Questions or comments
about this site?
E-mail .

 

   

 

River Crossings in Plain Text

May 2008 Issue

Below you will find all the stories from River Crossings in plain text format, so you can easily copy and paste them into your publications. If you require any graphics for these stories, please email or call 507-280-9457 with your request.

Page 1 - Cover

Stay Connected Online
Page 4

Issue Brief: Water
 Page 5

Lutherans Dedicated to Increase Biblical Fluency
 Page 6

Inside...
2008 Trip to Colombia
- page 2

ELCA News: ELCA Ecumenical, Interfaith Work Enters New Phase; Applications Sought for ELCA Accessibility Award; New DVD Illustrates Lutherans Working for Peace in the Middle East
- page 3

Bishop Usgaard: “The Importance of Fellowship at the Table”
- page 7

Larry Iverson: “Called to End Hunger”
- page 8

Deborah Ann Norrie: “Wellness: Using the Tools Provided”
- page 9

Celebrating Rural Ministry
- page 11

The Bridge - “The Lutheran Magazine”
- insert

Selected Resources to Follow Up on Synod Assembly

Page 2 - Synod News

Synod Assembly Voting Members Receiving River Crossings
As identified leaders in congregations, voting members at the Synod Assembly receive River Crossings for one year following the assembly.

Those who were voting members last year but not this year are welcome to visit www.semnsynod.org/river_crossings.html to access the newsletter online. There is also a place to sign up to receive notifications by e-mail when issues are available. If you do not have access to the newsletters electronically and wish to continue receiving them, contact Katie Livingood at the synod office at 507-280-9457 or 800-426-6376 in Minnesota to make your request.

Synod Assembly Follow-Up
This issue of River Crossings is going to print before the 2008 Synod Assembly gets under way. By the time it hits your mailbox, though, a report will be online. Go to www.semnsynod.org/assembly.html to find out what happened or watch your June River Crossings.

2008 Trip to Colombia
The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Colombia has invited members of the Southeastern Minnesota Synod to visit them October 16-26, 2008. Estimated cost for this trip, based on current airfare, is between $1600 and $1800. The trip is limited to eight.

Groups have gone the past two years and had great experiences learning about and meeting our sisters and brothers in our companion synod of Colombia.

Bishop Buitrago says that these trips are of utmost importance to them as they make the Lutheran church in Colombia real in the eyes of the country.

There are about 3,000 members in the Lutheran Church in Colombia. The group will visit many different congregations, mission areas, historical and cultural sites. For more information contact Kathy Bolin at bolin@semnsynod.org, 507-280-9457, or 800-426-6376 in Minnesota.

Contact Information Updates
All rostered people, program staff, and synod committee members are asked to take a moment to check the blue 2007-2008 synod handbook to see if their information is correct. Congregations are also asked to please check the program staff pages to make sure they are current.

Please get changes to Katie Livingood at livingood@semnsynod.org, 507-280-9457, or 800-426-6376 in Minnesota by June 11.

Remember in Prayer
Health Concerns
• Rev. Zane Anderson
• Rev. Sherman Coltvet
• Rev. Gary Hanson
• Kristi Hauschild, wife of Rev. Paul Hauschild
• Rev. Glennys Knutson
• Shannon Reuss, wife of Rev. Peter Reuss
• Rev. Don Roberts

Sympathies
• Rev. Cindy Fisher Broin, whose mother died April 4
• Rev. Kathy Lowery, whose father Duane “Red” Urquhart, died April 9
• Rev. Robert Roettger, whose father-in-law died April 12

Southeastern Minnesota Synod Mission Support
March YTD
 Current Year - $340,892
Last Year - $319,452
Budget - $345,320

* Fiscal Year February- January

Because of you...
It is a joy to share with our Church Colleges, Campus Ministry sites and Luther Seminary as some of our Ministry Partners. Through your giving we all make a difference in nurturing of faith in young adults at these educational institutions. Christ has called us to share the faith with others, and your gifts make that possible to younger generations. Thank you for what you do.

