As a congregation and synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America we gather regularly for worship, witness, learning, service and support, There were approximately 300 total participants, including lay, rostered pastors and deacons, and guests involved in the 2022 Southwestern Texas Synod assembly, entitled Got Good News? Go with it! meeting in New Braunfels June 10-12. FELC voting members included Pastor Coffey, Michelle Lingo, and Andy MacLaren. Others from FELC in attendance included Pastor Brad Fuerst (LuMin, Austin) and Pastor Tim Lincoln (Austin Presbyterian Seminary) and Cassie Smith was present as a regional coordinator for Reconciling Works, our ministry of welcome and advocacy with and for people of all sexual orientations, gender identities, and gender expressions. There are 115 congregations with over 33,000 baptized people as a part of our synod, A report from the assembly follows:
- $42,320.64 has been given so far to the Evangelical Mission Endowment fund, which provides services throughout the State of Texas to vulnerable settings like Platicas de Santa Sophia in San Antonio, Eagle Pass Frontera Ministries (that FELC currently supports with benevolence donations), and New Lutheran Apostolic Network of South Texas. To encourage gifts, Bishop Sue Briner and the synod staff has issued a challenge: every dollar donated to this offering before August 31, the synod staff will take one step! Visit the Give Tab at www.swtsynod.org for more info.;
- There were two memorials voted on during the assembly which encourage our churches and to a broader sense that all of us personally must reduce our greenhouse gasses and remain self-aware of how we can better sustain our planet for the future generations;
- Our own Bob Karli was recognized on his 50th anniversary of ordination to the ministry of word and sacrament in the Lutheran Church (July, 2021), to which we thank Pastor Karli for all his years faithful service. Pastor Karli served as the 4th pastor of FELC from 1984-2007;
- We were reminded that we all need to “Become the Beloved Community”, whereby we do not tolerate racism and work for a broader and more diverse group of participants in the life of our churches;
- All Creation Sings is a new, multi-cultural worship and music hymnal and resource of the ELCA, with new musical settings, which we at FELC already are using in recently singing newly composed hymns from that resource;
- The assembly was presented in multiple languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, French, and English;
- We were given reports by our Cross Trails Ministry, whereby we learned that 1500 people had already been served in 2022; Camp Chrysalis in Kerrville is 70 yrs young and Ebert Ranch in Harper is 40 yrs young. Cross Trails also hosts a Men’s Conference is Oct 21-23 at Camp Chrysalis. Go to crosstrails.org/news to learn how you can contribute and become involved;
- Lutheran Women in Mission is another way to become involved, through project Radical Hospitality. They need gift cards and your involvement; go to www.swtsynod.org to learn more;
- We attended workshops and directed conversation on collaborative ministries, the church’s role in a divided society and modeling deliberative dialogue for crucial conversations, and on migration ministries. All of these workshops provided resources that we have for our use and guidance, including facilitators willing to come to our congregation to offer training;
- We learned the value of One to One Story sharing guidelines, which we can all benefit from as we learn about others in our congregations and neighborhoods. This is a tremendous way to be in relationship and connection with others and gives all of us the opportunity to learn about one another. We were reminded that this can happen with multiple generations, not just our own age group!
Andy MacLaren plans to be at FELC Sunday, June 19th to provide any feedback or answer any questions.
Respectfully submitted,
— Andy MacLaren & Michelle Lingo,
FELC Voting Members to 2022 Synod Assembly