Association of Lutheran Resource Centers

Blog home for the Association of Lutheran Resource Centers (ALRC).

Stewards of the Environment

Posted on May 13, 2012 by Karen Matthias-Long

by Sharon Ely Pearson

We give you thanks, most gracious God, for the beauty of earth and sky and sea; for the richness of mountains, plains, and rivers; for the songs of birds and the loveliness of flowers. We praise you for these good gifts, and pray that we may safeguard them for our posterity. Grant that we may continue to grow in our grateful enjoyment of your abundant creation, to the honor and glory of your Name, now and for ever. Amen. 1979 Book of Common Prayer

Another Earth Day (April 22) has come and gone. It is now May, the flowers are blooming and the trees are thickening each day with shades of green foliage. Robins hop around my front lawn in search of fresh worms after the recent spring shower and the finches are rebuilding their annual nest in the straw wreath that hangs by my front door. I can easily sit back and watch Mother Nature unfold. But I also realize that the seasons during this past year have been unusual. In 2011, Connecticut had over 4 feet of snow, in 2012 we had a few dustings. We had a week of 80-degree weather in March and the forsythia, magnolias, tulips and daffodils all blossomed 6 weeks earlier than usual.

Our environment is changing. Whether this is all God’s plan or not, we humans have responsibility for the care of the Earth, our garden home. We are currently facing extreme climate variability – the earth’s warming is occurring 10 times faster than had previously been estimated and the polar ice sheets are dropping at 10 meters per year. One of the qualities of leaders of the future will be to have “bio-empathy” – the ability to see things from nature’s point of view; to understand, respect and learn from nature’s patterns. Nature has its own clarity, if only we humans can understand and engage with it.

I believe it is the responsibility of our faith community to lead the way in teaching how to be good stewards of our environment. And it can start in our own churches, modeling good practices: recycling all bottles, cans and paper; not using Styrofoam coffee cups (better yet – use real dishes); using electronic means for communication;

Safety or Faith: Must I Choose Between the Two?

Posted on April 11, 2012 by Ellen Johanson

It was a plain, white piece of copy paper tacked on a bulletin board with this simple message:

This is a safe haven.  If you are in an abusive or dangerous situation you can use  our telephone to contact the local sexual assault and domestic violence hotline.

My reaction as I hurried past the church bulletin board was one of thankfulness, hope and pleasure mixed with a brief memory of sadness, loss and regret.

It always pleases me to find churches willing to engage in creating communities free of violence and abuse.  There is much to be gained when churches partner with community agencies to prevent domestic violence.  Although coordinated community responses to violence are more common now, it wasn’t always this way.  Many faith communities still believe the old adage “not in my church” which translates into denying the reality and presence of serious problems like domestic violence and sexual assault.  It’s time to take that phrase “not in my church” and transform it from a statement that implies “those things don’t happen here” to a passionate declaration of our desire to create safe places starting with The Church.

My sadness from viewing that small poster came as I wondered what might be different today if that poster had been available in my church more than 30 years ago.   At that time, I was in college and my dad sent me a newspaper clipping that completely shocked me. 

Faith Formation and the Arts

Posted on March 1, 2012 by Karen Matthias-Long

“In the beginning…God created…and God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness.” (Genesis 1:1, 26)

Our synod is sponsoring a first -time ever “Celebrating our Faith through the Arts” event in April. It came about as a result of a retreat with our synod’s Faith Formation Resource Team. For years members of this team have led workshops on Christian basics and everything related to Christian education (teacher training, choosing curriculum, discipline, using a teacher’s manual, etc.). Our retreat leader – during one reflective time together – asked us to share our passions as we went around the room. I was surprised and delighted to learn some new things about my colleagues. Some of their passions included drama, art, music, and writing. If this is where our passions are,

Networking with Other Resource Centers

Posted on January 27, 2012 by Karen Kaufman

Are you feeling alone in your work as a resource center director? Are you looking for ideas to improve your center? If so, allow me to share this suggestion: meet with resource center directors (of different denominations) in your area. Start with one, add another and then expand the invitation to as many as feasibly possible.

A few months ago, I met with directors from 5 other resource centers (9 were invited) and found it to be an energizing experience. During our time together, we discovered that we had a lot of similar concerns and issues. For example, we gasped and laughed about our horror stories of trying to retrieve overdue

Resource Center 2.0: Resourcing for the Future

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Karen Matthias-Long

by Sharon Ely Pearson  spearson@cpg.org

(Sharon has been serving as the Christian Formation Specialist for Church Publishing Incorporated /Morehouse Education Resources since November 2007. Prior to that, she was the  Resource Center Director at Yale Divinity School’s Ministry Resource Center as well as the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut. She is also an author and has a blog, Rows of Sharon).

The last two decades have seen dramatic political, economic, social and cultural changes affecting virtually every dimension of American Christianity. This new environment has definitely had its impact on Resource Centers and will demand new thinking and new models, practices and technologies in order to support and address the needs of the congregations and judicatories we serve. Addressing the spiritual needs of all generations will continue to be a challenge as we have also been impacted by lower budgets, increase of the cost of goods and more dependence on digital technology.

Many of us have seen fewer visitors to our Resource Centers. We are called upon to be out and about with those we serve, bringing resources (and our expertise) to the local congregation. We are learning how to put our collections online, develop more comprehensive websites, and engage in social media. And more of the resources, especially curricula and faith formation materials are available digitally – either downloadable or totally online.

In September 2009, CNN published a story, “The Future of Libraries: With or Without Books”:“Books are being pushed aside for digital learning centers and gaming areas. ‘Loud rooms’ that promote public discourse and group projects are taking over the bookish quiet. Hipster staffers who blog, chat on Twitter and care little about the Dewey Decimal System are edging out old-school librarians.”