Page 3 - ELCA News ELCA News in Brief
Get the full stories at www.ELCA.org/news 

ELCA Ecumenical, Interfaith Work Enters New Phase
Ecumenical and interfaith relationships are significant ministries of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), which maintains full communion agreements with five Protestant churches and the possibility of another in 17 months. With new leadership in its churchwide ecumenical and interfaith section, the ELCA -- often described as a "bridge" church seeking to build connections with other Christian churches -- is assessing where it wants to go now and in the future.

Since the late 1990s the ELCA has been in full communion with the Episcopal Church, Moravian Church in America, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Reformed Church in America and the United Church of Christ. This month, the United Methodist Church General Conference will vote on a full communion proposal with the ELCA. If adopted, the 2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly is expected to take up the same proposal.

Full communion means the churches will work for visible unity in Jesus Christ, recognize each other's ministries, work together on a variety of ministry initiatives, and, under certain circumstances, provide for the interchangeability of professional leaders. Understanding each other's ministry has been an important part of the early "nurturing" of full communion relationships, said the Rev. Donald J. McCoid, executive director, ELCA Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations.

Applications Sought for ELCA Accessibility Award
Disability Ministries of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is taking applications through May 31, 2008, for its Annual Accessibility Awards. Two congregations -- one with more than 300 members and another with fewer than 300 members -- will be honored this summer for their commitment to provide care and concern among people who are living with disabilities. Each winner receives a grant of $1,000 from the ELCA Mission Investment Fund and the National Organization on Disability, and a plaque from ELCA Disability Ministries through ELCA Vocation and Education.

"Disability ministries helps congregations to be accessible," said the Rev. Lisa Thogmartin Cleaver, director for disability ministries, ELCA Vocation and Education. "The accessibility award is given one time a year to the congregations that are most physically accessible, have the most programs and resources and serve the whole population of the physically, mentally and developmentally delayed," she said.

Applications for the ELCA Accessibility Award are judged according to the physical accessibility of the congregation's church building, the congregation's outreach into the community to people who have disabilities, and the inclusion of people with disabilities in the worship and daily life of the congregation.

New DVD Illustrates Lutherans Working for Peace in the Middle East
"Peace Not Walls: Making a Difference in the Holy Land" is a new DVD that illustrates the ways members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) are working for "peace with justice" in the Middle East. Made available April 7, the 28-minute video examines the ELCA's engagement with Christians, Jews and Muslims working for peace, accompaniment with Palestinian Lutherans, the Israeli separation barrier and settlements, Christian Zionism and more.

"Peace Not Walls is an ELCA campaign dedicated to peace with justice in Israel and Palestine," said Carol LaHurd, campaign coordinator, ELCA Global Mission. She said the team that produced the new DVD endeavored to include "many voices" since the social, political, economic and religious situation in the Holy Land is complex.

The DVD includes images from the Holy Land, interviews and examples of interfaith peacemaking activities.

Page 4 - Stay Connected Online
By Katie Livingood
Synod Communications Director

If you’re looking for a way to get more from your favorite ministries and organizations, you may just need to turn on your computer. Here are some ways you may not know about to find just a few of the ELCA ministries and organizations online:

LutherLink - www.lutherlink.org
If you don’t know where to start, try LutherLink. Here you can find many different discussion groups on everything from doing your job (at least if you work in the church) to issues in the ELCA. You can even get devotions online. Messages can either be obtained online or through your e-mail.

Start out with the free Lite Membership to see what it’s all about, and if you get really into it, you can upgrade to the paid Full Membership.

Facebook or MySpace - www.facebook.com or www.myspace.com
Facebook and MySpace are two of the most popular social networking sites. Use it to connect to others with similar interests or to connect directly to a ministry or cause of your choice.

On Facebook groups are set up for ELCA, Bread for the World, and the ONE Campaign and you can join causes such as Lutheran World Relief, Lutheran Disaster Response, and ELCA World Hunger. These are just a few and more are always being added.

Lutherans hang out in MySpace too. There you can get connected to the 2009 ELCA Youth Gathering, ELCA young adults and ELCA job listings.

