ELCA NEWS SERVICE
November 16, 2010
November 16, 2010
ELCA Presiding Bishop Highlights 'Expectations' in Report to Council
10-287-JB
10-287-JB
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), described his hopes for the church for the next three years -- focusing on expectations -- in a report to the ELCA Church Council Nov. 13.
The Church Council is the ELCA's board of directors and serves as the legislative authority of the church between churchwide assemblies. The council met here Nov. 12-14. Assemblies are held every other year; the next is Aug. 14-20, 2011, in Orlando, Fla.
Hanson organized his report around three questions:
+ What can God expect from the ELCA?
+ What can the ELCA expect from its leaders?
+ What should the church expect from God?
Responding to what God can expect, Hanson noted recent trends in the ELCA such as decreased membership, worship attendance and giving, plus uncertainty for some people about whether there is a place for them in the ELCA.
"Do we want to say to God that we expect past and present trends to continue? Somehow I think God has much higher expectations of us and for us than that," he told the council.
Hanson told the council that God can expect that:
+ members of the ELCA will share the "Good News" of Jesus Christ with family, friends, neighbors and coworkers.
+ members will be "everyday evangelists," and that ELCA pastors will proclaim "the Good News of salvation in Jesus' name with evangelical passion and perseverance, with the creativity of a poet, the wisdom of a sage, the courage of a prophet and the humility of a sinner."
+ the "living word" will be at the heart of the ELCA's life and witness.
+ the ELCA will describe and define itself on the basis of how it relates to other Christians in the body of Christ, not what sets it apart from others.
+ members will join with people of other faiths and those who claim no religious convictions "to work tirelessly to feed the hunger and serve the poor" while addressing root causes of poverty and hunger in the world. During a meeting with President Obama and other Christian leaders Nov. 1, Hanson told the president that the religious community is ready to work in partnership with the public and private sectors to reduce hunger and poverty.
+ the ELCA will describe itself with joy, boldness and courage in "believing, proclaiming and testifying" to the gospel.
On the second question -- What can the ELCA expect from its leaders? -- Hanson said, "In the current culture of fear in which we live both in church and in society, we face the daily challenge of proving ourselves worthy of the trust of the people who have called us into these positions."
The presiding bishop said the church should expect its leaders to welcome people to the church. Hanson recently recorded a video for the "It Gets Better" project on You Tube, addressing bullying of teenagers who are gay and lesbian.
"I never imagined how those words of God's grace would go so viral in a matter of hours and days through the means of social networking. I have been moved by the responses," he told the council, adding, "do you realize how many people out there have never heard and are longing to hear God's gracious word of invitation and salvation in Jesus Christ?"
The Church Council is the ELCA's board of directors and serves as the legislative authority of the church between churchwide assemblies. The council met here Nov. 12-14. Assemblies are held every other year; the next is Aug. 14-20, 2011, in Orlando, Fla.
Hanson organized his report around three questions:
+ What can God expect from the ELCA?
+ What can the ELCA expect from its leaders?
+ What should the church expect from God?
Responding to what God can expect, Hanson noted recent trends in the ELCA such as decreased membership, worship attendance and giving, plus uncertainty for some people about whether there is a place for them in the ELCA.
"Do we want to say to God that we expect past and present trends to continue? Somehow I think God has much higher expectations of us and for us than that," he told the council.
Hanson told the council that God can expect that:
+ members of the ELCA will share the "Good News" of Jesus Christ with family, friends, neighbors and coworkers.
+ members will be "everyday evangelists," and that ELCA pastors will proclaim "the Good News of salvation in Jesus' name with evangelical passion and perseverance, with the creativity of a poet, the wisdom of a sage, the courage of a prophet and the humility of a sinner."
+ the "living word" will be at the heart of the ELCA's life and witness.
+ the ELCA will describe and define itself on the basis of how it relates to other Christians in the body of Christ, not what sets it apart from others.
+ members will join with people of other faiths and those who claim no religious convictions "to work tirelessly to feed the hunger and serve the poor" while addressing root causes of poverty and hunger in the world. During a meeting with President Obama and other Christian leaders Nov. 1, Hanson told the president that the religious community is ready to work in partnership with the public and private sectors to reduce hunger and poverty.
+ the ELCA will describe itself with joy, boldness and courage in "believing, proclaiming and testifying" to the gospel.
On the second question -- What can the ELCA expect from its leaders? -- Hanson said, "In the current culture of fear in which we live both in church and in society, we face the daily challenge of proving ourselves worthy of the trust of the people who have called us into these positions."
The presiding bishop said the church should expect its leaders to welcome people to the church. Hanson recently recorded a video for the "It Gets Better" project on You Tube, addressing bullying of teenagers who are gay and lesbian.
"I never imagined how those words of God's grace would go so viral in a matter of hours and days through the means of social networking. I have been moved by the responses," he told the council, adding, "do you realize how many people out there have never heard and are longing to hear God's gracious word of invitation and salvation in Jesus Christ?"