The Digital World

The relevant Resource Center of the future will be a marketplace for ideas. Forward-looking directors (and their judicatories) will create a conversational loop with its clientele. Being active on Facebook, Digg and Twitter they will

A Focus for the New Year

Posted on January 6, 2012 by Karen Matthias-Long

by Cindi Eckert

A new year always brings a sense of adventure, newness, and a change of pace to the soul. Isn’t it exciting to think that as we step into a fresh new year, we enter a season of renewal? We have hope for the year, and pray for a good one! We have just celebrated our Savior’s birth.

Now we take down our lights and pack our beloved Christmas treasures carefully and lovingly into boxes, to store for next year. The time has come for us to huddle down and experience some introspection: Where do I see myself in the next New Year?

A wonderful blank canvas has been laid out before us- just waiting to be filled. This year I challenge you to walk closer to Jesus, for Christ’s birth dramatically changed the world as we know it.

When Christ entered the world, the Gospel was proclaimed to the ends of the earth. Celebrating Christmas therefore, is celebrating the wonder of Incarnation, something that Christians cherish and hold close to their hearts. Jesus Christ and his life on earth was dedicated to expressing the fullest possible way humans could unite with God.

Christmas changed everything. God is reachable, through the power of Christ when Jesus took on flesh. So ask yourself, is there room in your hearts for Christ today? This year? To the end of time?

May his love shine bright for you and upon this world as we begin anew.

(Cindi has been the Director for the Sierra Pacific Synod for three years. Cindi sees Resource Centers as valuable and important assets for congregations. She believes Resource Centers serve as a nexus between the technology of today and the timelessness of our faith.)

Ten Top Reasons Why You Should Join LACE

Posted on September 9, 2011 by Karen Matthias-Long

A colleague of mine shared the following list of ten reasons why you should join LACE. I would like to extend my thanks to the anonymous author AND I would encourage those of you who are reading this blog to point Christian educators to this blog entry and to the Lutheran Association of Christian Educators (LACE) website!

Why join LACE? Here are ten excellent reasons:

Summer Re-creating

Posted on June 27, 2011 by Julie Aageson

There’s something about summer that seems ripe with promise and possibilities. I usually have several projects related to resource work: previewing and ordering new resources, writing, catching up with periodicals and reading the books I’ve not had time for during the busy school year. Then there are the other passions in my life: planting and tending what I hope will become a beautiful garden, hiking Glacier National Park with my family, and this year I look forward to savoring time with my grand-daughter and newborn grand-son.

Among the resources I plan to review or revisit are the following:

• from DeWitt Jones: Everyday Creativity, Celebrate What’s Right with the World, and Focus Your Vision

• from StarThrower: Differences, Red Cars, We are the Ones, and Second Chance

If you’re familiar with these videos, you’ll know them to be timely sources for helping us see God’s presence in many different ways. Whether planning for the future, helping a congregation think creatively about mission and identity, or simply looking for ways to stimulate thoughtful conversations, each of these resources is extraordinary.

How will you re-create this summer? What promises and possibilities are you hoping to enjoy?

  
 

 

 

 
 

 

 

With a grateful heart

Posted on May 10, 2011 by Catherine Fink

I read a blog (Loving Poland) yesterday in which the author was inspired by another blog to list some “awesome things.” I’ve been inspired similarly…here’s my list from the last few days.

*a beloved pastor’s beautiful spirit clearly evident despite the disease that is taking his body

*the excitement and willingness of a volunteer whose task will be organization of a super-unorganized office closet

*the blessing of learning and community found in conferences (ie. Book of Faith Jubilee at Luther Seminary; Annual Recreation Conference at Montreat)

*the sharing of ideas across churches, synods, denominations, countries, and the worldwide web (for instance, I just learned about www.volunteerspot.com)

*a pastor’s contientiousness to return a DVD to the resource center that involved a detour for the church bus and senior citizens’ field trip

*the fragrance of honeysuckle that will just about knock you over

*a sacred meal shared with family in the form of grilled hotdogs in pretzel buns (it can happen…I was there!)

*a blog celebrating the Global Mission of our church, the ministry of young adults, and the work of the spirit in Poland

These are just a few of the simple things for which I’ve been especially grateful today. Thanks be to God!

Curating Resources

Posted on May 3, 2011 by Julie Aageson

 As curators of resources, John Roberto says resource ministry and resource centers are more needed and more important than ever before.

With resources and resource information exploding exponentially, resource centers have a critical role to play as curators (custodians) of an overwhelming amount of resource information.
Roberto is editor of Lifelong Faith, a journal about the theory and practice of faith formation (www.lifelongfaith.com) and an articulate voice for lifelong learning. His presentations at the Book of Faith Jubilee, April 29-May 1 (www.luthersem.edu/jubilee) stimulated a lot of conversation about resource ministry. His work on the Future of Faith Formation and the Bible included an introduction to what he calls Faith Formation 2020: Vision and Strategy (www.lifelongfaith.com/presentations).

Resource ministry from the beginning has been about shared resources, best practices, and making informed choices. The collaborative work of curating resources, serving as custodians and stewards, is right on the mark!

Check out the following to share with your congregations and faith formation leaders:

• www.lifelongfaith.com

• www.faithandleadership.com

• http://www.e100challenge.com

• http://bibleresources.americanbible.org/bible-resources/bible-resource-center

• http://www.sadlierreligion.com/webelieve/

• http://lifekids.lifechurch.tv/

 

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