You can also get connected to individual congregations or other smaller groups through both sites. Youth groups are also a popular network on these sites, giving kids a safe “place” to be on the internet.

Blogs
Blogs are literally all over the internet. They are a great way to stay informed and hear people’s opinions on different subjects, but do remember that not all blogs are equal. Since blogging is free to anyone who wants to, you cannot be sure of the quality of content.

To look for blogs on specific topics, try one of the many sites that search blogs. For example, Google’s search is blogsearch.google.com, you can search the popular blogging site Blogger (www.blogger.com) for blogs hosted by them, or a simple search for blog search comes up with other sites such as www.blogsearchengine.com, www.blogdigger.com, and www.blog-search.com.

Check to see if your pastor or someone else in the congregation has a blog. Another good one to get you started is the Hunger Rumblings blog from ELCA World Hunger. Especially as we are a “Synod at Table with the Hungry” this year, you will find the thoughts, facts, and suggestions relating to hunger issues informational and useful.

Electronic Newsletters
News delivered right to your e-mail inbox is a very quick and easy way to stay informed, with very little work for you. Many organizations have e-mail alerts or e-newsletters. Our synod has several - a general electronic newsletter that goes out weekly, notifications when River Crossings is posted online, and e-mails to people who work in communications in their congregations (newsletters, bulletins, websites, publicity, etc.). Go to www.semnsynod.org to sign up.

Just a few other electronic news items you may be interested in include:

These are just a few ways to stay connected online. Visiting sites also gives you opportunities to read articles, donate, find out about events, and more. If you can’t find what you’re looking for, try your favorite search engine - you’re likely to find what you want and much more!

Page 5 - Issue Brief: Water
Water as an issue of justice
From ELCA Advocacy - www.elca.org/advocacy/environment/07-07-31-water.html

ELCA Policy Base
“We of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America are deeply concerned about the environment, locally and globally, as members of this church and as members of society. Even as we join the political, economic and scientific discussion, we know care for the earth to be a profoundly spiritual matter.” Caring for Creation: Vision, Hope, and Justice (1993)

The Caring for Creation social statement recognizes that “living creatures, and the air, soil and water that support them, face unprecedented threats. Many threats are global; most stem directly from human activity. Our current practices may so alter the living world that it will be unable to sustain life in the manner we know.” The social statement affirms the ELCA’s support for proposals and actions to protect and restore “water, especially drinking water, groundwater, polluted runoff, and industrial and municipal waste.”

Background

“When the poor and needy seek water,
I will open rivers on the bare heights,
And fountains in the midst of the valleys;
I will make the wilderness a pool of water,
And the dry land springs of water.”
—Isaiah 41:17-18

Water is life. Our bodies are largely made of water, as is much of the food we eat. Without water, we could not exist. Water is also a critical part of our spiritual life as Christians—it welcomes us into our life as Christians through baptism, and it forms a powerful metaphoric thread throughout the scriptures, symbolizing life, faith and the love of God.

Water scarcity is a growing problem around the world: if present withdrawal and consumption rates for water continue, two of every three people on Earth will live in water-stressed conditions by 2025. In the western United States, water scarcity has been an issue for many years. However, high rates of water consumption by agricultural and urban users threaten to deplete aquifers in areas of the country where supply has traditionally been plentiful, such as the upper Midwest. Global warming will only exacerbate this problem: as the earth’s climate gets warmer, droughts will grow more frequent and more severe in many parts of the globe, particularly in areas that are already water-stressed.

In addition to our using more water than is returned in rain, we are also polluting the water we have. Most of the pesticides and fertilizers used in agriculture, sewer overflows, and the oil and grease from roads, eventually run off into the water systems. Other sources of excess nutrients include lawn fertilizers, pet and farm animal waste, decaying plant material, failing septic tanks, and inefficient sewage treatment plants. Industrial plants and municipal wastewater treatment plants can also contribute to the amount of toxic substances entering streams and rivers and ultimately lakes, estuaries, and coastal waters.

