My life changed the day I was told that my son has autism.  The questions swirling in my head ranged from, “What does this mean?” to “What did I do to cause this?” to “What now?”  The journey has been full of ups and downs, but through it all God has been actively working to show us beauty and grace in the autism world.

My son is now 13 and my husband and I find every opportunity we can to engage in the disability world.  We have found resources and created support systems that keep us grounded and focused.  We have discovered a worshipping community that embraces our son and others like him where we can worship together as a family.

Because of the journey with our son, I am honored to serve as the team leader for the tAble planning team.  I have the privilege of leading a group of talented individuals with huge hearts who are committed to disability ministry.  Together, we are working to create an event that is meaningful and inclusive of youth with a variety of abilities, where together we can share our gifts and worship God, knowing that we all have a place at the tAble.

We look forward to the tAble in 2022 and hope you will join us. To learn more about the tAble, visit: elca.org/thetAble. 

Pastor Jamie Bruning is an ordained minister serving as chaplain at a continuing care retirement community. She is married to Todd, also a pastor, and has two children, Kaite and Nikhil.

Hey, everyone!  My name is Vanessa Young, and I’m excited to serve as the Team Leader for Gathering Synod Coordinators (GSCs) for the 2022 ELCA Youth Gathering in Minneapolis.

In addition to supporting the Gathering, I work with Interfaith Youth Core in Chicago, IL.  I attended Augustana College (IL) and Luther Seminary (MN). I served with ELCA Global Mission in the Young Adults in Global Mission program, and at the Churchwide Offices in Chicago. I’ve worked with four ELCA congregations around the Midwest, and have been a Gathering participant and primary congregational leader at several Gatherings since 2000 in St. Louis. Having worked with young people for more than 20 years, I’m grateful to be part of the Gathering’s ministry – supporting people all over the country by helping youth workers, parents and pastors be the best adult leaders they can be when bringing youth to the Gathering!

Have you met your Gathering Synod Coordinator yet? If you don’t know who they are, you can send them an email on the “Find Your Synod Coordinator” feature on the Gathering website, and then get connected to the good work they’re doing in your area! Our GSC Team is comprised of 65 faithful leaders from across the ELCA. They will serve in this role on behalf of their respective synods for the 18 months preceding the 2022 Gathering. They gathered for training and resource-sharing in February 2020, and will meet again in February 2022 for additional training before the ELCA Youth Ministry Network Extravaganza.

The GSCs will be supported throughout their service by an amazing leadership team of equally faithful creators and curators, who will provide information and logistical details to the GSCs that help promote the Gathering within their synods. The GSCs will then provide support to primary congregational leaders as they prepare for the Gathering. They are your go-to resource people for finding answers to your Gathering questions, supporting you in your Gathering planning, and building community among the ELCA congregations and ministry partners in your synod participating in this great triennial event.

If you haven’t already, be sure to check out “The Official Gathering Handbook: Tips & Tricks for Adult Leaders.”  This resource includes loads of helpful info collected from amazing GSCs over the years and veteran church youth workers.  Whether you’ve never been to a Gathering before or you’ve attended several times, this handbook will help adult leaders of all experience levels get ready to serve their young people, lead their group to the Gathering, and help youth get the most out of this awesome, faith-changing opportunity.  A prepared adult leader makes a huge difference in helping young people have a positive Gathering experience.  Give it a read, and stay tuned for highlights and extracts from this resource to be shared across various Gathering platforms in the months leading up to the event.

Can’t wait to see you in Minneapolis for the 2022 Gathering!

The Gathering is an integral part of the ecology of faith formation and call narrative in the ELCA. There are those who question the value of specialized ministries such as the Gathering, especially in a time of declining church attendance and difficult budget cuts. But I am not one of them, especially after fresh research has demonstrated the importance of several crucial ministries in the ELCA. I also know the impacts first-hand.

Like so many church leaders, the Gathering featured prominently in my story. I was part of a small group from a small church that had no regular youth program. We made the trip from western Wisconsin to the 1997 ELCA Youth Gathering in New Orleans. I will never forget walking into the Superdome for the opening worship, greeted by the sights and sounds of 37,000 Lutheran youth. We can talk to young people about the size and scope of the church, but we are experiential beings, and there is simply no substitute to being there. For me, it was a confirmation of Lutheran identity.

