2009 Conference of Bishops

More than half of the 66 bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the ELCA secretary, and five of the six bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC), plus spouses and staff visited the Middle East, Jan. 6-13, 2009.

Lutherans Worship at Church of the Holy Sepulchre for First Time, Visit AVH

Posted on January 12th, 2009 by Ben McDonald Coltvet

Leading worship Jan. 9 at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre were, from left, ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson, ELCJHL Bishop Munib Younan and Scott Weidler, ELCA worship and liturgical resources team.JERUSALEM (ELCA) — For the first time North American Lutheran bishops, spouses and staff worshipped Jan. 9 at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a historic religious site built on the place of Jesus’ crucifixion and burial.

Forty-four bishops representing the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) are participating in a series of meetings Jan. 6-13 with religious, political and community leaders in Israel and the West Bank, and visiting religious sites. Their visit also focuses on support and encouragement for the ELCJHL.

Following worship, the group traveled to East Jerusalem, visited Augusta Victoria Hospital (AVH), a medical facility of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) on the Mount of Olives, and learned about the LWF’s Middle East programs.

AVH has been serving the needs of Palestinian refugees since 1948, said the Rev. Mark B. Brown, an ELCA pastor and the LWF’s regional representative.

The LWF is planning at least two construction projects in the near future, Brown said. In response to a lack of recreational facilities for Palestinians, the LWF plans to develop a sports and community center on the Mount of Olives property, he said. In 2010 the LWF, the ELCJHL and the Kaiserin Auguste Victoria Foundation of the Evangelical Church in Germany plan to start construction of a housing project on the property. Plans calls for 84 units, reserved for Palestinian Christians, Brown said.

The housing project is an attempt to respond to the dwindling number of Palestinian Christians in Jerusalem, down from more than 31,000 in 1946 to less than 15,000 in 2000, Brown said. The housing project also attempts to preserve the concept of a “shared Jerusalem” for Christians, Jews and Muslims, he said.

“The lack of affordable housing has caused Christians to leave East Jerusalem and move to the West Bank or somewhere else,” Brown said.

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All Quiet — Sort of — in the Church

Posted on January 9th, 2009 by Ben McDonald Coltvet

By Daniel J. Lehmann

The sometime raucous Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem was, well, a quiet church Friday morning except for the spirited singing as Lutheran bishops from the U.S. and Canada held a communion service in a small chapel.

Thanks to the Roman Catholic Franciscans, leaders from the ELCA and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada filled a chapel the religious order controls a few steps from what some considered to be the tomb of Jesus.

The closed door to the main part of the church might have helped. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is run by a handful of Christian denominations that in some instances see themselves in competition for the site. Shoving matches occur occasionally, and the keys to the building are held by a Muslim family.

The 8 a.m. service found the normally bustling church virtually empty and the service went off without a hitch. Celebrants kept their vestments inconspicuous as they entered and left the chapel, so as not to draw attention from the other Christian sects.

A young Franciscan priest did come in through a back door to observe a portion of the eucharist, joining the bishops, spouses and staff singing “Dona nobis pacem.”

The group left immediately afterward for Augusta Victoria Hospital on the Mount of Olives. The Lutheran World Federation-owned facility sits atop the mount from where bishops could see a police observation balloon and helicopters scan the Old City of Jerusalem.

Security was tight on Friday as some Muslim leaders called for demonstrations following Friday prayers in opposition to the Israeli incursion into the Gaza Strip. The group encountered no trouble reaching the hospital, or later when it was taken by bus to Bethlehem, which sits in the West Bank territory and on the opposite side of Israeli’s controversial separation wall.

At the Mount of Olives, bishops were updated on the hospital’s evolution into a specialties facility, particularly oncology. The 46-acre site will also be home to an $8.4 million housing project for Palestinian Christians once zoning approval is received from the Israeli government. Funding has been all but secured.

In Bethlehem, some bishops crossed back into the Israeli portion of Jerusalem and participated in Shabbat services at two synagogues and meals with member families.

The trip is to stress accompaniment with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, raise awareness of regional issues and boost advocacy for peace. It runs through Jan. 13.

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