More than one billion people around the globe lack access to safe drinking water and sanitation services. In developing countries, 80 percent of illnesses relate to poor water quality: someone dies of a water-related illness every 14 seconds. In the United States we seldom worry about the quality of our drinking water, but forty percent of our rivers and lakes are too polluted to be safe for fishing and swimming. In early 2006, the Environmental Protection Agency released a study indicating that 42 percent of our nation’s small streams are in “poor” condition.

In the Synod
As a “Synod at Table with the Hungry,” the injustice of lack of clean water to so many in our world is important to us. To be mindful of those without access to safe drinking water, this year’s Synod Assembly did not include bottled water.

The switch in homes, businesses, congregations, and other groups to tap water is one that can make a difference. Consider giving the money saved to help provide others with safe drinking water.

Page 6 - Lutherans Dedicated to Increase Biblical Fluency
 By Rev. Jay Dahlvang

ELCA member and Boston University Department of Religion Chair Stephen Prothero wrote a recent best-selling book called Religious Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know—and Doesn’t. Prothero’s thesis states that though the United States is by far the most religious of developed nations, our depth of religious knowledge is shallow, particularly when it comes to the Bible. According to recent polls, most American adults do not know one of the four Gospels, and many high school seniors believe that Sodom and Gomorrah were husband and wife. A few years ago Jay Leno’s Tonight Show audience was devoid of anyone who could name one of Jesus’ twelve apostles, while all in attendance that night seemed to know the names of the four Beatles. Pollster George Gallup has called the United States, “a nation of Biblical illiterates.”

Though Prothero’s book aims to remedy the damage to our democracy and civic life that is the consequence of our lack of understanding of our religious life and heritage, we who teach and preach, and lead the churches of our synod know that Biblical engagement is crucial for our faith and life in Christ. At the recent Synod Assembly, a resolution was considered to invite the Southeastern Minnesota Synod to become a Book of Faith: Lutherans Read the Bible Synod (ask your congregation’s voting members or pastor, visit www.semnsynod.org/assembly.html, or wait until next month to find out how the assembly voted).

Book of Faith: Lutherans Read the Bible is a five-year collaborative initiative throughout the ELCA that arose from the 2007 Churchwide Assembly. It calls for enhancing our individual and collective knowledge of the scriptures in order to increase our faith. In the first year of the initiative, congregations, mission centers and places of ministry, and individuals are invited to commit to a deeper understanding of the Bible. The resolution before us last month encourages us to do that together on a synodical level.

Down the line we anticipate:

  • Training programs to empower, instruct, and inspire Bible teachers.

  • Networking of ideas and studies that are effective in our congregational and other ministry settings.

  • Encouragement of individuals to commit to regular Bible reading and study informed by prayer.

  • Resources designed to assist us and our congregations in Bible study.

The vision before us in this initiative is that the whole church become more fluent in the first language of faith, the Scriptures, so that we might live out our calling as a people renewed, enlivened, empowered, and sent by the Word. We hope that the Book of Faith initiative will shift the culture and customs in our church toward a new level of valuing and being shaped by the power of the Word of God, and lead us to repentance, praise, and thanksgiving as we are met by the God who is in that Word, and who indeed is that Word. We hope that as we commit ourselves to engagement with the Word of God as revealed in the Old and New Testament, we may realize as individuals, congregations, and mission and ministry centers throughout the synod, what Bible student Martin Luther knew: “The Bible is alive, it speaks to me; it has feet, it runs after me; it has hands, it lays hold on me.”

Get it Online
Bible Book of Faith at www.ELCA.org/bookoffaith

In Case You're One of Them
If you qualify as one of the people who didn’t know the answers to the Bible facts on this page, open up your Bible to find the answers.

  • Don’t know the four gospels? Your Bible is divided in two parts - the Old Testament and the New Testament. The gospels are the first four books of the New Testament (the second half).

  • Aren’t sure about Sodom and Gomorrah? Check out Genesis 19.

  • Not quite a dozen on the apostles? Look in Mark 3:13–19, Matthew 10:1-4, or Luke 6:12-16. And for the full story, also read Acts 1:15–26.