It is not like I was a new Christian. I went to Sunday school, VBS, confirmation and summer camp. But since my church had no youth program, I attended FCA and a weekly youth group at an Evangelical Free Church. I devoured the Left Behind series and learned such practical information as how Noah fit the dinosaurs on the ark. I wonder sometimes if I would have drifted progressively away from the Lutheran church if it had not been for the Gathering. As it happened, our little group injected a lot of life into the congregation. We became involved in worship leadership and soon started weekly youth group meetings, which were entirely youth-led. The youth program developed around the core of a 3-year cycle of summer trips consisting of the Gathering, a service trip, and an adventure trip with a Lutheran camp. The burgeoning program sent dozens of kids to summer camp, and at least three of us served on summer camp staff. I went on to an ELCA college and then seminary, having never read the last Left Behind book (I think Jesus wins).

My story is far from unique, and some exciting new research helps us go beyond anecdotes. The Camp and Church Leadership Project is focused mainly on the key characteristics and impacts of serving on summer camp staff. However, it became clear from the first round of interviews that serving on camp staff cannot be untangled from a host of other crucial influences. So, we asked about these influences in a survey distributed to the entire ELCA roster in the closing months of 2020. More than 3,000 pastors and deacons responded!

Four specialized ministry spaces rose to the top: Sunday school, camp, the Gathering, and campus ministry. These were highlighted as independently impactful using complex statistical analyses. It was also clear that these experiences are mutually influential. If someone was involved with one ministry, they were very likely to be involved with multiple others. Sunday school and VBS involvement correlated with more frequent camp attendance, youth group involvement, attendance at the Gathering, and so on. As an illustrative point, those who attended the Gathering were 2.3 times more likely to serve on summer camp staff than those who did not attend the Gathering.

About a third (34%) of rostered ministers attended the Gathering as youth. When considering only those 45 years old or younger, the proportion rises to about half (49%). In fact, attending the Gathering is one of several significant factors in respondents being ordained at a younger age, indicating a more direct trajectory to ministry. If a respondent did any one of the following: 1) attend camp four or more times, 2) serve on camp staff at least once, 3) attend an ELCA college or university, 4) participate in campus ministry monthly or more, or 5) attend the ELCA Youth Gathering, the median age they were rostered was 29. If a respondent did none of these, the median age they were rostered was 41.

It is clear that the Gathering is an integral part of the ecology of faith formation in the ELCA. It works alongside and to the mutual benefit of multiple other ministries, serving as a catalyst for vibrant youth programs and a shaper of Lutheran identity. We need to work towards greater ministry partnership and mutual acknowledgement. It is not time to kill the Gathering, close camps, defund campus ministry, or cancel Sunday school. We need these crucial ministries.

In a time when regular church attendance is declining and there is a shortage of church leaders, let’s look to the ministries that are proven effective in faith formation, developing Lutheran identity, and nurturing call to ministry.

Dr. Jake Sorenson served in congregational youth ministry and year-round camp staff before shifting his focus to scholarship and research aimed at enhancing the ministries of camps and congregations. Sacred Playgrounds emerged out of this ongoing work. He has authored numerous articles on camping ministry, has taught in colleges and seminaries, and has presented at camps and conferences across the country.

As the Team Leader of MYLE (Multicultural Youth Leadership Event) and group of amazing leaders of color who I am graciously working alongside, we want everyone to know what MYLE is so that this life changing opportunity for our youth of color can experience a Beloved Community like no other.

So, what is MYLE?  

MYLE is a pre-event to the ELCA Youth Gathering for our youth of color that works to nurture community and inspire healing with all our participants, leaders and volunteers. We see an ELCA that is full of ethnic cultures that are rich in community and family bonds. We want to characterize these relationships by equity, difference, mutuality, communion and oneness. We hope that #MYLE2022 is an exciting Spirit-Inspired community, inclusive and accountable to all. It is a time to celebrate our cultures together and breathe Spirit into our own healing.  

How does MYLE do all that?

There is a lot of planning to create an event such as MYLE. We have a team to create a multi-cultured worship and music experience at the start and end of each day. A chaplaincy team to help establish relationships before people arrive and during the event so they have someone to reach out to if they need and find ways to help our youth grow their faith with various activities. Another way of meeting the care needs of our participants is our Safety team. They not only will look out for your physical well-being; they are there to create safe spaces for mental health, sensory, LGBTQIA+ and more.  

