The following post is a news release from Living Lutheran online. The original post can be found here. The photo was taken from this Living Lutheran post.

Photo of Presiding Bishop-elect Yehiel Curry from Churchwide Assembly 2025 in Phoenix, AR. Credit: Janine Truppay/ELCA

Yehiel Curry will be installed as presiding bishop of the ELCA on Saturday, Oct. 4, at 2 p.m. Central time at Central Lutheran Church in Minneapolis. Curry will be the first Black presiding bishop of the ELCA.

ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton will preside at the installation and present Curry with the pectoral cross, the common symbol of the office of bishop in the ELCA.

Kevin Vandiver, a pastor of Lutheran Church of the Reformation in Washington, D.C., will deliver the sermon. Members of the ELCA Conference of Bishops and other invited leaders will participate in the processional.

In celebration of the ELCA’s many partnerships, several ecumenical, interreligious and global partner representatives are invited, including Henrik Stubkjaer, president of the Lutheran World Federation; Sean Rowe, presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church; Jihyun Oh, stated clerk of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.); and Larry Kochendorfer, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada.

Music leadership for the worship service includes the National Lutheran Choir and musicians from St. Olaf College and the ELCA Metropolitan Chicago Synod.

The installation is a public worship service, open to all who wish to attend. The service will also be available via livestream.

Curry was elected to serve a six-year term as presiding bishop on July 30, during the 2025 ELCA Churchwide Assembly in Phoenix. He has served as bishop of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod since 2019 and previously served as mission developer (2009-2012) and pastor (2012-2019) of Shekinah Chapel in Riverdale, Ill. Curry’s first day in office will be Oct. 1.

Curry received a Bachelor of Arts from Lewis University in Romeoville, Ill., in 1995 and a Master of Divinity from the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC) in 2013. LSTC is one of seven ELCA seminaries.

More information about the installation service is available here.

White Lutherans for Racial Justice and ELCA Racial Justice Ministries invite you to a time of learning, reflection, and action as we prepare to honor the Emanuel Nine. Come be inspired to deepen your congregation’s commitment to racial justice.

Thursday, May 15, 2025 6:30-8 pm Central

To register, click: here

May 5 is National Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women’s (MMIW) Awareness Day.

In 2021, as a follow-up to the 2016 Repudiation of the Doctrine of Discovery, the ELCA Church Council adopted the Declaration to American Indian and Alaska Native People by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. It reads, in part:

“…We commit to advocacy for and being in solidarity with Tribal Nations, MMIWGR organizations, families, and friends who have gone missing or who have been murdered.

“Indigenous women and girls go missing at a much higher rate than any other group in the United States. Indigenous men also disappear at a higher rate than other males. There are 2 foci in this commitment. One is advocacy. Tribes, states, and the US government can and should pass legislation to coordinate work to alleviate the problem. The second focus is relational. Synod leaders can establish relationships with Tribal Nations, express solidarity, help with prevention, with search and rescue, with comforting the anxious and bereaved. Congregations can, as well.”

How to honor MMIW Awareness Day (May 5) in your congregation:

1. Wear red (T-shirts available from the ELCA) and take pictures. Use social media to raise awareness. Use hashtags: #MMIW #NoMoreStolenSisters #TruthandHealing #ELCA
2. Organize a prayer vigil (using this resource).
3. Include MMIWGR in the prayers for the day.
4. Say the names of MMIWGR (this would be especially meaningful if you also did the research to identify locally/regionally specific MMIWGR) and light candles for them during worship.
5. Invite (and compensate) a local Indigenous expert to share on this topic as part of your educational time.
6. Invite (and compensate) local Indigenous musicians to play/sing during worship.

This resource guide provides an extensive list of resources that you and your community can use to learn more about MMIW & ways to take action! To download, click HERE.

For information on MMIW events for 2025, click here and scroll down to upcoming events. For more information on Indigenous Ministries and Tribal Relations of the ELCA, please visit:  Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women – Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (elca.org) and Indigenous Ministries and Tribal Relations – Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (elca.org)

ELCA Racial Justice Ministries and ELCA African Descent Ministries invites you to join us at the Rise & Remember Festival in Minneapolis, MN. The 3-day, annual event “exists to hold in remembrance George Floyd and those we have lost unjustly to the pervasive impacts of systemic racism. Activities focus on education, empowerment, healing, celebration, and our collective pursuit for racial justice and equity.”

We hope you will join us for the gospel concert and candlelight vigil on Sunday, May 25. We will meet in front of Calvary Lutheran Church (clchurch.org) at 5 pm.

If you plan to attend, please let us know by completing this short, 6-question survey:  https://forms.office.com/r/d3ZW4T7iWs

For more information:

The Truth & Healing Movement:  Truth & Healing Movement – Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

ELCA Indigenous Ministries and Tribal Relations:  Indigenous Ministries and Tribal Relations – Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

In May, we celebrate National AAPI Heritage Month. The Asian and Pacific Islander Ministries of the ELCA, in conjunction with the Minneapolis Area Synod, the St. Paul Area Synod, and their API leaders will be hosting a 4-person panel on Thursday, May 23 at 7pm to discuss the joys and challenges of being API. The panel will be live streamed on zoom and you can log on by clicking here.

For more information about this event contact: Pastor Jenn @ jennluong426@gmail.com

For more information on ELCA API Ministries, visit:  Asian and Pacific Islander – Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (elca.org) and Association of Asians and Pacific Islanders of the ELCA