Page 7 - Bishop's Column

The Importance of Fellowship at the Table

“Compared to teens who have frequent family dinners (five or more per week), those who have infrequent family dinners (two or fewer) are three and a half times likelier to have abused prescription drugs; three and a half times likelier to have used an illegal drug other than marijuana or prescription drugs; three times likelier to have used marijuana; more than two and a half times likelier to have used tobacco; and one and a half times likelier to have drunk alcohol.” This information comes from The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, at Columbia University. I know little about this center, but it is chaired by former U.S. Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, Joseph Califano, Jr. I also noted that this study was sponsored by the Safeway Foundation. I would expect it therefore to focus on food…but instead it focused on the table.

Other comments from the study:

  • Teens who have dinner with their families five or more times a week are likelier to say that they receive mostly A’s and B’s in school.

  • Nearly half of parents and teens agree that the best time for teens to talk to their parents about something important to them is during or after dinner.

  • 84 percent of teens prefer to have dinner with their families rather than eat alone.

  • Parents need to know that what their kids really want at the dinner table is them.

It is that last statement that caught my attention. It is not about “what” but “who.” It is those gathered at the table who are even more important than what is on the table. So much effort is devoted to everything from potlucks to meals for the strangers, yet in the end, it is the fact of joining together around the table that feeds us as much as the food so lovingly prepared. We might run out of potatoes, and never even see the dessert, but if we are welcomed and surrounded by community, we will be filled.

I think of a particular table - the Lord’s table. How frequently do we as congregational families join together around the table? And what does it mean if only 1/3 of the family is there together? Do we wonder about dysfunction and division in our families of faith when a majority of our brothers and sisters are missing from the table. The Apostle Paul reminds us, “So then, my brothers and sisters, when you come together to eat, wait for one another.” (1 Corinthians 11:33)

This year we are “A Synod at Table With the Hungry.” When we eat together, we become healthier - each of us as well as the whole family. That is true at our family table and at our Lord’s table.

Shalom,
Harold Usgaard
Bishop

Page 8 - Larry Iverson's Column and Shirley Gangstad's Column

Called to End Hunger
By Larry Iverson
Synod Minister

By the time you read this, we will have completed the 2008 Southeastern Minnesota Synod Assembly where the focus was on ending world hunger; however, the focus on ending world hunger will continue through the year in our synod as we continue to be “A Synod at Table with the Hungry.”

This message of concern for the poor, the hungry and the oppressed comes through strongly in both the Old and New Testaments, so even though we have the focus on world hunger through 2008, it is a focus for our Christian lives as long as we are on this earth.

The work of justice and concern for the hungry and poor crosses all human boundaries, transcends any political affiliations and goes to the very heart of what Jesus said is the second commandment from Matthew 22:39 “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

I urge you to take this call to heart. Those who are at the Synod Assembly are urged to talk about it back in your congregation and beyond the boundaries of your church community to your friends, neighbors and others. Others can do the same with what they hear from those who were in attendance.

Know that we can end hunger in the world and have made major strides the past few years with the number of people worldwide who survive on less than $1 a day having dropped 27 % between 1981 and 2001 (Christian Science Monitor, March 10, 2008).

In Christ’s love,
Larry Iverson

Get it Online
Resources to use in your congregation to advocate for the poor and hungry in the world:

Evangelism for Your Own Growth
Greetings!

One of my favorite Bible stories is the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:1-42) As is true with most Bible stories, each time we look at them we can discover something new. Thanks to Rev. Brian Stoffregan of Maryland, I had a new insight about this story.

Right after the woman asks Jesus for the living water that he has offered, Jesus tells her to bring someone (her husband) to him. We know that this “living water” is symbolic, not literal, but this raises the question—in order to receive the living water literally, are we to witness and invite and bring people to Jesus? Still water is stagnant water, not living water at all. “Living” water is water that is moving—as in the good news moving from us to others.

