Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
Member church of the Lutheran World Federation
It’s been a year.
It has been a year, and what has changed?
A year since a man begged for his life from an officer of the law. A year since a woman was shot in her bed. A year since national sports leagues boycotted games. A year since we saw #saytheirnames trending on social media.
It has been a year since George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Regis Korchinski-Paquet.
What has changed?
Read more →Dear Siblings in Christ,
We, the Eastern Synod, acknowledge and denounce the continued and increasing hateful, racist and targeted acts against the Asian-Canadian and Pacific Islander (ACPI) community. Specifically and especially, we denounce those actions that are perpetuated due to poisonous misinformation and anti-Asian rhetoric in relation to the COVID-19 virus, and its origin in China. Importantly, it is a matter of justice.
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Dear friends in Christ,
Grace and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Risen Savior Jesus Christ!
The Lord is Risen! He is Risen, indeed! Alleluia!
I am so grateful for this opportunity to offer an Easter greeting to you! And I do so with a heart that is bursting with gratitude.
I am so very thankful for our rostered ministers, musicians and videographers for all that they have done to proclaim God’s word and strengthen the bonds that unite us over these long months of isolation.
I am so thankful for congregational leaders who have faced the challenges of this pandemic with great courage, creativity and generosity.
And I am so grateful to you, dear disciples, for your faithfulness in ensuring that the vital work of Christ’s church has continued and in many ways grown over the course of what has felt like a year-long season of lent.
Dear church, God has blessed and equipped us to be God’s faithful people in ways none of us would have thought imaginable and I have never been prouder to be counted among your number!
May God grant you, and those dear to you, a full and rich experience of the story of Easter, not a story that we Christians explain, so much as it is a story that explains we Christians!
Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ will come again!
Music is “Alleluia” by PianoDay on Audio Jungle.
Video recorded in the Schultz Chapel at the Eastern Synod Office. #myELCIC#easter2021
Dear Friends,
I am absolutely delighted to announce that The Rev. Dr. Kristine Lund has been chosen to lead Martin Luther University College as our Principal-Dean; the first ever woman to serve in this position! While fulfilling this role in an interim capacity for the past year, she has shown herself to be an extremely perceptive and adaptive leader! These gifts will be much needed as Luther transitions into a post-pandemic future and I have every confidence that the Luther Board of Governors has chosen the right leader for this time in the life of our beloved school!
Please join me in welcoming Dr. Lund into this new role, and carrying the entire Luther community in prayer as they continue their outstanding ministry.
Bishop Michael Pryse
You are invited to attend the following Zoom event:
What has COVID-19 taught us about the determinants of health for First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities and how are we called to respond?
Date: Saturday March 27, 2021
Time: 10:00 – 11:45 am EDT
In this event we explore our call to walk with justice, mercy and humility in our relationships with First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities.
The event is co-sponsored by the Circle for Reconciliation and Justice of the Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada and the Centre for Public Ethics at Martin Luther University College in Waterloo.
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The Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada and Martin Luther University College (Luther) are pleased to announce the gift of a Synod-owned, century old home in Waterloo, Ont., to Luther.
“We are deeply grateful to the Synod for this generous gift,” said Rev. Dr. Kristine Lund, the school’s interim principal-dean. “The home, which houses the Delton Glebe Counselling Centre, is an instrumental part of our work to provide mental health services to students and the broader Waterloo Region community.”
The centre, named after the late Rev. Dr. Delton Glebe, an esteemed former principal-dean, delivered more than 9,700 client sessions in 2020.
Rev. Michael Pryse, bishop of the Eastern Synod, said that he and the Synod Council are delighted to help strengthen Luther’s community service through this gift.
“The Glebe Centre, in addition to providing important training for students in Luther’s Spiritual Care and Psychotherapy programmes, has also become a vital service ministry to the community,” said Bishop Pryse who, in his role as bishop, serves as a non-voting (ex-officio) member of Luther’s Board of Governors. “By making this gift, the synod is helping to ensure the longer-term growth and stability of this wonderful educational and service ministry.”
While Luther is governed by its own board, the school is an arm of the Eastern Synod. Launched in 1911, Luther is the founding institution of Wilfrid Laurier University. Through its academic programs, Luther helps form rostered and lay ministers for service in the church and prepares citizens to serve their communities as psychotherapists, spiritual care workers and in numerous other vocations.
Contact:
Rev. Adam Snook, Assistant to the Bishop, Eastern Synod, asnook@elcic.ca
Mirko Petricevic, Director of Communications and Public Affairs, Martin Luther University College, mpetricevic@luther.wlu.ca
