Interim Grace Notes: Bishop Daniel's August 31 Email

Dear Friends in Christ,

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…” (Colossians 3:16a)

From August 8-12, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America met in assembly in Columbus, Ohio. The theme was, “Embody the Word”. We were blessed by the presence and the faithfulness of the following voting members from Northwestern Ohio.

Mary Satterfield: Solomon, Woodville
Ingrid Miller: St. John, Celina
Heather Hawn: Grace, Fremont
Wellington Kamala: St. Mark’s, Bowling Green
Shawn Schneider: First, Galion
Brian Hurt: Good Hope, Arlington
Nate Stenke: Trinity, Findlay
Pastor Beth Westphal: First, Tiffin
Pastor Doris Mars: St. John’s, Findlay
Pastor Kathy Shuck: First, Upper Sandusky
Bob Mens: Olivet, Sylvania
Pastor Adam Sornchai: St. John, Cardington
Pastor Pete Bowmer: St. Paul’s, Toledo
Bishop Daniel G. Beaudoin: Northwestern Ohio Synod
Vice-President Nancy Yunker: Northwestern Ohio Synod
Steve Graf: Zion, Defiance
Pastor Dan Gutman: Zion, Lima

One of the main highlights of the Churchwide Assembly was the gift of daily worship. Every day we gathered around Word, Sacrament, and Song. Though our faces were covered due to COVID restrictions, those who gathered in sacred space gave beautiful voice to the Church’s Liturgy and Song. I was especially grateful to hear God’s Word shared through a variety of languages and images. It was so very good to gather together as a worshiping community. Click here to view Churchwide Assembly worship services.

It was also good to connect with others during the plenary sessions and while navigating in the hallways, ascending the stairs, and traversing the sidewalks. And yes, the rumor is true. I did get peppered sprayed while out on a Columbus sidewalk. It is a great story. Ask me about it some time. As one of our voting members shared with me, the ELCA Churchwide Assembly experience is a powerful reminder that through the local parish we are connected to a worldwide Christian movement. It was also good to connect with seminary classmates and colleagues from the Conference of Bishops.

One of my favorite moments was the video tribute to our late Vice-President Bill Horne. Bill was working on a video presentation when he was interrupted. After the interruption, and after I got up off the floor, Bill gave me a big hug and we laughed. Bill was a great leader, and I enjoyed a few quiet breakfasts with him. Please check out the full tribute video (4:17) to our late Vice-President Bill Horne and not just the first 15 seconds.

During the Legislatives sessions we participated in prayer, heard reports, and made a number of important decisions. I will highlight just a few.

Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton made a public apology to the people of God who gather as Iglesia Luterana Santa María Peregrina in Stockton, California. The apology stemmed from the abrupt removal of Santa María’s pastor as the congregation prepared to celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupethis past December. Four dear folks, Tony Castro, Bertha Castro, Rodolfo Limo and Jovita Torres, traveled to Columbus from Santa María Peregrina and accepted Bishop Eaton’s apology and offered love, grace, and forgiveness. Bishop Eaton will be traveling to Iglesia Luterana Santa María Peregrinain Stockton, to meet with the community in the near future. To view Bishop Eaton’s public apology in its entirety, please click here (57:15).
The election of Vice-President Imran Siddiqui to a 6-year term to begin on November 1, 2022. Imran is a member of St. John Lutheran Church in Atlanta, Georgia. He is a senior investigator for the U.S. Department of Labor. He is married to Kendall (whom he met at church), and together they have a small son. I enjoyed hearing Imran talk about the importance of seeking wholeness and balance in his work-home life, his love for the Lutheran liturgical tradition, and his longing for God’s powerful gift of grace. To learn more about Vice-President Imran Siddiqui please check out this article in Living Lutheran.
Passed A Memorial to Restructure the Governance of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America by a wide margin (738-72). The legislative language reads: “To direct the Church Council to establish a Commission for a Renewed Lutheran Church comprised of leaders of diverse representation from all three expressions that, working in consultation with the Conference of Bishops and the Church Council, shall reconsider the statements of purpose for each of the expressions of this church, the principles of its organizational structure, and all matters pertaining thereunto, being particularly attentive to our shared commitment to dismantle racism, and will present its findings and recommendations to the 2025 Churchwide Assembly in preparation for a possible reconstituting convention to be called under the rules for a special meeting of the Churchwide Assembly” (Assembly Action CA22.01.06).
Passed (721-Yes; 79-No), a Memorial on the Use of Separation Agreements that was based on a similar memorial that was passed at our June 2022 Synod Assembly. The legislative language reads: “To affirm the commitment of the churchwide organization of the ELCA to limit the use of non-disclosure provisions to the small minority of cases in which they are truly necessary to protect confidential and sensitive materials related to donors, personnel, legal, information technology, and similar categories; To urge synods, congregations, agencies, institutions, and other parts of the ELCA to limit the use of non-disclosure agreements to the small minority of cases in which they are truly necessary and not to use such agreements as a matter of course or in the termination of calls of rostered ministers; and To direct the Church Council to update the “Churchwide Organization Personnel Policies” to appropriately limit the use to non-disclosure agreements consistent with these memorials” (Assembly Action CA22.03.14).
Finally, passed (642-Yes; 76-No), a Memorial on Specialized Ministries and On Leave from Call Status that was based on a similar memorial that was passed at our June 2022 Synod Assembly. The legislative language reads: “To direct the Church Council to direct the appropriate churchwide unit to initiate a review process of the “Manual of Policies and Procedures for Management of the Rosters of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America” and the constitutional provisions and policies and procedures as they relate to interim, transition, bridge, specialized, non-parish-based, and innovative calls, as well as on-leave from call status, protocols for removal from the rosters, and communication protocols;To direct the Church Council to ensure that this review process include in its scope of inquiry, but not be limited to: the time limits given for On-leave-from-Call, steps for requesting a roster status, and a process by which an action or lack of recommendation from a bishop may be appealed, including the possibility of an appeal in a judicatory other than the synod from which they were removed from the roster; To require that those involved in the review process include a diverse group representing both the roster of Word and Sacrament and the roster of Word and Service who are or have recently been involved in specialized ministries (e.g., interim, transition, campus, outdoor, college or seminary faculty, chaplains, mission developers, etc.), and those currently or recently on leave from call for a variety of reasons (e.g., between calls, family, disability, study, healing from abuse, etc.); To urge bishops and synod councils to use sparingly any action by which a minister is removed from the roster for non-disciplinary reasons, unless the minister requests removal, until this review is complete, especially for those serving contract calls, as supply preachers, and in other ELCA ministries that don't qualify as a call; and To require that the appropriate unit of the churchwide organization prepare a report and recommendations for consideration by the fall 2024 meeting of the ELCA Church Council” (Assembly Action CA22.04.24).