We also recognize that there is so much to learn when it comes to being in a space such as MYLE that will be celebrating the ethnic diversity that our participants and their leaders bring. So, the leaders at MYLE are planning for intentional spaces together with trainings and opportunities to address these needs that our Cultural Awareness, Immersion Day, Community Life and Curriculum teams are creating. 

There are many aspects to creating an intentional Beloved Community such as MYLE. I am humbled by the leaders that have come together that represent all of the ELCA’s ethnic ministries to create a community that can be a pathway for healing and brings a time for celebrating the diverse expressions and many facets of our community which are woven through the Holy Spirit. I can’t wait to see you all at the University of St. Thomas next summer for #MYLE2022!

Kelly Sherman-Conroy is a PhD student at Luther Seminary, serves at the Minister of Social Justice & Advocacy for Children, Youth and Family in NE Minneapolis, and she also serves on the Executive Committee of the American Indian/Alaska Native Lutheran Assoc. Inc, and the ELCA Committee for Authentic Diversity. She is the proud mother of a 8-year-old son.

Hello Gathering community! My name is Ed Kay, and I have the privilege of serving as the team leader for the Curriculum Team for the 2022 ELCA Youth Gathering. This is a new team for this cycle, and it a project-based team, focusing on several important areas of the work of the Gathering:

• We helped to edit the latest version of the The Official Gathering Handbook: Tips & Tricks for Adult Leaders, a resource filled with helpful resources and guidance for having an amazing Gathering experience. 
• We developed a resource of Getting Ready Materials (launching June 22), a series of 10 sessions for groups to use to form and prepare their group for Minneapolis. There are sessions to use each month in the school year leading up to the Gathering, which can also be organized to use in a retreat format or other gatherings with lots of church groups. Be creative in how you use them, but makes sure you don’t overlook this important time. There will also be a group of sessions to use as your group comes back home in August, 2022 to process and share your Gathering experience.
• We are preparing the Final 15 materials, which is how your group will debrief and process your daily experience at the end of each day.
• During the Gathering on your Interactive Learning Day, all Gathering participants will get to experience an immersion into the daily themes and Scriptures of the Gathering. We’re calling it Voyage, and it will be sure to be a highlight of your Gathering experience! Filled with music, video, fun, and meaningful engagement, you will get to experience that day’s focus in a whole new way. This is also going to be live-streamed, so your community at home can experience it as well.

I am so excited for this Gathering, and for the work of the team I get to lead. We are working hard to help you prepare your group so you have the best experience possible, and so your time in Minneapolis will be all that it could possibly be. 

Ed Kay is a pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), serving at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Lutherville, MD; he is also the team leader for the Curriculum Team for the 2022 ELCA Youth Gathering. Ed makes his home with 2 amazing children, a greyhound, and a cantankerous cat.

Dear 2022 Gathering adult leaders,

Congratulations on your role to bring a group from your congregation to the 2022 ELCA Youth Gathering. This is an incredible opportunity for you and all who will be involved. Perhaps you feel excited and/or overwhelmed, wondering where to start, especially if you have never been to the Gathering before. 

Be assured, you can do this! You can’t and shouldn’t try to do it alone. Under your leadership, adults, parents and youth in your congregation can work together to intentionally prepare. The Gathering staff and teams will share valuable information and resources now and through the Gathering that will equip groups for a thoughtful experience.

To begin, remember that you don’t need to know all the details right now, just the basic ones. Gathering leadership can be trusted to be on top of all the details and considerations that go into planning for a Gathering. Don’t get stuck on the questions that can’t be answered yet. They will get answered eventually. Share an attitude of possibility and openness and graciously calm expressions of anxiety or fear. You can engage your congregation’s group in learning together.

Schedule info meetings in person, on Zoom or the way that works best for your congregation. Make personal contact as much as possible with youth and families, inviting them to be part of this “once-in-a-lifetime experience,” perhaps starting with “We want you to be a part of the 2022 ELCA Youth Gathering in Minneapolis, MN next July!” 

Your synod, along with the other 64 synods, has a Gathering Synod Coordinator (GSC) who will be an invaluable resource for your questions along with the Gathering website. You can contact your GSC by clicking here. 

May you remember God’s boundless love for you as you start to prepare your group. Peace.