Gaza situation ‘dire’ The Lutheran World Federation urged Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas to honor a November cease- fire over Gaza and resume peace talks. In a statement, LWF President Munib Younan and LWF General Secretary Martin Junge called the humanitar- ian situation among Gaza’s 1.6 mil- lion people “dire.” They reiterated the LWF’s call for an end to the economic blockade against the Gaza Strip, inter- national efforts to relieve the suffering there, establishment of an indepen- dent Palestinian state alongside Israel, and a shared Jerusalem for Jews, Christians and Muslims.
College approves weddings Steve Bahls, president of Augustana College, Rock Island, Ill., in late
November sent students and faculty an email announcing his consent for same-gender weddings on campus. Bahls said he had been approached by campus chaplains Richard Priggie and Kristen Glass Perez to do so. “The bishop of our Northern Illinois Synod … determined that it was up to me as president of the college to provide or not provide consent,” Bahls wrote. “I decided to consent. ... If we say we do not discriminate, our policies and practices should honestly reflect it.”
Explaining the Reformation Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) leaders have asked the Lutheran World Federation, World Communion of Reformed Churches and World Council of Churches to help make ecumenism central to the
ELCA statistics At the end of 2011, the ELCA had 9,638 congregations. During 2011, those congregations: • Had a 5 percent decline in bap- tized membership (to 4,059,785) and a 5.3 percent drop in worship attendance (to 1.1 million) over the previous year. Average congrega- tional worship attendance (149 in 1988) was 117, the lowest figure on record. • Maintained a relatively sta- ble group of 2,531,154 “active participants.” • Reported income of more than $2.4 billion (a 2.2 percent decrease) and assets of $19.65 billion. • Saw average annual giving per baptized member increase 2 per- cent to $504. • Reported (22 percent) that at least 5 percent of members were ethni- cally diverse. • Reported (52.9 percent) that their expenses were greater than their income.
SOURCE: ELCA OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY
Touring the damage ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson prays with residents in Staten Island
WENDY HEALY
during a trip to New York and New Jersey after Hurricane Sandy (see also, page 14). More than 10 bishops and pastors representing the Lutheran World Federation came to the U.S. on Nov. 30-Dec. 1 to join Hanson; Stephen Bouman, executive director of Congregational and Synodical Mission; and Michael Stadie, Lutheran Disaster Relief director, to assess damage. It was the first time an LWF delegation came to stand in solidarity with affected U.S. churches and members. North-Western Synod Bishop Elisa Buberwa (right) brought an aid check from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania.
January 2013 9
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