Churchwide Assembly Blog

2011 Theme: Freed in Christ to Serve

Bishop Hanson Speaks after Ministry Policies Vote

Posted on August 21, 2009 by

After the ministry policies vote on Friday evening, Bishop Hanson spoke to the gathered attendees of the 2009 Churchwide Assembly:

HansonI want more time to think about words from one you have called to serve as pastor of this church. I have been standing here thinking about my 23 years as a parish pastor and how differently I would go into a context if I was gathering with a family or a group of people that had just experienced loss, or perhaps were wondering if they still belonged, or in fact felt deeply that ones to whom they belong had been severed from them. That would be a very different pastoral conversation. And I would probably turn to words such as Romans 8:

Click “Continue Reading” for the full text of Bishop Hanson’s message.

Opening Sermon

Posted on August 18, 2009 by

Texts for Bishop Hanson’s opening sermon: Joel 2:28–32 + Romans 8:18–27 + John 20:19–23

Grace to you and peace in the name of Jesus. Amen.

What shall be our witness this week? This is not an insignificant question.

In more than one media interview prior to the assembly, the reporter’s questions made it seem that the story of this assembly had already been written. The story is one of anxiety and dissension leading to division. But the story of this assembly has not been written. You will be one of the many witnesses who tell the story. Your witness — the story you tell — will contribute to the shaping of what others hear and believe about our life together this week.

So, then, what shall be your witness?

Will you tell how we gathered in fear behind the closed doors of the Minneapolis Convention Center, just as Jesus’ disciples gathered that first Easter evening?

Almost matter-of-factly, John describes the doors being locked “for fear of the Jews.” But wait a minute. The disciples, like Jesus, were Jews. Had it come to this for the disciples? Could it be that they were literally scared of themselves — that they feared their own shadows, the shame of their own identity, their own failure to follow Jesus to the end?

I am convinced that, as we begin this week, it is important to recognize our fears and acknowledge them honestly.

When I do not name the fears I hold — be it the anxiety that somehow it’s my sole responsibility to hold the ELCA together or that I will not give you evidence that I’ve been faithful in memorizing all 704 pages of Robert’s Rules of Order — when you and I do not name the fears we hold, then too often our fears end up holding us captive. We then become our fears, and fear — not faith — becomes our witness.

Click “Continue Reading” for the full text of Bishop Hanson’s sermon.

CWA Press Conference

Posted on August 17, 2009 by

ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson led a press conference this afternoon to address questions regarding the main issues under debate at the 2009 Churchwide Assembly.  Several topics were raised, including

Hanson expressed his hope that the assembly would remain a “clear, non-anxious, participatory process”  as the ELCA representatives discuss and debate potentially contentious issues.  The representatives, Hanson said, “are here as representatives of the whole church,” rather than of their synods or congregations.  “Our unity is in Christ.”

This week’s upcoming votes regarding the ELCA’s statement and policies concerning sexuality have drawn much attention, both outside the church (as in this recent NPR article) and within the church.  This press conference was no exception, but Hanson sought to express that there is more to the 2009 Churchwide Assembly than the question of sexuality.  (A full list of items awaiting a vote this week can be found on the ELCA’s assembly Web site.)

Video of the press conference is available online at www.elca.org/assembly/video, and the churchwide assembly’s plenary sessions can be viewed online as they are taking place at www.elca.org/livevideo.