then there’s the time it would take to count the votes in all the contests.

Just Desserts

This year the bishop is hosting a Saturday evening social event that’s billed not as an “Ice Cream Reception” but as a “Dessert Reception.” In addition to the traditional chocolate, vanilla, maraschino cherries and sprinkles, might there be other sweet treats? Perhaps even fruits and some of that granola and yogurt stuff? You’ll find out soon enough, of course.

Praise the Lord

It’s not exactly a case of prayer without ceasing, but you do get three different opportunities for worship on Saturday – none of which appeared on the tentative assembly agenda or the updates posted online.
On the official (revised) assembly agenda are the 8:15 a.m. Morning Service of the Word in the plenary hall and a 9 p.m. Taizé Contemplative Service in the Lemon Ballroom.
Additionally, a Holden Evening Prayer service will be held at 5:30 p.m. in the Siesta Room, presented by the Central Florida Chapter of Lutherans Concerned/North America and Florida Reconciling in Christ congregations. The homily for this service will be delivered by Pastor Bill Knott of Abiding Savior Lutheran in Fort Lauderdale.
Abiding Savior was placed under censure in 2002 for having called and installed Knott, who was not on the ELCA clergy roster, as pastor. He had voluntarily removed himself from the roster earlier because of being in a committed, same-gender relationship. On March 30, Bishop Benoway announced the lifting of the censure and said he hoped “in the very near future” to begin the process for Knott to be reinstated to the ELCA clergy roster.

By the Numbers

This year’s Synod Assembly has13 Youth Voting Members taking part – down by five from last year. With more than 200 congregations in the synod, why such small numbers? It’s hard to figure. Congregations can pick up an additional vote just by sending an individual between 15 and 22 years of age to assembly along with their other allocated voting members. And yet the vast majority don’t.

Disaster Pastor

Haiti’s Pastor Livenson Lauvanus received two standing ovations during his presentation Friday. Describing the unwavering faith of his people even in the face of the massive devastation caused by January’s earthquake, he said: “The Gospel is about transformation.” He also commented: “It is not society who is going to tell us what to do, because we know better than that.”
Members of the synod’s Haiti Task Force spoke of relationships forged between the peoples of Florida and Haiti. The assembly marks the kickoff of a commitment to provide support for l’Eglise Lutherienne d’Haiti over the next three years.

In Praise of Change

Selected quotes from participants in Friday’s panel discussion on positive results of the 2009 Churchwide Assembly actions:
Pastor Walter Fohs, Lamb of God Lutheran-Episcopal Church, Fort Myers: “I believe that the theology of the church is changing, that change is empowering people, freeing the church to do some things that the church needs to do – positive and affirming aspects of the Gospel.”
Bill Horne, former synod vice president and current member of the ELCA Church Council, on the change he perceived from 2005 to 2009: “Clearly the church was becoming less patient with the resistance” [to welcoming gays into the full life of the church].
Having visited six congregations that were considering leaving the ELCA as a result of the changes, he said he found those adamantly opposed were “badly informed about what the church has been doing for a long time” in other justice areas as well.
Steve Rosebrock, who voluntarily left the ELCA ministry in 2002 because of the church’s stance toward gays: “A big part of being the church is to remember who you are. . . You are a child of God. We are all children of God.”
Sue Williams, council president, St. Stephen Lutheran, Tallahassee: “Church is about the relationship we have with each other, the relationship we have with God, the relationship we have with the community. We can disagree on so many things, but the church is big enough to focus on the things we agree on.”
Pastor Jon Culp, St. Paul’s Lutheran, Clearwater: “Scripture, tradition, reason and experience all need to coalesce. We need to look at scripture in the context in which it was written.”
Panelists as well as several individuals in the audience said becoming a welcoming congregation led to a small number of people leaving – but to an infusion of new members, straight as well as gay.

Beyond Words

If you pose the 2010 Synod Assembly theme as a question, what is the answer? If it’s the answer, articulate the question. Either way, what do you get? Ideas . . . beliefs . . . actions.
Bishop Edward Benoway put it succinctly in his homily at the Opening Eucharist service: The church must witness to the “people living in the shadows of our church buildings.”