Stoffregan says, "Maybe we've taken the wrong approach to evangelism. We need to evangelize, but not just for the sake of those others who need to hear the Gospel, but in order that our own faith may grow and flourish. I have found that this is especially true when I have had to deal with doubting, questioning audiences--usually the group where I least want to share my thoughts and ideas and faith--I discover that I am the one who is probably most changed in the encounter. It forces me to better understand what I believe and how I might more clearly communicate it with others.”

We all know that witnessing and evangelizing are a vital part of our faith. However, Stoffregan would suggest that just as giving and serving are key elements to the health and growth of our spiritual lives, so may evangelizing be! That thought set me back on my heels enough to want to share it! Perhaps not a new thought to you, but it was to me! And knowing how much easier it is for us to give and serve than to witness and evangelize, it provides us with both a challenge and a blessing.

May we all take up and challenge and receive the blessing!

Blessings in Christ,
Shirley

Page 9 - Deborah Ann Norrie's Column and Ministry Profile

Wellness: Using the Tools Provided
By Deborah Ann Norrie
Synod Executive Assistant

In January I wrote about making changes. So how is it going for you? I must confess that I do have some days I wish I could do over.

Healthy eating can be hard work Some days it would be so much easier to stop at McDonald's or pick up a candy bar. One of my co-workers turned to me one day and said, "How long to do we have to do this?"

I have found three places that have helped me continue the process of making the changes in my life that are necessary:

  • I am blessed to be supported in my healthy eating by a spouse who also needed to eat better. It is something we do together and celebrate together. I have discovered how good an orange tastes in the morning. I have discovered that a piece of string cheese and a few almonds are really a good snack instead of a cookie. I have also been able to get rid of some clothes that have gotten too big and I look forward to some new things for spring!

  • I have found real support on the EmbodyHealth web site sponsored by the ELCA Board of Pensions and Mayo Clinic. I have explored information and helpful tips on managing stress, healthy eating, and exercise. The gentle reminders have encouraged me to continue to increase my activity, given me ideas for healthy meals, and helped me be successful in dealing with stress most days. The Board of Pensions has even paid me to do this! If you are a member of the Board of Pensions plan have you done your health assessment? (www.elcaforwellness.org)

  • Prayer…my simple petition to turn the day over to God has brought peace and calm to my soul. Even in the midst of the most stressful time in the synod office – the pre-assembly panic – I have not had to struggle to be calm and focus on the work.

I hope you are experiencing success in the changes you want to make and know that you are not alone.

All individuals with health insurance through the ELCA Board of Pensions (except dependents and those covered by Medicare are eligible for the Health Risk Assessment.

Ministry Profile: Christ Through Hands Ministry
By Debbie Timmers
Director, Christ Through Hands Ministry

Spreading the Gospel of the Lord is the goal numerous ministries, including Christ Through Hands Ministry (CTHM), share. However, what makes CTMHM unique is the audience it targets. CTHM reaches out to blind, deaf and multi-challenged students at the Minnesota State Academies in Faribault, Minn. Ecumenical religion classes are held on each campus and provide students with an opportunity to grow in their faith and knowledge of the Lord.

A visitor to the classes at the deaf school would encounter a flurry of hand movements. That is because the classes are conducted in the students’ native language, American Sign Language. No longer is the deaf student on the fringe of learning. The lessons of the Bible come alive through the signs and students who never had an opportunity to learn about the Lord are finally able to.

A visitor to the classes at the blind school would find students joyfully praising the Lord in song. Care is taken to provide crafts that reinforce the lesson but are also tactile in nature.

In addition to providing religion classes, CTHM also offers Brailing of church worship aids to assist congregations in making their worship services more accessible to blind members. As an outreach program, CTHM also offers to Braille menus for local restaurants.

CTHM is governed by a Board of Directors that is comprised of representatives of an association of congregations. A part-time director, Debbie Timmers, and a part-time assistant director, Jeff Mitchell, carry out work of the ministry. A non-profit organization, CTHM relies solely on donations to assist it in carrying out its mission. CTHM is very fortunate to have the support of the Southeastern Minnesota Synod and several churches and Women of the ELCA groups throughout the state. Donations to support CTHM can be sent to 1207 Prairie Avenue, Faribault, MN. To request a representative of the ministry to speak at your church or event call 507-331-2276, ext. 105.

