ELCA missionary the Rev. Elly McHan will serve with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land.

In September, 2010, ELCA missionary the Rev. Elly McHan will begin service in Jerusalem and the Holy Land. 

“I am delighted to be called as a pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land working with English-language communication,” writes Elly.  “I feel deeply called to walk with the people of the ELCJHL.  I am excited to hear the stories of these faithful people and I am passionate about empowering and assisting them to share their stories in creative and powerful ways.  I look forward to learning with these people about their journey, and growing in my abilities to be an effective accompanier and knowledgeable advocate.”

Elly earned a BMus degree in Violin and Viola Performance at the University of Alberta (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada) and an MDiv from Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque, Iowa.  She served her seminary internship as an ELCA missionary in Oslo, Norway.

To facilitate visits when Pr. McHan returns in 2012 for home assignment, sponsors with a geographic connection are especially needed.  Two synods have a companion relationship with Jordan and Palestine:  New England (7B) and Southeast Michigan (6A).  Elly welcomes sponsors from her “home-base” states, too:  Wisconsin, Iowa, Texas, North Dakota, and Alaska.

Elizabeth Carson McHan will be ordained on August 15, 2010, at First Lutheran (Onalaska, Wisconsin), and will be rostered in the La Crosse Area synod.  She writes, “If I have sponsors in place by August 1, let me know so I can send them a formal invitation!”

Covenant sponsors make a prayer, financial and communication commitment to walk “Hand in Hand” with an ELCA missionary.  Learn more in the Hand in Hand Guide for Covenant Sponsors.  Find the Guide and the covenant form at www.elca.org/missionarysponsorship.  Questions about ELCA Missionary Sponsorship?  Contact me at globalmissionsupport@elca.org.

Hand in Hand blessings, Sue Edison-Swift