An Historic Weekend

Greetings!

Did you know that this is a historic weekend?  It is; and for other reasons than what happened twenty years ago.

Why?  

It’s because this weekend marks the installation of Rev. Dr. Megan Rohrer, the first transgender Bishop in the ELCA.

That change, in and of itself ought to be important to us, but also there is so much more going on too.  Speaking as someone who cares about the diversity of faithful expressions in our Lutheran church and the public proclamation of the goodness church can be, this synod staff  is already doing very exciting things to help congregations like us live with more authentically joyous faith and more creative and inclusive ministries.

And I totally hear you say, “Aren’t we already inclusive?”  We are.  And we try.  But let me explain the difference through an obtuse metaphor:

Say you are an artist who paints a picture you really feel excited about sharing.  And, when you are done it occurs to you that, “Hey, I love this painting, but there are other people I care about who do not or cannot enjoy paintings at all.” And then you say to yourself, “How can I get them to love this painting?”  This is the way we, as a church structure, so often try to approach inclusion.  What I’m seeing currently from our synod office looks a lot more like, “Hey, how can we work together to share this stuff we are passionate about.?”

If this difference is as exciting for you as it feels for me, please check out our synod website to learn more.

And click here to watch this weekend’s installation livestream.  Pr. Sara will be there as Dean of our conference.  The kids and I will be at home with popcorn.

God bless you,
Pr. Nate