Christ Through Hands Ministry is a ministry partner of the Southeastern Minnesota Synod, which means that their ministry receives financial support from the synod budget.

Page 10 - Call Update

Call Update
Self Study:
• Albert Lea, Central Freeborn – solo (Dick Spande, interim)
• Albert Lea, Grace
• Austin, Red Oak Grove – solo (Gene Leiter, interim)
• Cannon Falls, St Ansgar – associate
• Canton, Henrytown – ¾ solo (Roger Knutson, interim)
• Dennison, Dennison/Vang – solo (Terje Hausken, interim)
• Geneva, Community – solo
• Harmony, Greenfield – solo (Bob Stoskopf, interim)
• Harmony, Saetersdahl – solo
• Hayfield, Trinity – solo (Bob Kleinke, interim)
• Kenyon, Gol – part-time, solo (Dan Dimick, interim)
• Kenyon, Hegre – part-time, solo (John Hagen, interim)
• Mankato, Bethlehem – solo (Arne Jessen, interim)
• Northfield, Bethel – associate
• Rochester, Good Shepherd – associate
• Sargeant, Evanger – solo (Jim Peterson, interim)
• St Charles, Faith – solo (David Beckstrom, interim)
• Whalan, First of Highland & Whalan – solo (Roger Knutson, interim)

Interviewing:
• Austin, Grace – solo (Bob Iverson, interim)
• Cannon Falls, First English – associate
• Glenville, First – solo (Gail Klavetter, interim)
• Lewiston, St. Paul ELCA/UCC – solo
• Mabel, Mabel First – solo (Curtis Fox, interim)
• Rochester, Hosanna – associate

Ready to Extend Call:
• Northfield, St. Peter – associate Call Extended:
• Anjanette Rist, Nebraska Synod, to Rochester, Bethel, Pastor of Vision, Outreach, & Missions
• Kathleen Fullarton, Northwest Synod of Wisconsin, Wells, Good Shepherd, shared ministry pastor

Upcoming Events

May 2-3, 2008 (Fri.-Sat.): Global Mission Formation Event
Calvary Lutheran Church, Golden Valley, MN
Cost: $35
www.elca.org/gme/GME2008/index.html

May 4-6, 2008 (Sun.-Tues.): “With Woman: Spiritual Midwifery” - Retreat for Women in Ministry
5:00 p.m. Sunday - 1:00 p.m. Tuesday
Good Earth Village, Spring Valley, MN Cost: $180 www.semnsynod.org/events/additional.html, 507-754-5203, or anabell214@yahoo.com

May 8, 2008 (Thur.): Synod Interim Orientation
9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Our Savior's Lutheran Church, Faribault, MN www.semnsynod.org/events/additional.html, 507-280-9457, or 800-426-6376 in Minnesota

There’s more going on! For more information about these or other events, visit www.semnsynod.org/events.html.

Page 11 - Celebrating Rural Life

Download the brochure PDF.

Page 12 - Back Cover

River Crossings is the monthly newsletter of the Southeastern Minnesota Synod for pastors, associates in ministry, and lay leaders. The next deadline for River Crossings is May 7. Please send correspondence to Katie Livingood, livingood@semnsynod.org;
507-280-9457.

Get weekly synod news on e-mail!
Join our e-mail list! You’ll receive a weekly e-newsletter about the latest synod happenings and updates to the web site (including notification when new River Crossings issues are posted). Don’t worry – you won’t get any unsolicited e-mail for signing up; your address is kept completely confidential.

To sign up, go to www.semnsynod.org and enter your e-mail address in the sign up box.

Help us save paper and postage!
Did you know you can read River Crossings online, weeks before it's released in print? Check it out at www.semnsynod.org (click the "River Crossings Newsletter" button on the left). You can be informed when new issues are posted by subscribing to our e-mail newsletter (see above). If you'd like to access River Crossings exclusively online, and cancel your paper subscription, please call 507-280-9457 or 800-426-6376 (MN only) or email livingood@semnsynod.org with your request.